Nursing: Critical Thinking, Ethics, Legal, and Student Role

This paper examines the significance of critical thinking in nursing practice within the Australian context, emphasizing the ethical and legal accountabilities of registered nurses and nursing students. It highlights the crucial role of critical thinking in delivering high-quality patient care, ensuring patient safety, and promoting effective communication among healthcare professionals. The paper references the Code of Ethics and Code of Professional Conduct for Nurses in Australia, underscoring the importance of adhering to ethical and legal standards through the application of critical analysis skills. It further discusses the responsibilities of nursing students in developing critical thinking abilities and how these skills are essential for their future practice. The conclusion reiterates that critical thinking is the identification of an issue, determination of the best solutions, and selection of the best method to implement it and is crucial for professional development at all levels, including nursing education.

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Nursing
Name of student:
Name of university:
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Critical thinking is a significant element of nursing practice and relates to the
intellectual and disciplined process of application of skilful reasoning for a planned action. In
nursing, the process of thinking is the ability of the individual to think in a logical manner
and systematic process that ensure better care delivery and better patient outcomes (Kim &
Lee, 2016). The present paper explains the accountability and responsibility of the registered
nurse in relation to ethical and legal practice critical thinking within the Australian nursing
scenario. Further, it analyses the accountabilities and responsibilities realted to the nursing
students.
As opined by Choi et al., (2014) nursing practitioners are to become critical thinkers
and value intellectual ability to think in a logical manner. Nurses who are critical thinkers
strive to maintain clarity, preciseness, accuracy and fairness while listening, speaking and
writing. The thinking is thereby broad and deep. As highlighted by Morton et al., (2017)
critical thinking is a holistic approach and aims to maximise the output of the nurses. It
involves analysing a certain issue or problem by considering multidimensional approaches
and coming up with novice ideas and resolutions.
According to Kim and Lee (2016) nurses are accountable and responsible for
delivering high quality care services. The underlying aim is achieving desirable patient
outcomes. Nurses are to deliver comprehensive care that takes into consideration all aspects
of patient’s mental and physical wellbeing, cultural background, social status, religious
beliefs, family structures, and personal beliefs. For addressing all these concerns while
coming up with a care plan a nurse is to apply critical thinking. For delivering safe care,
critical thinking skills are very important. Since nurses are accountable for any deterioration
and decline in patient’s condition while and after administering care interventions, critical
thinking helps in undertaking an active mental process that augments a subtle perception.
This, in turn, helps in proper analysis, synthesis and evaluation of patient information

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collected and derived after a rigorous assessment. Reflecting on previous observations and
experiences a nurse can come up with proper reasoning and make a suitable decision
regarding patient care. In addition, nurses are to communicate in an effective manner with
other care professionals since the responsibility is to provide collaborative care. Critical
thinking promotes communication as the nurse can put forward logic and meaningful
concepts on the basis of the critical thinking (Kozier et al., 2013).
The Code of Ethics for Australian nurses outlines the ethical standards that nurses
need to follow in course of their professional practice (Code of Ethics for Nurses in Australia,
2008). As per the value statement 1 mentioned in the guidelines, a nurse is to value quality
nursing care for all patients. According to value statement 5, nurses must engage in informed
decision making. In addition, as per the value statement 8, nurses must promote health and
wellbeing of the patient through a socially, ecologically and economically sustainable
environment. The Code of Professional Conduct for Nurses in Australia outlines the legal
standards that nurses are to follow in the course of their professional practice (Code of
Professional Conduct for Nurses in Australia). As the conduct statement 1, nurses are to
practice in a safe and competent manner. As the conduct statement 7, nurses are to support
informed decision making for promoting the wellbeing and health of patients. For adhering to
all these ethical and legal guidelines, nurses must exhibit critical thinking skills. It is ethical
and appropriate to come up with suggestions that address all the concerns of the patients and
do what is best for them. Critical thinking ensures that intuitions are left behind, and opinions
are given based on strong rationale.
As a future nurse, nursing students are responsible for acquiring and developing
critical analysis skills (Kong et al., 2014). The nursing course provides immense
opportunities to develop this skills and students must master the multitude of learning
materials that are provided. In nursing education reference to critical thinking is common due

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to the significance it holds in daily practice. The primary critical thinking skills nurse
students exercise are recognition of conditions, critical analysis, introductory and concluding
justification, discriminate of facts and opinions, assessment of the credibility of information
sources and illumination of concepts (Levett-Jones & Bourgeois, 2013). Students, for
learning and applying critical thinking, must engage in developing independent thoughts,
fairness, justice, perspicacity in social level, spiritual courage, humility, self-confidence,
integrity, perseverance and interest for undertaking research. By demonstrating these skills, a
nursing student can become an important part of the future nursing cohort. Nursing education
program focuses on building on these aspects in nurses for promoting critical thinking skills
(Choi et al., 2014).
Coming to the end of the paper it can be concluded that critical thinking in nursing is
the process of identification of an issue, determination of the best solutions for it and
selection of the best method to implement it. Critical thinking skills are to be acquired while
studying nursing course wherein nursing students get opportunities to put their valuable
thoughts into action. Nursing students must consider developing their skills and abilities
before commencing on their professional practice. This is imperative for adhering to the legal
and ethical standards of nursing practice as outlined by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of
Australia. Lastly, critical thinking skills enable a nurse to translate any idea or thought in a
logical, accurate and clear manner. This ability is important for professional development at
all levels.

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References
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