Clinical Reasoning

Question 1

What is clinical reasoning?

Answer 1

Gather information from patient
Process information
Come to an understanding of a patient’s situation
Plan and implement interventions with patient
Evaluate outcomes
Reflect and learn from process

Question 2

How does clinical reasoning help us?

Answer 2

Untangles the mess
Assimilates information
Reflect on investigations and results
Propose differential diagnoses
Make a plan

Question 3

Two System Theory

Answer 3

System 1
- quick
- little effort
- not voluntary
System 2
- slow
- effortful
- lazy
- conscious

Question 4

System 1

Answer 4

Know someone is upset with you over the phone
Interpret facial expressions
Understand simple sentences

Question 5

System 2

Answer 5

Read a textbook
Fill in a long and complicated form
Monitor and analyse your conduct in social situations

Question 6

How do the 2 systems link?

Answer 6

System 1 makes suggestions to system 2
Impressions, impulses, feelings become beliefs and actions

Question 7

How can we make mistakes in clinical reasoning?

Answer 7

Anchoring - relying too heavily on the first bit of information we receive
Search satisfying - find a convenient answer that fits, so we stop searching
Confirmation bias - we think of a hypothesis and only search for evidence that supports it
Cognitive miser function - reverting to system 1 to try and conserve cognitive energy

Question 7

How can we make mistakes in clinical reasoning?

Answer 7

Anchoring - relying too heavily on the first bit of information we receive
Search satisfying - find a convenient answer that fits, so we stop searching
Confirmation bias - we think of a hypothesis and only search for evidence that supports it
Cognitive miser function - reverting to system 1 to try and conserve cognitive energy