A 43-year-old patient is scheduled for a laparoscopic cholecystectomy. A nurse has a plan to teach the preoperative patient how to splint his abdomen with a pillow and cough and deep breathe, so the patient can avoid fluid accumulation in the lungs postoperatively. When the nurse enters the room, it becomes evident that the patient is blind. What critical thinking skill would you recommend a scenario like this requires?
A) Intellectual curiosity
B) Flexibility
C) Reflection
D) Open-mindedness

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Flexibility is the critical thinking skill that the nurse needs to teach the necessary information to the blind patient. In developing critical thinking, a graduate RN is encouraged to seek out situations that require thinking outside of the box to enhance and broaden the graduate RN's nursing knowledge and experience. Intellectual curiosity, reflection, and open-mindedness are also skills of critical thinking but are not applicable to this scenario.

A 43-Year-Old Patient Is Scheduled for a Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy