Rapid Decision-making Processes in Anesthesiologists
Liu, Jingyi (Janet)
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2022-03-28
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to understand differences in rapid decision-making processes between anesthesiologists with excellent, medium, and poor critical event management skills. A panel of expert clinicians and educators rated our recruited anesthesiologists’ critical event management skills, categorizing them into high, medium, and low performers based on their ratings. We asked our participants to perform in a simulated scenario, and then we conducted cognitive interviews to extract specific information about their decision-making processes. Next, we conducted content analyses based on the interviews and then carried out an exploratory data analysis based on our decision-making model developed in our lab. We found that high performers were able to give clearer reasonings and evidence behind their differentials and actions, and they dealt with complex interpersonal situations and time pressure better than medium and low performers. Our findings will help educators develop more targeted training for anesthesiologists in the future.