Clinical decision-making is the process healthcare professionals use to choose diagnostic and treatment options for patient care.
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Medical Diagnosis | Treatment Planning | Evidence-based Medicine | Clinical Decision | Diagnostic Process | Treatment Selection
Prepared by Shruti Sahoo, reviewed by Dr. Eugene Smith

Clinical Decision-making FAQ


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What is clinical decision making?

Deciding what information to gather, which tests to order, how to interpret and integrate this information to draw diagnostic conclusions, and which treatments to suggest is known as clinical decision making. When evaluating a patient, clinicians usually must answer the following questions:

What are the three phases of clinical decision making?

Clinical decision making has three integrated phases: (1) diagnosis, (2) assessment of severity, and (3) management. Appropriate clinical decision making considers the need to make a precise diagnosis as well as the costs associated with inappropriate or indiscriminate use of diagnostic tests.

Why is clinical decision making difficult?

Clinical decision making is often difficult because of the overlap among many types of conditions. A single disorder can produce a wide spectrum of signs and symptoms, and many disorders can produce similar signs and symptoms. The pediatric history should include a review of the present illness.

How can clinical decision makers reduce avoidable mistakes?

Increased understanding of decision making processes and common sources of error should help clinical decision makers to minimize avoidable mistakes and increase the proportion of decisions that are better. Keywords: decision making, delivery of healthcare, evidence-based practice, judgement, models, theoretical

How can clinical decisions be made in patients with a poor prognosis?

Key to making clinical decisions is information on prognosis. In patients with a poor prognosis, the decisions may range from initiation of potentially dangerous treatments aimed at brain resuscitation to limitations in the intensity of medical support. The outcomes to be predicted include death, awakening, and independence.

Clinical Decision-making References

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