Step 1: Problem
The problem involved is the smoking habits of women during pregnancy. This problem will also be presented using (1) Population or Patient Problem, (2) Intervention, (3) Comparison, (4) Outcome, and (5) Time. This is otherwise known as the PICOT this is an approach that is used to formulate questions about the identified problem or topic.
Step 2: PICOT
P = (Problem) Pregnant women who smoke
I = (Intervention) Application of Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) and Counseling
C = (Comparison) –none-
O = (Outcome) Cessation from smoking of pregnant women
T = (Time) During pregnancy
Foreground question: In pregnant women, does counseling and/or NRT reduce smoking?
Step 3: Variables
The two involved variables are Pregnancy and Smoking
Step 4: Steps in searching in electronic database
Database – AHRQ, NCBI/PubMed
Steps – (1) Key in appropriate keywords, such as smoking-cessation, pregnant women, NRT, counseling. (2) Identify the topics. (3) Select the relevant studies.
Step 6: Documentation of three article using APA format
Aveyard, P., Lawrence, T., Cheng, K. K., Griffin, C., Croghan, E., &Johnson, C. (2006). A randomized controlled trial of smoking cessation for pregnant women to test the effect of a transtheoretical model-based intervention on movement in stage and interaction with baseline stage. British Journal of Health Psychology 11, 263-278.
Pbert, L., Ockene, J.K., Zapka, J., Ma, Y., Goins, K. V., Oncken, C., Stoddard, A. M. (2004). A community health center smoking-cessation intervention for pregnant and postpartum women. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 26(5), 377-385.
Pollak, K. I., Oncken, C. A., Lipkus, I. M., Lyna, P., Swamy, G. K., Pletsch, P. K.,Myers, E. R. (2007). Nicotine Replacement and Behavioral Therapy for Smoking Cessation in Pregnancy. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 33(4), 297-305.
Step 7: Summary of articles’ relevance to the PICOT
Smoking during pregnancy is one of the significant health issues among gestating women. The substances that cigarettes contain are known to be harmful to humans especially to pregnant women, as it may pose health risks to both the mother and the baby. There are several studies pertaining to smoking cessation during pregnancy. Based on the study presented by Aveyard et al., (2006), a randomized control trial was conducted in connection with smoking cessation of pregnant women using a transtheoretical model of intervention technique. This model of intervention aimed to help pregnant women to stop smoking during their pregnancy. Based on the results and authors’ conclusion, the intervention model that was used effectively helped women when it comes to smoking cessation. In relation to the PICOT topic, the intervention that was applied has the similar goal as the NRT presents, which is to prevent pregnant women from smoking. The article and the PICOT topic both present a similar problem and outcome, but they differ from intervention approach.
On the other hand, another article written by Pbert et al., (2004) presented a similar study about an attempt to help women in preventing themselves from smoking during their pregnancy, but this time the study involves women in their postpartum stage. The research aimed to provide an evaluation of the counseling effects to pregnant women who smoke. This research presented by the authors is somewhat different from the PICOT topic, as it holds more variables, which is more than just smoking and pregnancy. Thus, it involves women in postpartum stage.
Based on the results of the study, the intervention given by the healthcare providers helped in increasing the abstinence in smoking. The counseling is being done during the prenatal care checkup. In relation, the PICOT suggests that counseling will be used as the form of intervention to pregnant women who smoke. They are almost completely the same in terms of their goals, intervention approach, and the time when the intervention is applied.
Nicotine Replacement Therapy or NRT, which was presented in the PICOT’s intervention, holds the same approach with the third article, which is written by Pollak et al., (2007). The study aims to assess whether using NRT to cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) will help in smoking cessation of pregnant women (Pollak et al., 2007). NRT is usually applied to non-pregnant smokers. Thus, it is known to provide effective outcomes to non-pregnant smokers who want to stop smoking. On the other hand, CBT is effective during gestation (Pollak et al., 2007). The article’s relevance to the PICOT shows that they both use the NRT as the intervention method. The PICOT mainly focuses on the cessation outcome of pregnant women from smoking and so as the article presented the same goal. However, the only difference is that the article incorporates the application of CBT rather than focusing on NRT alone.
