Introduction : l'aptitude à prendre des décisions est cruciale en médecine d'urgence. Notre étude avait pour objectif de mieux comprendre comment les médecins urgentistes prennent des décisions. Méthode : nous avons réalisé une étude qualitative basée sur des entretiens semi-structurés avec des urgentistes. Les entretiens ciblaient la gestion d'une situation d'urgence courante. Ils reposaient sur la visualisation d'une vidéo de l'activité enregistrée en perspective subjective située. Résultats : plusieurs résultats sont originaux. Nous avons en particulier montré le rôle central joué par l'intuition dans la prise de décisions. Par ailleurs, nous avons mis en évidence la façon dont les médecins urgentistes génèrent et hiérarchisent les hypothèses diagnostiques. Conclusion : l'usage d'une approche méthodologique innovante nous a permis de mieux comprendre la façon dont les urgentistes prennent des décisions, avec plusieurs implications pour la formation. / Introduction: the ability to makes decisions is a crucial skill in emergency medicine. Our study aimed at revealing how and when emergency physicians make decisions during the patients' initial management. Methods : we carried out a qualitative research project based on semistructured interviews with emergency physicians. The interviews concerned management of an emergency situation during routine medical practice. They were associated with viewing the video recording of emergency situations filmed in an “own-point-of-view” perspective. Résults : many results are original. Specifically, we showed the major role played by intuition in the decision making process. Moreover, we revealed the way emergency physicians generate and evaluate diagnostic hypotheses. Conclusions : the use of an innovative research method allowed us to better understand the way emergency physicians make decisions in their everyday practice. Our results are associated with several implications for medical education.

Bakgrund:Som yrkesverksam fysioterapeut inom primärvården finns det flera olika behandlingsmetoder för långvarig ländryggssmärta att välja mellan, men inga tydliga riktlinjer att följa. Grundat i det kliniska resonemanget tar fysioterapeuter beslut som påverkas och förändras i mötet med patienten. Då det finns lite forskning som undersökt hur fysioterapeuter utbildade inom Mekanisk diagnostik och terapi (MDT) beskriver sitt kliniska resonemang till patienter med långvarig ländryggssmärta syftar denna studie till att åskådliggöra fysioterapeuters syn på ämnet.    Syfte:Att undersöka hur fysioterapeuter beskriver sitt kliniska resonemang gällande användning av MDT till patienter med långvarig ländryggssmärta.    Metod:Kvalitativ semistrukturerad intervjustudie med induktiv ansats och deskriptiv design. Datainsamling skedde genom sex intervjuer. En kvalitativ innehållsanalys användes vid analys av materialet.    Resultat:Analysen genererade 22 underkategorier fördelade i sju kategorier. Informanterna beskrev sitt kliniska resonemang vid användning av MDT i form av sin syn på metoden, patientdelaktighet i undersökning, struktur och tydlighet, fynd som påverkar behandling, hypotestestning, patientansvar i behandling och värdering av egna förmågor.   Slutsats:Studiens resultat visade att informanterna beskrev sitt kliniska resonemang vid användning av MDT vid långvarig ländryggssmärta inom primärvården främst påverkades av biomekaniska fynd hos patienten. Psykologiska fynd beskrevs som sekundära faktorer att ta hänsyn till, och sociala faktorer beskrevs lite eller inte alls trots att de är viktiga att ta hänsyn till för att åstadkomma en beteendeförändring. Därmed har ett utvecklingsområde för MDT inom fysioterapi tydliggjorts då det finns evidens för att ett biopsykosocialt arbetssätt vid långvarig ländryggssmärta är att föredra. / Background: As a physiotherapist in primary care, there are several different treatment methods for persistent low back pain to choose from, but no clear guidelines to follow. Based on the clinical reasoning, physiotherapists take decisions that are affected and changed in the patient encounter. Since there is a lack of research that have investigated how physiotherapists educated in Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy (MDT) describe their clinical reasoning to patients with persistent low back pain, this study aims to illustrate the physiotherapists' view of the topic.   Aim: To explore how physiotherapists describe their clinical reasoning regarding the use of MDT for patients with persistent low back pain.   Method: A qualitative semi-structured interview study with an inductive approach and a descriptive design was conducted. The data collection included six interviews. A qualitative content analysis was used to analyze the data.   Result: The analysis generated 22 subcategories divided into seven categories. The informants described their clinical reasoning when using MDT as their view of the method, patient participation in examination, structure and clarity, findings that affect treatment, hypothesis testing, patient responsibility in the treatment and evaluation of own abilities.   Conclusion: The study's results showed that the informants described their clinical reasoning when using MDT with persistent low back pain in primary care were mainly influenced by biomechanical findings with the patient. Psychological findings were described as secondary source to take into consideration, and social factors were described very little or not at all even though they are important to take into consideration in order to achieve a behavioral change. Thus, a development area for MDT in physiotherapy has been clarified as there is evidence that a biopsychosocial approach to persistent low back pain is preferable.

