Critical thinking is the analysis of available facts, evidence, observations, and arguments in order to form a judgement by the application of rational, skeptical, and unbiased analyses and evaluation. The application of critical thinking includes self-directed, self-disciplined, self-monitored, and self-corrective habits of the mind; thus, a critical thinker is a person who practices the skills of critical thinking or has been trained and educated in its disciplines. Philosopher Richard W. Paul said that the mind of a critical thinker engages the person's intellectual abilities and personality traits. Critical thinking presupposes assent to rigorous standards of excellence and mindful command of their use in effective communication and problem solving, and a commitment to overcome egocentrism and sociocentrism.
In psychology, the four stages of competence, or the "conscious competence" learning model, relates to the psychological states involved in the process of progressing from incompetence to competence in a skill. People may have several skills, some unrelated to each other, and each skill will typically be at one of the stages at a given time. Many skills require practice to remain at a high level of competence.
Metacognition is an awareness of one's thought processes and an understanding of the patterns behind them. The term comes from the root word meta, meaning "beyond", or "on top of". Metacognition can take many forms, such as reflecting on one's ways of thinking, and knowing when and how oneself and others use particular strategies for problem-solving. There are generally two components of metacognition: (1) cognitive conceptions and (2) cognitive regulation system. Research has shown that both components of metacognition play key roles in metaconceptual knowledge and learning. Metamemory, defined as knowing about memory and mnemonic strategies, is an important aspect of metacognition.
Nurse education consists of the theoretical and practical training provided to nurses with the purpose to prepare them for their duties as nursing care professionals. This education is provided to student nurses by experienced nurses and other medical professionals who have qualified or experienced for educational tasks, traditionally in a type of professional school known as a nursing school of college of nursing. Most countries offer nurse education courses that can be relevant to general nursing or to specialized areas including mental health nursing, pediatric nursing, and post-operative nursing. Nurse education also provides post-qualification courses in specialist subjects within nursing.
Cognitive apprenticeship is a theory that emphasizes the importance of the process in which a master of a skill teaches that skill to an apprentice.
Reflective practice is the ability to reflect on one's actions so as to take a critical stance or attitude towards one's own practice and that of one's peers, engaging in a process of continuous adaptation and learning. According to one definition it involves "paying critical attention to the practical values and theories which inform everyday actions, by examining practice reflectively and reflexively. This leads to developmental insight". A key rationale for reflective practice is that experience alone does not necessarily lead to learning; deliberate reflection on experience is essential.
The Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing (ΣΘΤ) is the second-largest nursing organization in the world with approximately 135,000 active members.
Supervision is used in counselling, psychotherapy, and other mental health disciplines as well as many other professions engaged in working with people. Supervision may be applied as well to practitioners in somatic disciplines for their preparatory work for patients as well as collateral with patients. Supervision is a replacement instead of formal retrospective inspection, delivering evidence about the skills of the supervised practitioners.
Helen Lorraine (Cook) Erickson is the primary author of the modeling and role-modeling theory of nursing. Her work, co-authored with Evelyn Tomlin and Mary Ann Swain, was published in the 1980s and derived from her experience in clinical practice. In 2006 she edited a book that provides additional information describing the relationships among soul, spirit, and human form.
Nursing in the United States is a professional health care occupation. It is the largest such occupation, employing millions of certified professionals. As of 2023, 3,175,390 registered nurses were employed, paid a median income of $86,070.
Gerontological nursing is the specialty of nursing pertaining to older adults. Gerontological nurses work in collaboration with older adults, their families, and communities to support healthy aging, maximum functioning, and quality of life. The term gerontological nursing, which replaced the term geriatric nursing in the 1970s, is seen as being more consistent with the specialty's broader focus on health and wellness, in addition to illness.
Virginia Avenel Henderson was an American nurse, researcher, theorist, and writer.
Practice is the act of rehearsing a behavior repeatedly, to help learn and eventually master a skill. The word derives from the Greek "πρακτική" (praktike), feminine of "πρακτικός" (praktikos), "fit for or concerned with action, practical", and that from the verb "πράσσω" (prasso), "to achieve, bring about, effect, accomplish".
The University of San Francisco School of Nursing and Health Professions (SONHP) is the nursing school of the University of San Francisco, located in San Francisco, California. The school has approximately 1,300 students. 90 percent of BSN graduates from 2022-2024 passed the NCLEX the first time and 92 percent of Masters-entry MSN graduates from 2022-2024 passed the NCLEX the first time.
Clinical clerkships encompass a period of medical education in which students – medical, dental, veterinary, nursing or otherwise – practice medicine under the supervision of a health practitioner.
Goal orientation, or achievement orientation, is an "individual disposition towards developing or validating one's ability in achievement settings". In general, an individual can be said to be mastery or performance oriented, based on whether one's goal is to develop one's ability or to demonstrate one's ability, respectively. A mastery orientation is also sometimes referred to as a learning orientation.
Holistic nursing is a way of treating and taking care of the patient as a whole body, which involves physical, social, environmental, psychological, cultural and religious factors. There are many theories that support the importance of nurses approaching the patient holistically and education on this is there to support the goal of holistic nursing. The important skill to be used in holistic nursing would be communicating skills with patients and other practitioners. This emphasizes that patients being treated would be treated not only in their body but also their mind and spirit.. Holistic nursing is a nursing speciality concerning the integration of one's mind, body, and spirit with his or her environment. This speciality has a theoretical basis in a few grand nursing theories, most notably the science of unitary human beings, as published by Martha E. Rogers in An Introduction to the Theoretical Basis of Nursing, and the mid-range theory Empowered Holistic Nursing Education, as published by Dr. Katie Love. Holistic nursing has gained recognition by the American Nurses Association (ANA) as a nursing specialty with a defined scope of practice and standards. Holistic nursing focuses on the mind, body, and spirit working together as a whole and how spiritual awareness in nursing can help heal illness. Holistic medicine focuses on maintaining optimum well-being and preventing rather than just treating disease.
Patricia Sawyer Benner is a nursing theorist, academic and author. She is known for one of her books, From Novice to Expert: Excellence and Power in Clinical Nursing Practice (1984). Benner described the stages of learning and skill acquisition across the careers of nurses, applying the Dreyfus model of skill acquisition to nursing practice. Benner is a professor emerita at the University of California, San Francisco UCSF School of Nursing.
A nurse scientist is a registered nurse with advanced education and expertise in nursing research. These professionals play a critical role in advancing nursing knowledge, improving patient care, and shaping the future of the nursing profession. Highly educated and specialized, nurse scientists conduct research to generate new knowledge about nursing care, employing a deep understanding of nursing theory, research methodologies, and clinical practice. Nurse scientists are essential contributors to the development of new nursing interventions and practices. Their skills extend beyond academic settings and these advanced nurses work in hospitals, research institutes, and community organizations. Through their efforts, nurse scientists have a profound impact on the quality of healthcare, contributing significantly to the improvement of patient care and the overall advancement of the nursing profession. They possess advanced qualifications, typically holding a Ph.D. in nursing or a related field, demonstrating expertise not only in research principles and methodology but also in-depth content knowledge within a specific clinical area. The primary focus of the role is to provide leadership in the development, coordination and management of clinical research studies; provide mentorship for nurses in research; lead evaluation activities that improve outcomes for patients participating in research studies; contribute to the overall health sciences literature. Nurse scientists have been regarded as knowledge brokers. They participate in nursing research.
Virtual reality is the creation of a three-dimensional, interactive environment. With this technology, users are able to move through this developed simulation, as if it is real.
