NURSES PARTICIPATION IN CLINICAL DECISION-MAKING PROCESS

Background & Objectives: Clinical decision-making is a basic part of professional nursing; nurses’ decisions have profound effects on course of treatment, which can lead to expectedoutcomsand patient’s satisfaction. Morever, such a decision-making process may influence the analysis of patient’s needs that can help adopt the best alternatives for interventions. This study was conducted to determine the nurses’ participation in clinical decision-making process.
Materials & Methods: Stratified random sampling was employed to carry out this descriptive study, in which 285 nurses, working at Tabriz Medical Science University wards were participated. A PDAQ⁵ used to collect data. The collected data were analyzedby using SPSS 15.
Results: Findings of the research showed that nurses’ clinical decision-making in three phases of decision-making process: clarifying the problem (30.35±15.01), evaluating alternatives (29.23±14.64) and selecting alternatives (27.13±14.15) was in average condition.
Conclusion: According to research findings & considering clinical decision-making as a basic part of professional nursing, the educational system and professional organizations should provide the background for empowerment and development of decision-making skills among nurses. They should also determine obstacles and facilitate the nurses’ independence in decision-making process.