This mixed-methods study investigated the effects of case method presentation on the clinical reasoning hypotheses generated, strategies implemented, and errors made by physical therapy students working through a musculoskeletal clinical problem. The study was framed by Marton and Säljö’s levels of processing, McCrudden’s et al. goal-focusing model, Cognitive Load Theory, and the Model of Domain Learning. Verbatim transcriptions for each problem-solving session was created and coded. Cohen’s kappa was κ = .75 indicating substantial inter-rater reliability for the finalized coding schemes. Quantitative analysis included mean and standard deviation calculations followed by Mann Whitney-U comparisons which detected several significant differences between groups regarding clinical reasoning hypotheses generated, reasoning strategies implemented, and errors made during the problem-solving sessions. Moderate-to-large effect sizes, ranging from r2 = .64–.78, indicated that differences in clinical reasoning between groups was mostly attributed to the case presentation method. Additionally, a qualitative profile enriched the data set by identifying differences in type of knowledge regulation each group exhibited and timing of treatment considerations. Specifically, participants in the simulated patient group were found to regulate more psychomotor skill knowledge compared to the written case study group who exhibited more regulation of propositional knowledge. This research project has already impacted the educational experiences physical therapy students receive in their professional education program. Future research should include multi-institutional investigations with a larger number of participants allowing for better representation of physical therapy students across professional education programs before generalizing any findings.

Doctor of Philosophy / The aim of the research presented in this thesis was to come to a deeper understanding of clinical decision making from within the interpretive paradigm. The project draws on ideas from a number of schools of thought which have the common emphasis that the interpretive use of language is at the core of all human activity. This research project studied settings where health professionals and medical students engage in clinical decision making in groups. Settings included medical students participating in problem-based learning tutorials and a team of health professionals working in a multidisciplinary clinic. An underlying assumption of this project was that in such group settings, where health professionals are required to articulate their clinical reasoning for each other, the individuals involved are likely to have insights that could reveal the nature of clinical decision making. Another important assumption of this research is that human activities, such as clinical reasoning, take place in cultural contexts, are mediated by language and other symbol systems, and can be best understood when investigated in their historical development. Data were gathered by interviews of medical students and health professionals working in the two settings, and by non-participant observation. Data analysis and interpretation revealed that clinical decision making is primarily a social and linguistic skill, acquired by participating in communities of practice called health professions. These communities of practice have their own subculture including the language game called clinical decision making which includes an interpretive repertoire of specific language tools and skills. New participants to the profession must come to embody these skills under the guidance of more capable members of the profession, and do so by working through many cases. The interpretive repertoire that health professionals need to master includes skills with words, categories, metaphors, heuristics, narratives, rituals, rhetoric, and hermeneutics. All these skills need to be coordinated, both in constructing a diagnosis and management plan and in communicating clinical decisions to other people, in a manner that can be judged as intelligible, legitimate, persuasive, and carrying the moral authority for subsequent action.

