Improving critical thinking and clinical reasoning with a continuing education course.
BACKGROUND
Continuing education courses related to critical thinking and clinical reasoning are needed to improve the accuracy of diagnosis.


METHODS
This study evaluated a 4-day, 16-hour continuing education course conducted in Brazil.Thirty-nine nurses completed a pretest and a posttest consisting of two written case studies designed to measure the accuracy of nurses' diagnoses.


RESULTS
There were significant differences in accuracy from pretest to posttest for case 1 (p = .008) and case 2 (p = .042) and overall (p = .001).


CONCLUSIONS
Continuing education courses should be implemented to improve the accuracy of nurses' diagnoses.
Cruz
Dina Monteiro
DM
School of Nursing, University of Saõ Paulo, Brazil.
Pimenta
Cibele Mattos
CM
Lunney
Margaret
M