Advancing Clinical Excellence: Cultivating Critical Thinking and Clinical Reasoning in Medical Education.

Critical thinking (CrT) and clinical reasoning (CR) are crucial skills for medical professionals. They serve as cornerstones for diagnostic excellence and patient safety, while significantly contributing to patients’ sense of well-being. As the healthcare landscape becomes increasingly complex, the ability to think critically and reason clinically has never been more important. This chapter explores the interplay between CrT and CR in medical education, addressing the significant challenges in teaching these complex competencies that extend beyond mere knowledge acquisition. It examines how students must simultaneously master core medical knowledge while developing reasoning abilities in uncertain clinical…