Using SBAR to Promote Clinical Judgment in Undergraduate Nursing Students

The purpose of this study was to describe how students identify and interpret multiple embedded clinical cues in a case study, and then reflect these using SBAR (Situation, Background, Assessment, and Recommendation). Using Tanner's model of clinical judgment, a descriptive design was used to examine SBAR assignments completed by second-semester nursing students (n = 80). The majority of students (n = 62, 77.5%) in the study were unable to successfully follow all of the clinical judgment phases of the model: noticing, interpreting, responding, and reflecting. Although SBAR is an important tool for communicating clinical information, gaps exist between noticing and interpreting clinical cues, and forming an appropriate course of action.