Conceptualising decision making in nursing education

The ability to exhibit sound judgement and decision-making skills is a fundamental requirement of undergraduate nursing curricula. In order to acquire such skills, students need to develop critical thinking ability, as well as an understanding of how judgements and decisions are reached in complex healthcare environments. The use of techniques such as problem-based learning, simulation and feedback has been hypothesised to help with the development of critical thinking skills. In addition, a curriculum that incorporates teaching on different ways in which judgements and decisions are reached can potentially help students identify how to avoid errors and mistakes in their clinical practice. Feedback has been shown to be a powerful tool to help with developing decision-making skills; evidence for other approaches to teaching critical thinking and decision-making skills is currently limited. This paper reviews theoretical concepts that provide a framework for decision making in nursing, as well as methods by which it can be taught.