SLO 2: Clinical reasoning and safer decisions

The outcome

Help colleagues answer clinical questions, weigh uncertainty and make decisions that are safe for the patient.

St Emlyn’s summary, not the full official wording. Read the current RCEM SLO and requirements.

What this means in practice

Discuss a difficult decision and what evidence would change your plan.

Use these exercises to explain a clinical question, discuss uncertainty and make the next step clear to a colleague.

Start here

Choose a starting point to suit what you need to work on.

Diagnostic testing: decide before you request
Lesson plan · Early-career EM · Preparation about 17 min · 45-minute session · 30-minute option
Work through a clinical question, pre-test probability and what each possible result would change.
Learner preparation Facilitator guide
Chapter 3: History taking
Revision resource · FRCEM
Explain the working assessment, important uncertainty and next step.
Chapter 4: Communication
Revision resource · FRCEM
Hand over the reasoning, outstanding work and responsibility for the plan.

More learning for this SLO

Teaching programmes

Early-career Emergency Medicine
Teaching programme
1 relevant session in this programme.

Lesson links are St Emlyn’s educational mappings. Their individual clinical-review status still applies; attending a session does not demonstrate curriculum competence.