Doctor of Philosophy / The aim of the research presented in this thesis was to come to a deeper understanding of clinical decision making from within the interpretive paradigm. The project draws on ideas from a number of schools of thought which have the common emphasis that the interpretive use of language is at the core of all human activity. This research project studied settings where health professionals and medical students engage in clinical decision making in groups. Settings included medical students participating in problem-based learning tutorials and a team of health professionals working in a multidisciplinary clinic. An underlying assumption of this project was that in such group settings, where health professionals are required to articulate their clinical reasoning for each other, the individuals involved are likely to have insights that could reveal the nature of clinical decision making. Another important assumption of this research is that human activities, such as clinical reasoning, take place in cultural contexts, are mediated by language and other symbol systems, and can be best understood when investigated in their historical development. Data were gathered by interviews of medical students and health professionals working in the two settings, and by non-participant observation. Data analysis and interpretation revealed that clinical decision making is primarily a social and linguistic skill, acquired by participating in communities of practice called health professions. These communities of practice have their own subculture including the language game called clinical decision making which includes an interpretive repertoire of specific language tools and skills. New participants to the profession must come to embody these skills under the guidance of more capable members of the profession, and do so by working through many cases. The interpretive repertoire that health professionals need to master includes skills with words, categories, metaphors, heuristics, narratives, rituals, rhetoric, and hermeneutics. All these skills need to be coordinated, both in constructing a diagnosis and management plan and in communicating clinical decisions to other people, in a manner that can be judged as intelligible, legitimate, persuasive, and carrying the moral authority for subsequent action.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-06-02T19:35:35Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2480.pdf: 4783175 bytes, checksum: 3c593fe679295457361e87367467406c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-02-27 / Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais / This action-research tries to reveal the contributions of a mentorship program focused on collaborative learning to improve professional development and clinical reasoning of occupational therapists in the beginning of the career, supported by the epistemology of practical rationality, narrative reasoning and learning community framework. The intervention included the participation on a collaborative group of six beginner occupational therapists, two experienced occupational therapists, and the mentor-researcher, and the writing of reflective journals by the beginner professionals. The information provided by the transcriptions of the group meetings and by the reflective journals was submitted to a threestage study: an analysis of the themes and their development; an analysis of the transformations of the modus operandi of the group in a timeline; and a final analysis of the reflective processes that showed up in the written narratives. The results reveal dynamical aspects of the collaborative work and indicate mutation points characterized by an open and honest treatment of the conflicts and by the building of mutual confidence, allowing the recognition of the doubts and enabling negotiation on the essential tension between being an occupational therapist and the practice of occupational therapy. The negotiations and constructs centered around the first pole involved dilemmas related to the professional competence in the beginning of the carrier, to the work in mental health, to the questions regarding professional identity and to the negotiations with institutional contexts. The production related to the second pole highlighted the construction of an assistance that contrasts with the biomedical model and the appropriation of theoretical concepts that sustain the practice of the occupational therapist regarding the triadic relation therapist-patientactivities. Besides that, the results of the reflexive processes revealed in the journals and viewed as clinical reasoning processes were interpreted differently of the literature, indicating that the procedural reasoning was aiming to the dynamics of the triadic relationship, in an intentional practice of creating therapeutic histories. Moreover, the results also highlighted relations between the situational diagnostic reasoning and the conditional one, reflecting an effort to view the patient in his/her daily life and culturemolded social and emotional conditions. Given this context, it is possible to view this research-action as an investigation embedded in the universe of professional formation and practice, and that gathers results that amplify the discussion of how powerful collaborative processes are in boosting investigative attitudes capable of sustaining the learning that care to the development of the therapist and his/her practice. By placing occupational therapy practice as a study subject and occupational therapists as agents capable of generating knowledge about it, this research revealed results that, besides highlighting constitutive aspects of a client-centered