Decision Making - Research Paper Example

The first stage of decision making according to Arkansas program is establishing a community within which the decision is to be made, this stage involves building and strengthening relationships between members of the community, norms and procedures that influence how problems are perceived and communicated within the group, this stage can take place before or during the time a problem is identified. The second stage is the perception phase where an individual recognises the fact that a problem needs to be solved.

Interpretation is the third stage of decision making that involves explaining the specifics of the problem and identifying the issues that may have caused the problem. Judgement is the fourth stage that involves looking at other options that are available to respond to the problem and then choosing the option that will solve the problem satisfactorily (Baghbania et al, 53). Motivation involves analysing the issues that may make an individual choose a less effective solution and then prioritise the solutions based on the expected results.

The next stage is implementing the best solution to the problem; the solution that is implemented should have the ability to avoid the hurdles that may arise in the implementation process. The seventh stage is reflection in action, this stage involves analysing the problem solving process and making appropriate adjustments to improve effectiveness of the solution selected. The final stage in the decision making process is reflection on action which involves determining whether the solution solved the problem adequately; this is done by examining the consequences and the expected outcomes of the solution.

Example of decision-making An administrator in a hospital that admits patients in critical condition can be faced with a problem of getting one of the patients off a life support machine since he is unable to pay the bills or to continue letting him use the machine while his unpaid bills rise. In solving this problem, the administrator will be aware of the case by being informed by other medical practitioners who have direct contact with the patient. The second action that the administrator would take is ascertaining whether the patient is indeed unable to pay the cost of using the machine.

The administrator would then try to find out why the patient is unable to pay the bill, whether it is due to genuine lack of money or negligence by his relatives or the financiers of the hospital bill. The administrator would then decide on the alternatives to take regarding the patient, which may include putting the patient off the life support machine or allowing him to continue using it although he cannot pay the bill. The administrator may decide to put the patient off the machine since there is a minimal chance of survival for the patient and his hospital bill is high which may be hard to recover.

Before switching off the life support machine, the administrator will consider the issues may arise from his decision such as morality of the action, legal opinion on euthanasia among others and then prepare to handle them accordingly. The next