Structural elements of critical thinking of nurses in emergency care

• Main Authors: Maria da Graça Oliveira Crossetti, Greicy Kelly Gouveia Dias Bittencourt, Ana Amélia Antunes Lima, Marta Georgina Oliveira de Góes, Gislaine Saurin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul
• Series: Revista Gaúcha de Enfermagem
• Subjects: Enfermería de urgencia; Juicio; Procesos de enfermería
• Online Access: http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1983-14472014000300055&lng=en&tlng=en

The objective of this study was to analyze the structural elements of critical thinking (CT) of nurses in the clinical decision-making process. This exploratory, qualitative study was conducted with 20 emergency care nurses in three hospitals in southern Brazil. Data were collected from April to June 2009, and a validated clinical case was applied from which nurses listed health problems, prescribed care and listed the structural elements of CT. Content analysis resulted in categories used to determine priority structural elements of CT, namely theoretical foundations and practical relationship to clinical decision making; technical and scientific knowledge and clinical experience, thought processes and clinical decision making: clinical reasoning and basis for clinical judgments of nurses: patient assessment and ethics. It was concluded that thinking critically is a skill that enables implementation of a secure and effective nursing care process.