care, also indicates new directions to forthcoming further studies to strength the foundations of occupational therapy practice. / Esta pesquisa-ação procura compreender as contribuições de um programa de mentoria baseado na aprendizagem colaborativa para o desenvolvimento profissional e do raciocínio clínico de terapeutas ocupacionais em início de carreira, sustentada pelo referencial teóricometodológico da epistemologia da prática profissional, do raciocínio narrativo e da comunidade de aprendizagem. A intervenção da pesquisa caracterizou-se pela participação em um grupo de aprendizagem colaborativa, composto por seis terapeutas ocupacionais iniciantes, duas terapeutas ocupacionais experientes, e pela mentora-pesquisadora; além da produção de diários reflexivos pelas profissionais iniciantes. Os dados provenientes das transcrições dos encontros do grupo e das narrativas escritas nos diários foram submetidos a três etapas de análise: uma análise temática e do processo de desenvolvimento dos temas; uma análise das transformações nos modos de trabalhar no grupo em uma linha do tempo; e a análise dos processos reflexivos evidenciados nas narrativas escritas. Os resultados procuram elucidar aspectos relacionados à configuração do trabalho colaborativo ao longo do tempo, indicando momentos-chave de mudanças caracterizados pela elaboração aberta e honesta dos conflitos e pela construção de relações de confiança, permitindo a explicitação do nãosaber e a possibilidade de trabalhar sobre a tensão essencial entre ser terapeuta ocupacional e a assistência em terapia ocupacional. As negociações e elaborações centradas no primeiro pólo abarcaram dilemas relacionados à competência profissional no início da carreira, ao trabalho na saúde mental, às questões de identidade profissional e às negociações com os contextos institucionais. As produções em torno do segundo pólo evidenciaram a construção de uma assistência que se contrapõe ao modelo biomédico, e a apropriação de conceitos teóricos que sustentam a ação do terapeuta ocupacional no manejo da relação terapeuta-paciente-atividades. Além disso, os resultados referentes à análise dos processos reflexivos evidenciados nas narrativas escritas, tomados como processos de raciocínio clínico, suscitaram diferenças em relação à literatura da área, indicando que o raciocínio procedimental esteve voltado para a dinâmica da relação triádica, em um agir intencional para a construção de histórias terapêuticas; além disso, os resultados evidenciaram relações entre o raciocínio de diagnóstico situacional e o raciocínio condicional, no esforço de compreender o paciente em sua vida cotidiana, suas condições sociais e emocionais em uma cultura. Neste sentido, é possível localizar esta pesquisa-ação como uma investigação que transita no universo da formação e da prática profissional, e que congrega resultados voltados para ampliar a discussão sobre como processos colaborativos podem ser meios potentes para disparar atitudes investigativas capazes de sustentar uma aprendizagem voltada para o desenvolvimento do terapeuta e de sua prática. Ao colocar a terapia ocupacional como objeto de estudo e os terapeutas ocupacionais como sujeitos capazes de produzir conhecimentos sobre a prática, esta pesquisa também se deparou com resultados que, além de elucidarem aspectos constitutivos de uma assistência centrada no sujeito-alvo, também oferecem parâmetros para discussões e novas pesquisas interessadas em construir conhecimentos que possibilitem maiores e melhores sustentações para o que fazemos.

Esta pesquisa teve como finalidade permitir a expressão das características do diagnosticador, a fim de que ele próprio reconhecesse como suas características pessoais influenciam suas decisões clínicas. OBJETIVOS: Testar um programa de formação permanente, baseado em histórias de vida, para o aprimoramento do raciocínio clínico em enfermagem; descrever os temas presentes nos processos cognitivos e metacognitivos dos participantes, desencadeados pelas estratégias do programa; analisar a influência das estratégias do programa sobre o raciocínio clínico dos participantes; descrever as intervenções realizadas pelas pesquisadoras. MÉTODO: Planejamento e execução de pesquisa-formação em três hospitais e uma escola de enfermagem de São Paulo, Brasil. Os dados foram constituídos pelas produções escritas dos participantes e pelas observações das pesquisadoras, anotadas em diário. Esses dados foram interpretados a partir da análise de seus conteúdos, com base em proposições teóricas sobre raciocínio clínico e sobre histórias de vida e formação. RESULTADOS: O programa foi implementado com um grupo de 7 enfermeiras de um hospital geral universitário e com dois grupos (um com 7 e outro com 6) de estudantes de graduação em enfermagem. Nos três grupos houve 8 encontros semanais em que ocorreram análises de textos, avaliações de saúde, estudos de caso de pacientes, escritas e partilhas das histórias de vida e projetos. Os temas recuperados com o programa referiram-se aos domínios afetivo e cognitivo. As participantes realizaram e refletiram sobre a coleta e interpretação de informações, elaboraram julgamentos clínicos, analisaram dilemas ético-morais e significados sobre o cuidado de si e dos outros. CONCLUSÕES: As reflexões sobre o autocuidado e as próprias histórias de vida (cuidado de si) permitiram às participantes reavivarem as múltiplas influências que as formam, e que formam os outros, e dinamizaram conhecimentos, habilidades e atitudes necessárias em suas relações com os usuários do sistema de saúde, colegas de trabalho e profissão (cuidado de outros) / The present study intended to enable the expression of the characteristics