beliefs
Close to finishing my second year in nursing I think that my beliefs remain similar to as what they were when I entered nursing school. I like nursing because it offers a variety of professions as well as opportunities for ongoing education. After completing my maternal child placement I do realize that there are some aspects in nursing that I would not like to work in, I would like a fast paced unit/facility that allows change every day. Within this placement I realized multiple things in nursing; documenting is a large part of the job, relational interaction/relationships are key to becoming a good nurse and each section of nursing is completely different. My values have not changed throughout this placement; it has only enhanced my learning of them. My values are; caring, honesty, to have balance and be fair. Relational practice only enhances these values because in order to form a relationship with a patient as a nurse I would be caring and show empathy. In order to do this I have to be honest with the patient and family. Balance is for myself personally as a nurse, I have to learn to balance the needs of patients and their families with my own workload and the specific needs of every individual. Fair also plays a role in honesty and balance because that allows me to look professionally and personally at each case and provide fair and equitable care. Through my placement in maternal child, along with my different opportunities on various units I can say that this placement as only strengthened my values.
learning objectives
A learning objective for this course is to demonstrate the competency in family nursing and navigating my way through the different relational inquiry process and skills. I believe I have completed this learning objective through my placement in maternal child. I have communicated effectively with mothers and families on their wants and needs throughout their visit in the postpartum unit. I worked with a co-assigned nurse and discussed any of my concerns with them throughout my shift. I was able to use my observational skills, collaborative inquiry and therapeutic communication skills with the patients and their families.
A second learning objective for this course is to form a plan of care for the patients individually. I believe I was able to complete this for each of my patients that I was co-assigned with alongside another nurse. I was able to communicate with the families and work towards both the clinical and personal needs of the patients. I was assigned a different patient at every shift and believe I was able to complete this for every patient that I provided care for.
A second learning objective for this course is to form a plan of care for the patients individually. I believe I was able to complete this for each of my patients that I was co-assigned with alongside another nurse. I was able to communicate with the families and work towards both the clinical and personal needs of the patients. I was assigned a different patient at every shift and believe I was able to complete this for every patient that I provided care for.
final reflection
In my maternal child placement I learned a lot about my thoughts on nursing. I have the same views as to why I want to be a nurse and what brought me into this profession in the first place. Although now I do not know what field of nursing I want to be in. Before entering this placement I wanted to be in pediatric nursing and work with kids. I still believe that pediatric nursing would be fun and from what I have learned from my clinical instructor, who is a pediatric nurse, it can be demanding. Within this placement I have learned that I want a unit/facility that is fast paced and has different medical concerns. I enjoyed my placement in the maternal child because I feel it gave time to become confident with my skills without being under too much pressure, although once I become more comfortable with the work I found it became very repetitive. In this placement I was also able to visit the Child and Adolescent Inpatient Psychiatry (CAIP) unit for a day and see a caesarean section. The CAIP unit was unusually slow on the day I was placed there so I feel I did not see what a normal day in the unit was like, although I did enjoy my day and the atmosphere of the unit. My highlight of the placement was when I saw the caesarean section, I thought it was exciting and not like anything else I have seen. I believe this experience is what changed my views on what unit I would like to work in. I am more open now to any new experience and would like to get as much experience in different units before I have to make my choice for consolidation. If I was asked last semester or any time before that I would have said pediatrics, although now I am unsure. All together I thoroughly enjoyed my placement in maternal child unit and feel that I have learned a lot about nursing and become more confident with my skills.
goals
My goals for my next placement are to efficiently complete assessments on patients within the first few weeks of clinical. I will complete this goal by learning new assessments in labs and by practicing them within lab as well as in clinical every chance I can.
My goal for next placement in either chronic or acute setting is to use my knowledge and identify signs and symptoms of any of the diseases/illnesses previously learned. I can complete this goal by learning the different diseases/illnesses within class and using critical thinking and collaboration with other students or professionals to identify the illness.
My goal for next placement in either chronic or acute setting is to use my knowledge and identify signs and symptoms of any of the diseases/illnesses previously learned. I can complete this goal by learning the different diseases/illnesses within class and using critical thinking and collaboration with other students or professionals to identify the illness.