Effect of a guide for clinical reasoning on Nursing students’ diagnostic accuracy: A clinical trial

OBJECTIVE: to evaluate the effect of the Self-Instructional Guide for Clinical Reasoning on the diagnostic accuracy of undergraduate Nursing students. METHOD: a randomized, parallel and double-blind (researchers and outcome evaluators) clinical trial, carried out with undergraduate Nursing students. Validated case studies were applied in two phases to identify the patient’s Nursing diagnosis/problem, etiology and clues, using the Guide with the intervention group in the second phase. The outcomes - diagnostic and etiological accuracy and number of clues - were evaluated using validated rubrics. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze demographic data; Fisher’s exact test for similarities in prior education and confidence; Mann-Whitney’s test for age; and non-parametric ANOVA test in the evaluation of the hypothesis of differences in performance. RESULTS: final sample composed of 24 students in the control group and 27 in the intervention group; no difference as to gender, age and schooling. There was a difference in diagnostic (p=0.041) and etiological (p=0.0351) accuracy in the intervention group, showing a negative effect of using the Guide. CONCLUSION: the one-time self-instruction was not effective in impacting the diagnostic accuracy of students solving case studies. Repeated application of the Guide as a teaching tool can be effective in improving such outcome. REBEC: RBR-4bhr78.