of diagnosing professionals, so that they could acknowledge to what extent personal characteristics could influence their clinical decisions. OBJECTIVES: To test a program of permanent training, based on life histories, to improve clinical reasoning in nursing; to describe the topics present in cognitive and metacognitive processes of participants, triggered by program strategies; to analyze the influence of program strategies over clinical reasoning of participants; to describe the interventions used by the researchers. METHOD: Planning and execution of the research program and training in three hospitals and one nursing school in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Data consisted of the writing productions of participants and the observations of the researchers, registered in diaries. Data were interpreted by analyzing the content based on theoretical assumptions about clinical reasoning and life histories and training. RESULTS: The program was implemented in a group of 7 nurses in a general university hospital and in two groups (7 and 6 members, respectively) of undergraduate nursing students. The three groups had 8 weekly meetings where they analyzed texts, healthcare examinations, case studies, written pieces and shared life histories and projects. The topics retrieved by the program comprised the affective and cognitive domains. Participants performed and reflected about the collection and interpretation of information, made clinical judgments, analyzed ethical-moral dilemmas, and the meanings of taking care of others and of themselves. CONCLUSIONS: Reflections about self-care and their own life histories (taking care of themselves) enabled the participants to revive the multiple influences that had formed them and had formed the others. They could maximize knowledge, skills and attitudes required to their relationships with healthcare users, co-workers and the profession (taking care of the others)

Low back pain (LBP) is regarded as a major health and economic problem in western industrialised countries even at this time in the twenty-first century. Researchers estimate that it has increased to affect about 45% of the population in 2011. This increase creates a major burden on the health care services, social structures and the economy in terms of absenteeism from work. CNSLBP is still poorly understood. Main reasons for the poor understanding of CNSLBP discussed in this study are the limited understanding of the effect of the spine as kinetic chain which includes the head and pelvic girdle and with its attachments to the scapulae . The process of development of ISMS dysfunction are discussed as a combination of abnormal spinal loading, soft and neural tissue plasticity that result in biomechanical malalignment, adaptive and maladaptive movement patterns, pain processing integrated with psychosocial factors that influence the biomechanical, pain processing and psychological responses are discussed as possible mechanisms in the development of CNSLBP. The researcher developed a multidimensional manual therapy model to manage patients with CNSLBP based on metacognitive reflection on her clinical reasoning over a period of 40 years as the research methodology. The metacognitive reflection has been performed within the interpretive paradigm The model that resulted from the metacognitive reflection is dialectic in nature because it entails the understanding of the patient‘s problem from an interpretive as well as from an empirico-analytical perspective. The model is conceptualised in three stages: Firstly the conceptualisation of the integrated spinal movement system (ISMS), to indicate that the spine, head, shoulder and pelvic girdles function as a closed kinematic chain. Secondly the process of the development of ISMS dysfunction as a major concept in the clinical picture of patients with CNSLBP is based on functional anatomy of the ISMS and the researcher‘s clinical observation in clinical practice. The researcher indicates how the development of ISMS dysfunction and characteristic adaptive behaviour are integrated components of the patient‘s complex heterogenic clinical picture. The underlying process for the development of ISMS dysfunction as a possible mechanism for CNSLBP is described as plasticity of soft and neural tissues (including the brain) which result in chronicity over time. Thirdly a multidimensional manual therapy model to manage patients with CNSLBP‘s heterogenic condition is discussed. The model indicates how the mechanisms underlying the development of ISMS dysfunction is addressed in a multidimensional approach to patient management. Finally the multidimensional manual therapy model is discussed in relation to other relevant intervention approaches. The model finally serves as a point of departure for planning and conducting appropriate research in basic and clinical sciences. The multidimensional manual therapy model for the management of patients with CNSLBP has been developed in clinical practice and is presented as a practicetheory in the form of a model. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2013 / Physiotherapy / Unrestricted

