Objective: The intent of this concept analysis is to offer a clear understanding of the definition, defining attributes, antecedents, and consequences of sound clinical judgment pertaining to nursing practice.
Assessing clinical judgment for safe nursing practice is a challenge. In this study, the Lasater Clinical Judgment Rubric (LCJR) was used to evaluate clinical judgment of junior and senior nursing students in the clinical setting. Juniors demonstrated an accomplished level on the total scale and all 4 subscales, whereas seniors had exemplary clinical judgment on the total scale and 3 of 4 subscales. The study provides evidence in support of the use of the LCJR to assess students' clinical judgment in the clinical practice setting.
The goal of any nursing program is to graduate competent, compassionate future nurse leaders. Evaluating outcome data is also imperative. The authors realized that a more in-depth analysis of our program was needed to address low passing rates. As a result, we assessed and evaluated each course against the NCLEX-RN test plan to determine specific strengths as well as areas needing improvement. The process led to curriculum and teaching changes, resulting in a 42% increase in the NCLEX-RN pass rate in the first year.
Nursing students are not afforded the opportunity to take a full patient assignment before transitioning into practice. It then often takes students months to feel comfortable caring for more than 2 patients once in practice. To assist students with transition-into-practice issues, the authors discuss a senior internship where students work one-to-one with an expert nurse, becoming acclimated to taking a full patient assignment.
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