CVP Scoping Review Project

Your project will take place over several semesters, culminating in your final capstone project.  This guide details the elements of literature searching and writing a scoping review.

To fulfill requirements for your degree, you'll research and write a paper that you will present as your capstone project. From that paper, you'll create a manuscript to submit for consideration to an academic, peer-reviewed journal.

You'll develop a research question and search strategy to use in multiple literature databases (e.g. PubMed, CINAHL Ultimate, APA PsycInfo, Web of Science, Embase). You'll search the databases for evidence (research articles) and upload the results to the online management system Covidence.

You will evaluate the relevancy of the articles compared to your research question. You'll read the full text of the most relevant ones and pull evidence from them to create an evidence table that compares details of each study.

You will create a PRISMA Flow Diagram that records the search process. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines recommend the use of a flow diagram to illustrate the study selection process.  The purpose of a flow diagram is to:

• Provide a clear overview of the study selection process: how studies/articles were identified, screened, and included or excluded at each stage of the review.
• Provide transparency in the study selection process and ensure that the review process is well-documented, unbiased and can be reproduced by others.

You'll write the paper and use a citation management system, such as Zotero or EndNote, to insert the in-text citations and bibliography. Your paper will be formatted based on the PRISMA Scoping Review Guidelines.

You'll present your work as your capstone project, and you'll work with your advisor to create a publishable manuscript that you will submit to a journal with the expectation that your research will be published.

Resource: Roush, K. (2019). A nurse's step-by-step guide to writing your dissertation or capstone. Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing.