Writing a Research Question Exercise

Instructions:  Review the resources on writing research questions in the PICO format, and answer the
following questions.
Identify the “PICO” elements in the following research questions:

1. Do healthy primigravid women who receive free gym memberships during pregnancy gain less
weight during the pregnancy than women who receive regular prenatal care?
P:
I:
C:
O:

2. Do overweight women with pre-pregnancy hypertension experience a different risk of stillbirth
than women who are normotensive before pregnancy?
P:
I:
C:
O:

Write a research question incorporating the following “PICO” elements:
3. P: preterm infants experiencing narcotics withdrawal
I:  baby-wearing
C: normal care
O: jitteriness and hyperreflexia
Research Question:

4.  P: sexually-active teenagers who smoke
I:  new oral contraceptive pill “Z”
C: old contraceptive pill “X”
O: deep vein thrombosis
Research Question:

5. P: Post-menopausal African-American women experiencing hot flashes
I:  bio-identical hormones
C: Prempro
O: hot flash intensity measured via the Thurston hot flash scale
Research Question:

6. Think of a problem that impacts women’s health that interest you. This can be a medical
condition, an issue with acceptance or adherence to care, a public health issue or something
else.
What is the woman’s health problem you’ve come up with?

7. Think of two interventions to address this women’s health problem. The first intervention
should involve direct patient care and should be an intervention that can be implemented with
an individual women. The second intervention should address the issue on a broader level, such
as starting a program or increasing community access to a particular resource. List your two
interventions here.

8. Write PICO elements for a research question about intervention 1 and then write the research
question.

9. Write PICO elements for a research question about intervention 2 and then write the research
question.