Clinical Reasoning Cycle

Running head: CLINICAL REASONING CYCLE 1
Clinical Reasoning Cycle
Name of Author
Institution of Affiliation
Date of Submission

CLINICAL REASONING CYCLE 2
Clinical Reasoning Cycle
1. Introduction
The paper uses the clinical reasoning cycle to address the case of Mr. Peter Ling
provided. Clinical reasoning cycle involves the approach by which health care specialists collect
important data, process in order to determine the issue of the patient, and come up with the
solution or plan (Forsberg, et al., 2014). The paper considers Mr. Peter Ling situation, collects
and processes the health data provided in the case then determines and three main issues
presented in his health assessment data. Besides, the paper establishes goals for the priority of
nursing care, which is linked to the identified issues (Hunter & Arthur, 2016). Furthermore, the
paper discusses the nursing care of the patient and evaluates some of the nursing care strategies
that can be used for quality outcome of Mr. Peter Ling.
a) Consideration of facts from Mr Peter’s health condition
The paper considered the case of Mr. Peter Ling, a 67-year-old man who is admitted to
the surgical ward. The admission comes after his mesh inguinal hernia repair. Mr. Peter is
admitted with a 6-hour history of inguinal mass and reducible tender. As per Mr. Peter’s
condition, a nurse needs to collect and his past medical history, assess the patient’s temperature
and pressure. Besides, the physical assessments of the client will be critical as it will provide
directions of nursing goals and interventions.
b) Collection of information
The types of information collected from the patient include his medical history, his
current presenting health issues, and his physical examination. The patient is currently
complaining of significant left calf pain, having feelings of agitation and confused after two days
of open mesh inguinal hernia repair. The health conditions started after commencing a weight

CLINICAL REASONING CYCLE 3
lifting regime. According to the patient’s medical history, Mr. Ling is retired, lives with his
family, and is an ex-smoker with a BMI of 30. The patient is currently on taking drugs for the
management of heart related disorders such as hypertension and hyperlipidemia, the conditions
that are well controlled.
The results from the assessments of the patient indicate that the patient has a temperature
of 39.3, RR: 25, HR:100 regular, SpO2 95% on room air (R/A), BP: 170/90, Pain score 7/10
(wound site and left calf), GCS 14/15. The physical assessment of Mr. Ling indicates that he is
restless and confused to time and place. Besides, the physical examination indicates that Mr.
Ling’s chest is clear, dry skin; post-op surgical wound dressing is oozing green purulent
discharge and tender to touch. His left calf appears larger than the right, and it is red, and warm
to touch. Furthermore, the patients' hemoglobin is 16.5 gm/dl, and the blood cell count indicates
that the patient has white blood cell count, neutrophils, and CRP all elevated. All this
information will be important in determining the health issues that Mr. Peter Ling is facing.
Besides, the information will be important for the nurse to determine effective interventions for a
quality outcome.
c) Processing gathered information
The patient’s present signs are left calf pain, feelings of agitation, and confused. This is
after two days of open mesh inguinal hernia repair. The signs can be as a result of complications
of inguinal hernia repair, which can take one month for a patient to recover. Sometimes recovery
can take a one year depending on the patient’s condition. The other current presenting issue that
has been noted is inguinal mass and R non-reducible tender. A bulge in the inguinal canal can
confirm the hernia. A hernia can be identified as a non- reducible. The acute incarceration can