Critique of the article on HIV prevention among teenagers

This critique analyzes Santos et al.'s article on HIV prevention among teenagers, using the CASP tool as a framework. It covers the abstract, background, data collection, sample design, literature review, ethical considerations, and findings of the study.

Running head: Nursing assignment
Nursing assignment
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author note

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Introduction
The aim of the assignment is to critique the article titled, “The prevention of the human
immunodeficiency virus by the primary attention team for the teenagers” by Santos et al. (2017).
In these assignment different aspects of the research article is critiqued using the CASP tool
(Nadelson & Nadelson, 2014) as the framework. The different aspects include abstract,
background of the study, data collection methods, sample design, target population, literature
review, ethical considerations and the findings of the study.
CRITIQUE
Introduction
The section of the article evokes curiosity as it details about the increasing incidence of
HIV among adolescents and how it is a public health challenge due to lack of research focusing
on HIV/AIDS prevention. This section is succinct and yet informative with relevant statistics
(Nadelson & Nadelson, 2014).
Title of the article
The title of the article is succinct and written in 15 words. It is sufficient enough to grab
the reader’s attention by triggering curiosity about HIV prevention to read the abstract of the
article.

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Abstract
The abstract clearly highlights the objective of the paper as the aim to investigate the
actions of HIV promotions and preventions developed for adolescents by primary care nurses.
This section succinctly presents the methodology of the article, with the results and the
conclusions from the findings. The abstract is written in concise and clear manner that attracts
the reader to continue reading the full text.
Article presentation
The article is presented in lucid language and is well organised with separate headings
for each section. The paper well specifies the problem and its importance and states why this
research is different from the existing ones. The contributions of the paper are clear along with
the methods used, key results, and the implications for nursing practice. The presentation is
interesting enough right from title to grab the attention of readers (Nadelson & Nadelson, 2014).
Terms
The search terms used for finding this article in databases are primary, HIV, teen, and
prevention. The database searched was CINHAL and Medline.
Purpose/Background of study
The problem that led to investigation in the area of HIV prevention among adolescents is
clearly stated. The background of the paper is set by discussing about the AIDS epidemic over
the past 30 years. The purpose of the study is well established by citing the fact that there is an
increasing incidence of HIV infection in adolescents and lack of sufficient investigation in this
area. The author also cited that there is lack of information on HIV prevention in the

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Municipality of Arcoverde-PE. The objective of the purpose of the paper is very clear despite
lack of clearly defined problem statement and the goals. It may be considered the strength of the
study.
Target population
The target population is evident from the title of the study that states the prevention of
the HIV for the teenagers. It was easy to find the target population for the readers without having
to search the full text or methodology section.
Significance of study
The significance to the study is obvious to me as a nurse I can reformulate the care
process based on the knowledge on actions required for effective implementation of the HIV
promotion and prevention strategies.
Literature review
There is no separate section named as literature review but the author appears to have
reviewed several sources. It well established the need of the investigation and stressed
importance of the promotion and prevention of HIV among adolescents. The author has cited
article relevant to the area of investigation. There are a total of 18 citations and all are
appropriately referenced. The author as considered both recent literature say 2016 as well as old
literature dated 2010 (Mikesell, Bromley & Khodyakov, 2013).

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Ethical consideration
Ethical issues were not well discussed in the study and may be considered the drawback
of the research. However, highlighting the approval from ethics boards and committee indicates
the consideration of the ethical issues in carrying out the research. The researcher has also
obeyed the resolution from the National Health Council. The research protocol was approved by
the Research Ethics Committee of the “HUOC PROCAPE through Opinion N° 1223146”
(Santos et al., 2017). The author mentioned about taking informed consent from the participants
and had not discussed the issue of assent. However, the issue of assent does not arise here as the
participants are adults (Mikesell, Bromley & Khodyakov, 2013).
Study - research design
The author describes the research design as the descriptive study with the quantitative
approach both in the abstract as well as methodology section. The chosen design is justified to
meet the research objectives as it uses survey method. According to Heyvaert et al. (2013) the
survey methods in quantitative approach are good methods as it is not possible to measure large
number of samples to gain insights of natural behaviours. It is effective in describing, explaining
and validating the findings.
Samples
The sample for the research is well mentioned both in the abstract as well as
methodology section. In this investigation the sample population comprise of nurses from health
basic units. It is well justified as they are in frontline in caring for the HIV patients. Only 20
nurses were selected which may be the drawback in presentations of the findings. As per
Mikesell, Bromley, & Khodyakov (2013) the details of the inclusion and exclusion criteria

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increases the authenticity of the research. The participants were included only if they worked in
the UBSF teams in the municipality of “Arcoverde”. The nurses who refused to participate were
excluded from the research along with those who were not a part of the UBSF team in the
concerned municipality. The sampling method was justified in this regard as the problem of HIV
incidence is mainly associated with the “Municipality of Arcoverde-PE” and it mandates taking
perspective of the nurses wring in this municipality.
Data collection
The data collection method was not at all discussed in length that leads to confusion as I
am not an expert in research. It may be considered drawback of the study as it prevents readers
from understanding the data collection process in details (Mackey & Gass, 2013). The author has
just mentioned that the data was collected through “self-administered questionnaire” where the
questions are based on the nursing team’s strategies to promote health and prevent HIV. Prior to
the survey the 20 nurses were interviewed and identified about the current HIV cases in singe
USBF. The questionnaires that were used were pre-validated which ensures reliable findings
(Heyvaert et al., 2013).
Data analysis
The information collected was treated in the secretive manner. No further details were
given about the data analysis. It is not evident as to what measures were taken by the researcher
to ensure the accuracy of the results. The research article does not also presents the statistics that
were used in data interoperations. There were no details on the correlations and the use of the
statistical package. The confidence interval used to measure the statistical significance of the

