Question

One of the most important skills a nurse needs is clinical judgment. This is a skill that can be learned. Reflect on your own ability to critically think and the reading for this module.

When see yourself as a nurse and giving care, discuss what qualities and behaviors you possess that make you a person that would have good clinical judgment. What three strategies can you use to develop better clinical judgment? As a nurse, what areas of the nursing process do you think might be more challenging to you given the critical thinking and clinical judgment skills you have now?

Answer 1

As a nurse providing care, stressful situations actually allow me to think of better ideas; therefore, I am able to think quickly and act swiftly. I always double check or triple check everything just in case; for, it’s better to be safe than sorry. I’m a good listener, open to communication, love to learn, and aware that I am solely responsible for my actions. Three strategies that will allow me to develop better clinical judgment include: keeping references, determining priorities, and following the chain of command. Keeping references allows for the familiarity of normal findings, terminologies, and concepts. Through determining which patients should be priorities over those with less urgent injuries will allow for efficient administration of treatments. Prioritizing every patient over the most important ones will only result in further progression of the patient’s injury and create the feeling of disorganization. Being able to identify and efficiently implement the chain of command will allow for further assistance in dealing with patients when unsure of patients symptoms. If unsure of what to do in a certain situation it is best to activate the chain of command so that the patient receives proper treatment. The area that I would find most challenging in the nursing process would be diagnosis; for, there are various signs and symptoms that correlate with other illness, making it hard to identify at times.

Reference:

Alfaro's Critical Thinking, Clinical Reasoning, and Clinical Judgment, 6th Edition

Benner P, Tanner CA, C Hesla CA. Expertise in Nursing Practice Caring, Clinical Judgment & Ethics.New York, NY 10036–8002: Springer Publishing Company, LLC; 2009. p. 47.

Tanner CA. Clinical judgment and evidence-based practice: toward pedagogies of integration. J Nurs Educ. 2008;47(8):335–6.