An Integrative Literature Review of the Factors That Contribute to Professional Nurses and Midwives Making Sound Clinical Decisions.

Purpose To identify available literature concerning the factors that contribute to nurses and midwives making sound clinical decisions. Method This is an integrative literature review. Findings Thirty-eight articles revealed four main domains that influence nurses' and midwives' clinical decision making-nurses and midwives' personal characteristics ( n = 30), e.g., clinical experience; organizational factors ( n = 26), e.g., colleagues; patient characteristics ( n = 26), e.g., physical and clinical status; and environmental factors ( n = 9), e.g., time. These four domains of factors combined influence sound clinical decision making in the context of nursing and midwifery. Conclusions Understanding the role of the factors influencing clinical decision making will help to improve patient and health outcomes. Practice Implications Further understanding about the extent of the impact some factors have on clinical decision making is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]