NRS 430 Define critical thinking and evidence-based practice
NRS 430 Define critical thinking and evidence-based practice
NRS 430 Define critical thinking and evidence-based practice
Critical thinking is the ability to apply quick and effective thinking to a specified situation (Dean, 2018). According to the nursing process, critical thinking is taking into consideration nursing assessment and the desired outcomes. Interventions play a huge part in critical thinking. Many characteristics contribute to critical thinking such as asking questions, gathering relevant information, thinking through solutions and conclusions, open mindedness, confidence and effective communication. The ability to effectively break down an issue can be difficult. Critical thinking is not something that comes easy. We are taught what it takes to critically think but it takes experience to gain the confidence needed to feel secure. It is vital because majority of the time it can save a life in the long run.
Evidence-base practice is the integration of clinical expertise and the most current research (Dean, 2018). Elements are best available evidence, clinicians’ knowledge and skills and the patients wants and needs. It is all about making better decisions and a desired impact of outcomes.
Critical thinking and evidence-based practice play an equal role as they relate to client outcomes. If it were not for evidence-based practice, there would be no proof if certain things were effective. Critical thinking is interactive and quick. We as nursing learn about both of these topics in school. When we start to actually put them in action and think about what part each plays in the nursing process, this is when it starts to make sense. Developing critical thinking skills is something that comes through trial and error. I feel that when we utilize critical thinking skills we stay on our toes and sharp.
A prime example utilizing both concepts would be knowing that keeping some wounds covered up can keep them macerated and not heal properly. I am a believer in leaving things open to air. When some wounds are not draining there is no need for them to be covered to stay moist and be breeding grounds for infection.
References:
K, Dean. (2018) Practice and Competency Development [E-book]. Dynamics in nursing: Art and science of professional practice. Grand Canyon University
CAT Question: This question seeks opinion and is not necessarily research based. This is a time for us to have general dialogue where you can share your thoughts and ideas. If you post is substantial, it will be counted as a participation posts.
Please share a situation in which you have developed a deeper thinking or understanding of a concept and what supported that deeper learning? Would you do things differently if a similar situation occurred? Why or why not?
A situation that I believe that I have developed a deeper thinking or understanding of is pain management. I take care of quite a bit of orthopedic patients in the skilled nursing facility where I worked. Understanding that pain is different for each patient and all patients cope with pain differently. When faced with pain some patients would become withdrawn and or depressed, refuse to participate in PT/OT, and even refuse ADL care. Using open communication with my patients allowed me to understand how they were feeling which allowed me to do more in-depth pain assessments. I would communicate that information to the physician and the patient’s plan of care would change accordingly. I then used what I knew to anticipate my patient’s needs for pain medication and pre-medicate prior to PT/OT, wound, and ADL care. Now that I have gained this knowledge I know how to handle these types of situations for future encounters.
Caring in the nursing profession takes place every time a nurse-to-patient contact is made. The nurse enters the world of the patient in order to come to know the patient as a caring person, and that it is from this “epistemology” that the caring of nursing unfolds (Schoenhofer 2002). That caring makes a difference to the patient’s sense of well being. Caring may occur without curing but curing cannot occur without caring (Watson 2003)
Vance, T. (2003, April 11). Caring and the professional practice of nursing . RN Journal. https://rn-journal.com/journal-of-nursing/caring-and-the-professional-practice-of-nursing
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I believe as a nurse we deal with various situations while dealing with patient care. As I worked in the med-surg unit in the hospital, one of the situation where I developed deeper thinking or understanding of a concept is the infection prevention. One of my fully independent patients is admitted for fever with unknown origin, totally asymptomatic. Suddenly he started to have loose stool, with my deeper thinking and understanding I contacted with the provider and send the stool sample for C.Diff. which came positive which helps the medical team to treat the patient accordingly with correct antibiotics. Now I know how to use my deeper thinking or understanding when the same situation occurs.
Deeper learning is an umbrella term for skills and knowledge. Deep learning requires the educator to facilitate the development of critical thinking and students to actively learn and take responsibility for gaining knowledge and skills. As the Pandemic brought public awareness to the contributions of nurses, the art of nursing was evident in the many ways that nurses cared for both patients and families. The art of nursing has been defined as the nurse’s ability to be compassionate, caring, and communicative both verbal and non-verbal interaction and active listening. Nurses use communication skills to provide optimal care to the patients. (Tracey et al.2021).
Tracey Motter, DNP, MSN, RN David Hassler, MFA Mary K. Anthony, PhD, RN. The Online Journal Of issues in nursing, The Art of Nursing Becomes a Celebration of Nurses
Thank you for your post. One of my thoughts during COVID was that we knew how contagious COVID was but yet, we moved away from some of our PPE practices because we did not have the required PPE. Reusing N95s and face masks was something that was against all of our EBP. Definitely a challenging time.
As a new graduate on the med surge floor and still on orientation, many of the concepts are beginning to be make sense. A patient with ESRD, placed on telemonitor, and go for dialysis three times a week suddenly became tachy on the monitor. Patient was asymptomatic while lab result came in with an elevated potassium. Although, both feet were swelling and a little abdominal distention. Relating what was thought in school that hyperkalemia could result to arrythmias. Immediately relay result to the attending provider who ordered for an extra day dialysis. Patient was dialyzed and went back to sinus rhythm on EKG and potassium became normal.
The situation made my learning of the relationship between hyperkalemia and cardiac irregularities to make more sense. what was funny was that, my preceptor and attending provider took it with a pinch of salt while I was jittery and alarmed. I know I would be calm in my next experience and take control of myself. If not for my preceptor, i would have called the Rapid response team.
A situation that has helped me develop a deeper thinking or understanding of is be effective in a life saving event within a short notice of time. I use to work in the emergency department resuscitation room, and when we receive a collapsed patient, our team provides crash intubation, stabilize the patient, and learn how to be prepared in a short notice. It taught me that every second is very important to save a patient. As stated by (National library of medicine, 2021), “Cardiac arrest situations present one of the highest emergencies. In these cases, resuscitation must be started as soon as possible. The main goal is to restore cardiopulmonary function. Appropriate action in the event of a sudden cardiac arrest should be prompt and professional.” With this kind of job, we are always in a stressful situation because the patient’s life depends on us. This helps us to manage stress within the hospital and also helps us to deal stress outside the hospital. We also have to calm the patient’s family. As stated by (ScienceDirect, 2021), “Cardiopulmonary resuscitation represents a major physical and psychological challenge for all involved health care workers because survival of the patients is closely related to the timely and accurate actions of rescuers. Consequently, rescuers may experience high levels of acute mental stress. Stress, in turn, may influence attentional resources and distractibility, which may affect the quality of resuscitation. This narrative review summarizes the current state of research concerning the influence of stress on resuscitation performance.”
Koželj, A., Šikić Pogačar, M., Fijan, S., Strauss, M., Poštuvan, V., & Strnad, M. (2021, December 21). Exploring the feelings of nurses during resuscitation-a cross-sectional study. Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8774964/
Vincent, A. (2020, September 25). Does stress influence the performance of cardiopulmonary resuscitation? A narrative review of the literature. Journal of Critical Care. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0883944120306997
Understanding academic research, literature review, scholarly writing, academic integrity, and academic dishonesty are the framework for a baccalaureate education, which also contribute to the professionalism of nursing. Additionally, learning to research relevant nursing topics forms critical-thinking skills necessary to provide excellent patient care(Dean et al., 2022).
Critical thinking (CT) is vital to evidence-based nursing practice. Evidence-based practice (EBP) supports nursing care and can contribute positively to patient outcomes across a variety of settings…(J, P.M. n.d.)
EBP is the driving force behind many practice revisions and updates in nursing (Stevens, 2013). From the time nursing students begin their education, the concept of EBP and its vital necessity in nursing practice is reiterated time and again. EBP drives nurses to increase their critical-thinking skills, observing and processing information as they practice and brainstorming ideas to make improvements. EBP takes nurses from being task-oriented to being educated problem solvers who use the scientific process to make relevant changes that impact their patients’ care and outcomes (Brower & Nemec, 2017)(Dean et al., 2022).
Evidence based practice is proven to result in better patient outcomes. Critical thinking in nursing practice is important because patients conditions are constantly fluctuating and the nurse should be prepared to act accordingly, in conjunction with the nursing process. The RN should be able to assess a situation and respond appropriately promptly to enable a better patient outcome.