A nurse’s intuition may not always be correct. However, research has shown that nurses’ daily practice can teach them even things they are unprepared for. They have been trained to learn critical thinking and analyze everything for years. It is impossible to fully explain certain decisions to others and sometimes even yourself. A likelihood of error appears: for example, a nurse may believe a parent who says his child just fell out of bed because that kind of incident can happen to children. After that, physical abuse can be discovered.
Intuition expressions, also called the “sixth sense”, are primarily based on personal, professional, or life experiences. In this case, experience is the accumulation of understanding, including relationships, materials studied, and life events (Meadows, 2006). The combination of these different things defines the nurse’s identity, and when a particular situation arises, the subconscious mind can recognize similarities with those that have already occurred (Ellis, 2019). A person may not remember a specific moment, but the subconscious will conduct a kind of search and issue an appropriate intuitive signal.
The development and confident use of this skill is not excluded. Sometimes it is necessary to assess the situation quickly, understand what needs to be done and make an appropriate decision (Ellis, 2019). The more professional and faster this process takes place, the higher the class and more experienced the specialist nurse is. It could be the most difficult decision to explain since it can be based on intuition or feeling, which are justified only in the case of a positive result.
Therefore, it is strongly recommended to test intuition all the time. Nurses can try to find out the opinion of an experienced colleague. In addition, by following their intuition and asking patients and their families questions, the healthcare personnel can gain more insight into what is happening. The more acute the problem is, the more it is necessary to verify the correctness of the determination.
References
Ellis, P. (2019). Evidence-based practice in nursing. Learning Matters.
Meadows, C. (2006). How do healthcare providers use intuition? University of Minnesota.