Evaluate your own problem-solving skills rating your ability to carry out the following: approaching problems that ambiguous or involve risk and participating in group problem solving. Based on findings, identify goals and strategies to improve your problem-solving skills using the information presented in the text.
Problem solving techniques vary according to the problem and the degree of risk and uncertainty in the situation. According to Sullivan, most critical decision making in organizations is done under conditions of uncertainty (Sullivan 2018). In a risk situation, the availability of each alternative, potential successes, and costs are all associated with probability estimates (Sullivan 2018). The key element in decision making under conditions of risk is to determine the probabilities of each alternative as accurately as possible. Nurse managers use objective and subjective probably to determine risk in a situation. Objective probability is based on facts and reliable information and subjective probability is based on a manager’s personal judgment and beliefs. It is always better to reduce risk in a situation by using facts, but if facts are unavailable, your manager may give his or her advise based on her best judgement.
Group problem solving can be positive, providing more information and knowledge than an individual but it can also be negative if it generates disruptive conflict or groupthink. As a nursing student, I really love groupthink because it uses everyones knowledge to come up with the best solution. Those who participate in group problem solving need to be aware of their strengths and weaknesses and be kind to others. When working in a group environment, group members assume different roles based on their personality. Typically, I fall into the organizer, the member who keeps group members on tract and promotes efficiency of the group meeting. For problems involving ambiguity and modification of known and well-defined alternative solutions, grids or tables can be used to compare outcomes of alternative solutions. In order to solve ambiguous problems, I can create a large table on a white board or large sheet of paper to display various solutions to the problem. For those who are visual learners, presenting a visual representation of solutions would work well.
Sample Solution
