Aim: The aim of this module is to facilitate the development of clinical reasoning and critical thinking skills and integrate them into the novice nurse and/or midwife’s effective management of high-acuity, complex patients to improve outcomes.

Learning Objectives:

On completion of this module participants will be able to:

• Demonstrate an understanding of clinical reasoning
• Demonstrate an understanding of critical thinking
• Identify the differences between critical thinking and clinical reasoning
• Define and explain the process of the clinical reasoning cycle
• Rationalise the importance of clinical reasoning and critical thinking skills in practice
• Discuss clinical reasoning errors and biases which may contribute to adverse patient outcomes
• Apply the clinical reasoning cycle to inform clinical decisions and judgements