There are no dumb questions!

Have you ever asked yourself, “Why do we do it this way?” or “Would it work better if we did this instead?” Whether you are asking about patient care or professional development, all research starts with a good question. Asking the right question requires some thought, and there are a few steps to help get you on the right track.

Firstly, what is the area of interest, topic, or focus? Sometimes the first question that comes to mind is very broad, i.e., “Why are we seeing so many readmissions of our post-surgical patients?” So, dig a little deeper to find out if it is all the post-operative patients, or just a specific surgery, and why they are coming back. Once you have narrowed it down, you have your topic.

Secondly, what is the problem? Is it health-related outcomes, patient satisfaction, or costs? All three? If you do not ask the question, what problem will go unsolved? Perhaps you have high readmissions for post-open appendectomy patients, who come back with infection at the site. Clearly, this problem has health risks, costs associated with readmissions, and patient satisfaction implications. A deeper dive reveals the patients who do not have readmissions more frequently receive certain antibiotics. Additionally, you find literature suggesting the same problem happens elsewhere, but no one has discovered how to correct the issue in your population.

Thirdly, comes the why. What is your purpose, and how do you intend to solve the problem. The purpose of the study would be to test different antibiotic treatments and discover which one reduces readmissions based on infections in post-operative open-appendectomy patients.

Lastly, formulate the question. The question is often your purpose statement in the form of a question. “Is antibiotic A more effective than antibiotic B in reducing readmissions and infections in post-operative open-appendectomy patients?” or, “What is the efficacy of antibiotic A versus antibiotic B in reducing surgical site infections in post-operative open-appendectomy patients?”

Following this four-step process allows you to create a specific question to address a specific issue.

1.?????? Area of interest

2.?????? Problem statement

3.?????? Purpose statement

4.?????? Question

After these steps, we hypothesize, but that’s for another blog post.

One final thought, the question you pose should matter to you. Research takes time and commitment, but the work is worth the reward, especially if it fuels your passion!

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About the Author:?Heather Watson, Ph.D., R.N. is the Nurse Scientist for the Johns Hopkins Health System. In this role, she leads and conducts interprofessional research to strengthen the implementation, adoption, and sustainability of best evidence for clinical, administrative, and nursing practice.