Critical Thinking in Nursing
Critical thinking is the ability of an individual to think clearly and rationally about what to believe or what to do. Evidence from online reviews in nursing education has shown that students apply critical thinking in both class work and clinical practice (Papathanasiou et al 2014). Critical analysis is evident in many institutions as students engage in research and learning activities. Online stores have a pile of research analyzed by students providing evidence that critical thinking is being used. The current medical treatment has more emphasis on machines and technical aspects, but critical thinkers understand the patient’s condition and manage it even without the aid of machines.
Researchers have explored the topic of critical thinking, and the findings suggest that critical thinking improves patient care. “Critical thinking: The Development of an Essential Skill for Nursing Students” is a journal presented by Papathanasiou et al. (2014) with the aim of enlightening nurses on the importance of critical thinking. The introductory part of the article explains how students acquire critical thinking skills through independence of thought, fairness, spiritual courage and self-confidence. The method of study used by the author was a literature review of online articles and recent material on nursing education.
The findings from the research indicate that critical thinking is applicable in diverse areas of nursing education and clinical practice. Critical thinking is used in problem-solving by nurses and students. It helps to acquire knowledge as nurses obtain information explaining the nature of the problem. Critical thinking is applicable in other areas such as intuition, decision making, experiential thinking, and research. A conclusion from the journal encourages nursing education programmes to adopt attitudes that promote critical thinking and reasoning.
Reference
Papathanasiou, I. V., Kleisiaris, C. F., Fradelos, E. C., Kakou, K., & Kourkouta, L. (2014). Critical Thinking: The Development of an Essential Skill for Nursing Students. Acta Informatica Medica, 22(4), 283–286. http://doi.org/10.5455/aim.2014.22.283-286
