# How to use PICO

PICO is four words: population, intervention, comparison, outcome. Use it to write the question, not to decorate it.

Write one phrase for each letter. If the comparison is usual care, say usual care. Do not put the outcome in the search if that would drop studies that measured it and did not put it in the title. ScholarIQ is a product of PICO Portal. This page is the method, not a second product.

## Steps

1. **Population.** Who is in. Age, condition, or setting.

2. **Intervention.** What you study. A drug, a tool, or a policy.

3. **Comparison.** What you compare it with. Name it, even if it is no treatment.

4. **Outcome.** What you will count. Keep it out of the search if the titles omit it.

## ScholarIQ at this step

ScholarIQ can take the four phrases as the search. It does not fill PICO in for you.

## How long does this take for one person?

Count the records first. PICO is four words: population, intervention, comparison, outcome. Use it to write the question, not to decorate it. The time follows the count, not the size of a team.

## What do I write down before I stop?

The rule, the date, and the count. Write one phrase for each letter. If the comparison is usual care, say usual care. Do not put the outcome in the search if that would drop studies that measured it and did not put it in the title. ScholarIQ is a product of PICO Portal. This page is the method, not a second product.

## Do I need a second reviewer?

Not to start. ScholarIQ does not score a second reviewer. If the protocol asks for dual review, a second person sees the same record.

## What is the usual error?

A file with no reason. Write one phrase for each letter. If the comparison is usual care, say usual care. Do not put the outcome in the search if that would drop studies that measured it and did not put it in the title. ScholarIQ is a product of PICO Portal. This page is the method, not a second product.

## How do I know this step is done?

The count matches the records. If a flow-diagram box would not match, the step is not done.

## What goes in the methods?

The rule, the date, and the count. A reader must be able to open the same record.

## Can I skip this step?

No, if you will call the work a systematic review. If you skip it, write what you did. Do not hide the gap.

## What if I cannot finish?

Stop. Write how far you got. Records you did not screen are not exclusions.

## What does a supervisor check?

The rule, a sample of decisions, and the passage.

## What is outside this step?

A guideline panel, a CRO, and a GRADE meeting. ScholarIQ can take the four phrases as the search. It does not fill PICO in for you.