by Susan Sportsman, PhD, RN, ANEF, FAAN
How do we help nursing students make good clinical judgments? That is the question that most of us struggle with. We “give” students the necessary knowledge in class through lectures, readings, and various learning activities. We provide opportunities to “practice” in simulation/labs and during their clinical experiences. We assign increasingly challenging nursing practice opportunities. As a result, many students learn to put the pieces together to make good judgments—most of the time. However, every novice nurse I have ever worked with has been worried about making a clinical mistake—mistakes which usually are driven by poor clinical judgment.
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