MIDTERM NP

• Problem solving process (critical thinking in nursing practice)

  Contemporary nursing practice needs effective thinkers and decision makers who are capable of analyzing clinical data, medical and nursing knowledge, and environment data, translating the analyses into life-saving interventions
• Critical thinking


  The ability to think in a systematic and logical manner with openness to question and reflect on the reasoning process
• It involves


  • Open-mindedness
  • Continual inquiry
  • Perseverance
• It considers


  • What is important in clinical situations
  • Imagines and explores alternatives
  • Ethical principles
  • Make informed decisions about the care of the patient
• Reflection


  Purposeful thinking back or recalling a situation to discover its purpose or meaning
• Critical thinking & clinical judgement skills

  • Interpretation
  • Analysis
  • Inference
  • Evaluation
  • Explanation
  • Self-regulation
• Interpretation


  • Be orderly in collecting data about patients
  • Apply reasoning while looking for patterns to emerge
  • Categorize the data
  • Gather additional data or clarify any data about which you are uncertain
• Analysis


  • Be open-minded as you look at information about the patient
  • Do not make careless assumptions
• Inference


  • Look at the meaning and significance of the findings
  • Are there relationships about the findings? Does the data about the patient help you see that a problem exists?
• Evaluation


  • Look at all situations objectively
  • Use criteria to determine results of nursing interventions
  • Reflect on your own behavior
• Explanation


  • Support your findings and conclusions
  • Use knowledge and experience to choose strategies to use in the care of patients
• Self-regulation


  • Reflect on your experiences
  • Be responsible for connecting your actions with outcomes
  • Identify the ways you can improve your own performance. What will make you believe that you have been successful?
• Concepts for a critical thinker

  • Truth seeking
  • Open-mindedness
  • Analyticity
  • Systemacity
  • Self-confidence
  • Inquisitiveness
  • Maturity
• Truth seeking


  Seek the true meaning of a situation. Be courageous, honest and objective about asking questions
• Open-mindedness


  Be tolerant of different views; be sensitive to the possibility of your own prejudices; respect the right of others to have different opinions
• Analyticity


  Analyze potential problematic situations; anticipate possible results or consequences; value reason; use evidence-based knowledge
• Systemacity


  Be organized, focused; work hard in any inquiry
• Self-confidence


  Trust in your own reasoning processes
• Inquisitiveness


  Be eager to acquire knowledge and learn explanations even when applications of the knowledge are not immediately clear. Value learning for learning's sake
• Maturity


  Multiple solutions are acceptable. Reflect on your own judgements; have cognitive maturity
• Levels of critical thinking in nursing

  • Basic critical thinking
  • Complex critical thinking
  • Commitment
• Basic critical thinking


  • A learner trusts that experts have the right answers for every problems
  • Thinking is concrete and based on a set of rules or principles
  • The nurse does not have enough experience to anticipate how to individualize the procedure when problems arise
  • Answers to complex problems either right or wrong
  • A basic critical thinker learns to accept diverse opinions and values of experts
• Complex critical thinking


  • Begins to separate themselves from experts
  • The nurse analyzes the situation and examine choices more independently
  • Learns that alternatives and perhaps conflicting solutions exist
  • The complex critical thinkers is willing to consider different options from routine procedures when complex situations develop
• Commitment


  • The nurse anticipates when to make choices without assistance from others and accepts accountability for decisions made
  • Nurse do more than just consider the complex alternatives that a problem poses
• Attitudes for critical thinking

  • Confidence
  • Independence
  • Fairness
  • Responsibility
  • Risk Taking
  • Discipline
  • Perseverance
  • Creativity
  • Curiosity
  • Integrity
  • Humility
• Nursing process


  • The cornerstone of the nursing profession
  • Synonymous with the problem-solving approach for discovering healthcare and nursing care needs of clients
  • Organized
  • Systematic
  • Goal-Oriented
  • Humanistic Care
  • Effective
  • Efficient
• Phases of the nursing process

  • Diagnosis
  • Assessment
  • Planning
  • Evaluation
  • Intervention
• Characteristics of a nursing process

  • Problem-Oriented
  • Goal oriented
  • Systematic
  • Flexible to meet the unique needs of the patient, family, group or community (dynamic)
  • Interpersonal
  • Permits creativity among nurses and patients
  • Cyclical
  • Universal
• Benefits of the nursing process for the patients

  • Quality patient care
  • Continuity of care
  • Participation by the patients in their healthcare
• Benefits of the nursing process for the nurse

  • Consistent and systematic nursing education
  • Job satisfaction
  • Personal growth
  • Avoidance of legal action
  • Meeting professional nursing standards
  • Meeting standards of accredited hospitals
• The heart of the nursing process

  • Caring
  • Skills
  • Knowledge
• Knowledge


  • Broad
  • Varied
• Skills


  • Manual (Technical Skills)
  • Intellectual (Critical Thinking)
  • Interpersonal (Positive Relationships)
• Caring - willingness


  • Being able to care
  • Understanding ourselves
  • To be able to understand others
  • To be more objective / nonjudgmental
• Caring - willingness to care


  • Requires the ability to listen empathetically
  • Listen with intent
  • Enter another's way of thinking and viewing the world
  • Connecting with another's way of thinking and viewing the world
  • Connecting with another's feeling and perceptions
  • Identifying with another's struggles, frustrations, and desires
  • Able to detach from feelings and returning to our own frame reference
• Willingness to care


  • Keep the focus on what is best for the patient
  • Respect the beliefs and values of others
  • Stay involved
  • Maintain a healthy lifestyle
• Caring behaviors


  • Inspiring someone/instilling hope and faith
  • Demonstrating patience, compassion and willingness to persevere
  • Offering companionship
  • Helping someone stay in touch with positive aspect of his life
  • Demonstrating thoughtfulness
  • Bending the rules when it really counts
  • Doing the "little things"
  • Keeping someone informed
  • Showing your human side by sharing stories
• Nursing assessment


  Collecting, validating, organizing, and recording data about the patient's health status
• Purpose of assessment


  • Establish a data base
• Collection of data


  • Gathering information about the patient, considering the physical, psychological, emotional, sociocultural, and spiritual factors that may affect his/her health status