Decision-Making Skills

Decision making plays a VITAL role in Nursing.....

Decision making is a vital component to life and can be looked at as a behavior.  This is because it requires critical thinking in order to make a decision. If the decision is poor it can hinder progress, waste time and resources, cause harm or damage, and can ultimately affect a career (Huber, 2006).  The outcome from a poor decision may not be seen immediately, but it may have severe consequences over time.

"Making decisions may be the most important component of any nurse's job" (Huber, 2006, p.149).  Decisions faced by nurses are related to the work environment, awareness of their clinical role, autonomy, and the level in which they see themselves as active and influential leaders in decision making.

Huber (2006) gives an example of when a decision was made to decrease the ratio of RN's to nurse's aides in order to reduce expenses. This may result in a short term cost savings, but if not implemented correctly, it could result in poor patient care over time.  Unintended consequences of a decision like this is higher turnover of senior nurses, increased adverse events, medication errors, decreased staff morale, lower patient satisfaction. The long term outcome of this decision may result in the exact opposite of what they were trying to accomplish-reducing expenses. 

So, in order to make an informed decision,  problem solving is required.  Problem solving requires.....

• Knowing who owns the problem (system, individual, etc)
• Evaluate potential solutions
• Search for alternative e solutions,
• Evaluation 
• Select an alternative solution

This will help identify obstacles that may arise and can be dealt with at the beginning stage instead of in the future. 

"Nurses make decisions in personal, clinical, and organizational situations and under conditions of certainty, uncertainty, and risk" (Huber, 2006, p.150). 

 This quote is so true!  I see this occurring every time I am work in the hospital. Nurses are always problem solving and making decisions. Nurses are faced with having to make difficult decisions with little if any evidence based research to support their potential decision. This being said, other nurses are available to problem solve with and the physicians are a phone call away for support and additional knowledge when needed.   I think when having to problem solve and make a decision it is vital to have a strong TEAM like work environment.  This will enhance the process of problem solving and decision making.  Also having a multi-generational workforce and a range of experience levels will improve the outcomes.

 

Awareness of decision making contributes to effective nursing leadership and management decision making (Huber, 2006).

Huber, D. (2006). Leadership and nursing care management (3rd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Saunders Elsevier