Studiens syfte var att beskriva arbetsterapeuters kliniska resonemang vid användande av hundassisterad intervention på korttidsboenden och särskilda boenden för äldre personer. Genom ett ändamålsenligt urval valdes fem arbetsterapeuter med tre till sex års erfarenhet av hundassisterad intervention ut som deltagare i studien. Deltagarna deltog i enskilda narrativa intervjuer. Den insamlade datan analyserades därefter genom en narrativ metod. Analysen av datan resulterade i tre teman som benämndes hundassisterad intervention är en mångfacetterad åtgärd, vårdhunden motiverar till delaktighet i aktivitet samt omgivande faktorer påverkar användningen av hundassisterad intervention. Hundassisterad intervention är utifrån arbetsterapeuters kliniska resonemang en mångfacetterad åtgärd som kan användas för att skapa motivation till delaktighet i aktiviteter som både rehabiliterar och ger äldre personer en känsla av meningsfullhet. Omgivande faktorer såsom resurser i form av tid och ekonomi samt den fysiska och sociala miljön kan både begränsa samt skapa möjligheter för användande av hundassisterad intervention. Utifrån studiens resultat skulle hundassisterad intervention som används i en främjande miljö kunna leda till en förbättrad livskvalité hos äldre personer som befinner sig på korttidsboenden och särskilda boenden. Det finns dock ett fortsatt behov av forskning för att stärka evidensen för användandet av hundassisterad intervention. Studiens resultat ger arbetsterapeuter ny kunskap om interventionens terapeutiska värde och hur hundassisterad intervention kan användas i den kliniska verksamheten samt vilka faktorer som påverkar dess användning. / The aim of this study was to describe the clinical reasoning of occupational therapists when using dog-assisted therapy in residental settings for older adults. Five occupational therapists with three to six years of experience in dog-assisted therapy were purposefully selected as participants in the study. Data was generated by individual narrative interviews and analysed using a narrative analysis. The analysis of the data resulted in three themes called dog-assisted therapy is a multifaceted intervention, the care dog motivates participation in activities and surrounding factors affect the use of dog-assisted therapy. Dog-assisted therapy, based on the clinical reasoning of occupational therapists, is a multifaceted intervention that can be used to create motivation for participation in activities that both rehabilitate and give older adults a sense of meaningfulness. Surrounding factors such as time and economy resources as well as the physical and social environment can both limit and create opportunities for using dogassisted therapy. Based on the results of this study, dog-assisted therapy used in a promotional environment could lead to an improved quality of life for older adults in residential settings. However, there is a continuing need for research to strengthen the evidence for the use of dogassisted therapy. The result of the study give occupational therapists new knowledge about the therapeutic value of the intervention and how dog-assisted therapy can be used in the clinical setting and what factors affects its use.

Introduction. Le raisonnement clinique (RC) est une compétence médicale clé. Cette thèse soutient que l'organisation et la mise en lien systématique et explicite entre les données d'une patiente ou d'un nouveau-né et les connaissances d'un étudiant améliore sa performance dans la résolution de cas cliniques courants de la pratique sage-femme. Objectifs. Identifier les difficultés de RC d'étudiants en maïeutique et leurs causes explicatives ; identifier l'utilisation des cartes conceptuelles (CC) en lien avec le raisonnement clinique ; solliciter le RC des étudiants par la résolution de cas cliniques courants, identifier leurs perceptions et analyser leurs performances en fonction de leur niveau d'acquisition des CC.Méthodes. Etude exploratoire mixte, revue de la littérature, et expérimentation auprès de 97 étudiants de trois écoles de maïeutique. Analyse de 570 questionnaires et 352 CC. Résultats. Sept causes de difficultés de RC identifiées, parmi lesquelles le défaut de mise en liens entre les connaissances. Le potentiel d'utilisation des CC est confirmé par la littérature. L'expérimentation montre l'acceptabilité des CC et une aide à la résolution dans 50% des cas. Il existe un lien entre la maîtrise des CC, la cohérence du RC et le niveau de performance de résolution des cas. Cette dernière dépend de la représentation initiale du cas (concept de départ) et de la hiérarchisation des concepts, mais pas de la forme de la CC. Les CC permettent également d'identifier les difficultés des étudiants et d'établir un diagnostic pédagogique. Conclusion. La recherche valide l'hypothèse de départ et débouche sur des propositions pour utiliser les CC dans la formation au RC. / Introduction. Clinical reasoning (CR) is a key competence that students in health sciences must acquire. This thesis argues that concept mapping improves midwives students' performance in clinical problem solving. Objectives. Identify midwives students CR difficulties and their explanatory causes; identify the use of concept mapping and show compatibility between concept mapping and recommendations for clinical reasoning; introduce concept maps (CMs) in clinical solving learning sessions and observe their effects.Methods. Mixed exploratory study, literature review and experimentation including 97 students nested in three schools of midwifery: 570 questionnaires and 352 CMs were analysed. Results. Seven causes of CR difficulties were identified. Literature confirms CMs may be a relevant tool for clinical reasoning teaching and learning. By making knowledge explicit CM helps one out of two students to improve clinical problem solving performance when CM include a correct core concept and when concepts are hierarchically organized. The best performing students are those who acquire the construction of CMs.Conclusion. The research validates the starting assumption and leads to proposals of using CMs in CR learning. Concept mapping might be an interesting activity to foster CR and identify the difficulties that students may encounter.