sJMJ

Janine Beatrice T. Mijares

7/22/2016
MN1

MIN 223A_A

Why is critical thinking important in Nursing?

Along with knowledge, skills and attitude, critical thinking is a vital part
and an indispensible trait a nurse should possess. Every day in the
workplace, we, nurses are faced with numerous questions and dilemmas
wherein a lot of factors are to be considered. More importantly, we are
dealing with lives; therefore, the decisions we make in our line of work are
sensitive and critical.
There are actually numerous definitions of critical thinking. According
to the American Association of Colleges of Nurses, Critical thinking underlies
independent and interdependent decision making. Critical thinking includes
questioning, analysis, synthesis, interpretation, inference, inductive and
deductive reasoning, intuition, application, and creativity. On the other hand,
The National League for Nursing Accreditation Commission (NLNAC) defined
critical thinking as: the deliberate nonlinear process of collecting,
interpreting, analyzing, drawing conclusions about, presenting, and
evaluating information that is both factually and belief based. This is
demonstrated in nursing by clinical judgment, which includes ethical,
diagnostic, and therapeutic dimensions and research. It is evident that by
these definitions, one can sense that critical thinking is a complex concept
and an even harder skill to develop. It is a skill, which I believe, takes years
of experience to achieve.
As I have mentioned earlier, nurses deal with lives every day in the
workplace. That, in my opinion, would be the main reason why critical
thinking is important in nursing. One minor lapse in clinical decision-making
can mean the loss of patients lives. After just 3 months of exposure as a
staff nurse in the Paediatric unit in CLMMRH, I have come across very
challenging situations. Since the Paediatric ICU cannot accommodate all
patients in critical conditions, it is not uncommon for wards to house severely
ill patients. These patients can range from high-risk community-acquired
pneumonia patients to severely-dehydrated acute gastroenteritis cases.

Taking care of these patients is not an easy job. Apart from close monitoring,
countless referrals to the resident doctors, and doing bedside care, we also
have more things to be concerned about. Also, we have 20 other patients we
have in the ward who need nursing care and attention and sometimes it is a
one nurse-one ward ratio. For that reason, time-management, proper
prioritization and competent clinical decision-making are vital. These traits
all boil down to one concept and that is critical thinking. I must admit though
that I have yet to learn more and have yet to develop my critical thinking
skills.
All the other reasons why critical thinking is important in nursing is
underlined by Patricia Benner in chapter 6 of the book: Patient Safety and
Quality: An Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses. Critical thinking is
important in nursing because it allows nurses to:
1. Use nursing and other appropriate theories and models, and an
appropriate ethical framework;
Nursing theories and models guide nurses to render effective nursing care
and to understand patients better. Through critical thinking, nurses will be
able to apply the most appropriate nursing model in any given scenario.
2. Apply research-based knowledge from nursing and the sciences as the
basis for practice;
Evidence-based practice in nursing is crucial. Critical thinking enables nurses
to interpret and correlated research findings with the current practice. It also
enables nurses to effectively apply evidence-based practice in the work
place.
3. Use clinical judgment and decision-making skills;
Through critical thinking, nurses are able to make competent and sound
decisions especially in the care of patients in critical condition.
4. Evaluate nursing care outcomes through the acquisition of data and the
questioning of inconsistencies, allowing for the revision of actions and goals;
Critical thinking enables nurses to assess the quality of care they render to
their patients. Consequently, they are able to modify their plan of care to
better serve their patients and to achieve the goals and objectives he/she
has set for them.

5. Engage in creative problem solving.

With the use of critical thinking, nurses will be able to formulate innovative
solutions to problems in and out of the workplace. This can come useful
especially in situations wherein resources are scarce or in patient with unique
health care needs.

Reference: Hughes, R. (2008). Patient safety and quality: An evidence-based

handbook for nurses. Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and
Quality, U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services.