Page 32 - Community pharmcy practice E-book 2025

31/10/2025, 23:40 Community Pharmacy Practice - Course Materials

Clinical reasoning

Clinical reasoning relates to the decision-making processes associated with clinical practice. It is a
thinking process directed towards enabling the pharmacist to take appropriate action in a specific
context.

Steps to consider in clinical reasoning

Use epidemiology to shape your thoughts
Take account of the person's age and sex
The general appearance of the patient
Hypothetico-deductive reasoning
Pattern recognition
Physical examinations
Safety netting
Conditional referrals
Advise patients on warning symptoms

Compared to mnemonics

Using a clinical-reasoning approach to differential diagnosis allows you to build a fuller picture of
the patient's presenting complaint. It is both flexible and specific to each individual, unlike the use
of mnemonics.

QuEST & SCHOLAR MAC

QuEST:
Quickly assess,
Establish selfcare appropriateness (using SCHOLARMAC),
Suggest care,
Talk to patient

SCHOLAR:
Symptoms, Characteristics, History, Onset, Location, Aggravating factors, Remitting factors

MAC:
Medications, Allergies, Conditions (CO EXISTING)

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