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data was also not highlighted. It greatly reduces the validity and reliability of the results. The
credibility of the research appears doubtful (Terrell, 2012).
Results/findings
It appeared from survey that 85% of the nurses take preventive actions against the HIV
affected adolescents. There are 80% of the nurses providing male condoms at the unit. As per the
findings 20% of the nurses have a group of adolescents in the unit. The findings were better
evident from the tabular charts than in write-up. The variables and the percentages enable readers
to understand the difficulty faced by the nurses. Overall the results are discussed in manner that
is reflective of data and objective (LoBiondo-Wood & Haber, 2017). It can be said that the
findings demonstrate what was hoped to found by the authors. The findings seem relevant
considering limited research in this area by other authors in the field.
Conclusion of the study
The study conclude the need of investigating the experiences of the health team in coping
up with the adolescents diagnosed with HIV or AIDS in recommending new strategies of health
promotion of prevention among the at risk population. The implications of the findings and the
discussion were crystal clear.
Recommendations from the articles
Lack of specific section on recommendations is the drawback of the study as per Wester
et al. (2013). However, the researcher has clearly highlighted the need of further research and
areas of improvement for the health team in future prevention of HIV. The findings of the
investigation are sufficient to draw recommendations (Wisdom et al., 2012). Based on the

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findings from the article it can be concluded that there is a need of training the human resources
to allow for having sufficient health teams to assist the population. They must be sensitised for
working with the teenagers as according to the author there are not much people willing to work
with the adolescents. The health care professionals must also be given the autonomy to
implement their rights in researching about the non-existence of the adolescents in HIV services.
These recommendations are supported by the study of Tanner et al. (2014). There is a need of
further research in the identifying the challenged faced by the health team in cooing with HIV or
AIDS among adolescents and devise HIV preventive strategies and health promotion tactics
(Marrazzo et al., 2014).
Limitations
There is no separate section called limitations and also the author did not mention any
limiting factors of the research. It may be considered the drawback of the research, as the
credibility of the findings is in doubt as per Brutus, Aguinis & Wassmer (2013). According to
Terrell (2012) when conducting the survey the participant’s number must be large enough to gain
confidence in results as the margin of error falls. However, the researcher has only chosen 20
nurses which mean a significant level of error may be present (De Vaus & de Vaus, 2013).
Conclusion of the essay
The article titled, “The prevention of the human immunodeficiency virus by the primary
attention team for the teenagers” is well written research paper. The results are well presented in
non-biased manner. The details of the study design, sample size, data collection and findings are
presented in easy to read manner. However, the statistical evidence of results is neither concise
nor well defined. The discussion on implications and evidence are objectively and clearly

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mentioned. These findings can be utilised by the nurses to act more actively in the context of
HIV prevention among teenagers.

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References
Brutus, S., Aguinis, H., & Wassmer, U. (2013). Self-reported limitations and future directions in
scholarly reports: Analysis and recommendations. Journal of Management, 39(1), 48-75.
De Vaus, D., & de Vaus, D. (2013). Surveys in social research. Routledge. Retrieved from:
https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/9781134086313
Heyvaert, M., Hannes, K., Maes, B., & Onghena, P. (2013). Critical appraisal of mixed methods
studies. Journal of mixed methods research, 7(4), 302-327.
LoBiondo-Wood, G., & Haber, J. (2017). Nursing Research-E-Book: Methods and Critical
Appraisal for Evidence-Based Practice. Elsevier Health Sciences.
Mackey, A., & Gass, S. M. (2013). Second language research: Methodology and design.
Routledge.
Marrazzo, J. M., Del Rio, C., Holtgrave, D. R., Cohen, M. S., Kalichman, S. C., Mayer, K. H., ...
& Kumarasamy, N. (2014). HIV prevention in clinical care settings: 2014 recommendations
of the International Antiviral Society–USA Panel. Jama, 312(4), 390-409.
Mikesell, L., Bromley, E., & Khodyakov, D. (2013). Ethical community-engaged research: a
literature review. American journal of public health, 103(12), e7-e14.
Nadelson, S., & Nadelson, L. S. (2014). Evidence‐Based Practice Article Reviews Using CASP
Tools: A Method for Teaching EBP. Worldviews on Evidence
‐Based Nursing, 11(5), 344-
346.

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Santos, S. C., Almeida, D. B., Oliveira, W. A. S., Alexandre, A. C. S., Lyra, F. M. P., &
Barbosa, V. F. B. (2017). The prevention of the human immunodeficiency virus by the
primary attention team for the teenagers. Journal of Nursing UFPE on line-ISSN: 1981-
8963, 11(8), 3050-3056.
Tanner, A. E., Philbin, M. M., Duval, A., Ellen, J., Kapogiannis, B., Fortenberry, J. D., &
Adolescent Trials Network for HIV/AIDS Interventions. (2014). “Youth friendly” clinics:
Considerations for linking and engaging HIV-infected adolescents into care. AIDS
care, 26(2), 199-205.
Terrell, S. R. (2012). Mixed-methods research methodologies. The qualitative report, 17(1), 254-
280.
Wester, K. L., Borders, L. D., Boul, S., & Horton, E. (2013). Research quality: Critique of
quantitative articles in the Journal of Counseling & Development. Journal of Counseling &
Development, 91(3), 280-290.
Wisdom, J. P., Cavaleri, M. A., Onwuegbuzie, A. J., & Green, C. A. (2012). Methodological
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