Critical Thinking in Medical-surgical Settings

Book excerpt: Drawing upon actual clinical experiences and case studies, the 3rd edition of this popular reference stimulates critical thinking while bridging the gap between knowledge and clinical practice. Each of the 14 chapters are organized by specific body system disorders and feature cases integrating pharmacology, nutrition, and diagnostic/laboratory tests. The introduction of 15 brand-new cases provides real-life examples to test reader knowledge on a variety of clinical settings including acute, community, home, and long-term care. In addition, there are three new chapters on women's health disorders, psychiatric disorders, and alternative therapies. Case studies from actual clinical experiences teach students to think critically and emphasize proactive nursing care. Organized into 14 chapters focusing on specific body systems to provide easy access to information Body systems organization compatible with any medical-surgical nursing textbook Each case study helps students to identify changes, anticipate possible complications, and initiate therapeutic interventions, thus preventing crises Cases increase in complexity within each chapter so students can build on experiences previously learned Updated cases in each body system focus on different problems and interventions Increased number of cases center on the care of conditions in older adults Three new chapters expose readers to a greater variety of disorders and alternative therapies