Introduction
Now that you have chosen a gap in practice (fall prevention) to focus on in your writing, it is time to find evidence that shows this problem is worth exploring or researching. In this assessment, you will be substantiating your practice gap or problem with evidence from the literature by searching for high-quality articles, completing an evidence table, and synthesizing your findings for readers.
Preparation: Evidence Table
For this part of the assessment, use the Evidence Table Template [DOCX] to list research articles that will help inform the topic you selected, fall prevention
Search the Capella library databases for a minimum of five research articles that you will use for your project topic. Complete the evidence table fully for these articles, providing all the required information.
• Identify five keywords that relate to a specific gap in practice in the PICOT question.
• Conduct a literature search using the keywords and select at least five relevant research articles, published within the past five years, that provide information or insight about the clinical practice gap, the article must be from the US.
• Create an evidence table and complete each column for each research article.
• Include the evidence table as an appendix to this assessment.
Part 1: Critical Review of Literature
For the first part of the assessment, provide a critical review of each of the articles you included in the evidence table.
Start with a one-paragraph introduction that includes a brief overview of the gap in practice. Then, for each article, write a one-paragraph critique that addresses the following:
• Provide a one-sentence overview of the main point of the article.
o Be sure each article is correctly formatted in APA format. The author’s last name and date should be used to identify each article, rather than the article title.
• Provide the research questions and discuss the research methodology used.
o If the research question is not specified, provide the aim of the study instead.
• Analyze the theoretical basis and/or conceptual framework used in the study, if described in the study.
• Critically appraise the study using one or more of the following:
o SORT [PDF].
o Johns Hopkins [PDF].
o What is GRADE?
• Report on the study findings and propose a possible application this article could have to your own project topic.
• Length: 3 pages.
Part 2: Synthesis of Literature
You have done a great job of collecting a lot of information to substantiate a gap in practice. Now it is time to summarize the information, reach conclusions, and link the resources that you found. In other words, a synthesis is akin to combining the parts to make a whole. This is accomplished by asking yourself, what is the main point(s) that the selected research articles have in common? For the second part of the assessment, provide a brief synthesis (1–2 paragraphs) of the information you have collected from the five articles you chose.
Thus, following the MEAL plan, you will write a topic sentence for this section that makes a main point, which is supported and explained by all of the articles you selected. If you devote one paragraph to an entire article, you are creating an annotated bibliography, which is helpful for your personal use to keep track of your articles, but it is not a synthesis of the literature. This skill will be important for you to master before you create your project charter, which must be written professionally, yet succinctly.
In your synthesis of the literature:
• Following the MEAL Plan, synthesize the gap in practice using all five articles to clearly identify the gap in practice.
• Identify any unanswered questions and areas where further research is needed.
• The paragraph should be in your own words and should not include quotes.
Part 3: Writing Feedback
An important part of writing at the doctoral level is using feedback to improve your writing skills. Look back at the feedback you have already received on previous assessments in this course, and write a short conclusion to this paper that addresses the following:
• What kinds of writing feedback did you receive on your previous assessments? Are there any specific writing skills you may need to work on?
• How do you plan to improve your writing in these areas? What resources do you think would be useful to you in your journey to become a better academic writer?
• How will implementing these changes move your work closer to one or more of the writing quality indicators identified in the Writing Feedback Tool?
