TITLE
According to Oxford Dictionaries (2015), confidence is defined as “a feeling of self-assurance arising from one’s appreciation of one’s own abilities or qualities.” Four years ago, I was placed in an entirely unfamiliar element, I was unsure of the decision I made to commit to four years of school to become a nurse. Looking back, I am glad I took the plunge because I have found and strengthened characteristics of myself that I never thought I could possess. I believe that a strong self-image positively reflects all aspects in one’s practice, including critical thinking skills, accountability for patient’s health, and confidently delivering nursing care. This essay will reflect on my journey from a first year nursing student to a beginning …show more content…
Additionally, as I am transitioning to beginning graduate nurse, my responsibility and accountability for my patients has also increased. I have developed coping skills to overcome my anxiety and strengthen my self-confidence. Each shift, I utilize critical thinking skills. When assessing patients, my subsequent questions are based on my critical thinking skills. As well, ensuring a patient is NPO, doing ECG’s and obtaining urine samples are all examples of using critical thinking in my everyday practice. When I expressed my anxiety to my preceptors about uncertain situations, they suggested that I do what I can do. This makes it easy for me to look at a situation and narrow in on one thing that I know I will have success in. For example, we had a female patient who had fallen and had sustained a head injury. I knew that while another nurse was starting an IV on her, I was able to obtain vital signs, neurovital signs, an ECG, and a Foley. The advice from my preceptors gave me the confidence to narrow into one thing that I could accomplished, which ended up having a domino effect, and I was capable of more than I thought when placed in a hectic situation. In first and second year, I completed nursing research before clinical. This consisted of a document with pathophysiology, physiology and anatomy, medications, and a care plan. At this point, I was only skimming the surface when it came to connecting medical diagnoses with lab values, test, and medications to be given. In third year, I transitioned to concept mapping and my critical thinking skills were most prominent then as I connected these components of my patient. I became more accountable for my decisions regarding patient care because I had a comprehensive understanding of my patient and their
According to Oxford Dictionaries (2015), confidence is defined as “a feeling of self-assurance arising from one’s appreciation of one’s own abilities or qualities.” Four years ago, I was placed in an entirely unfamiliar element, I was unsure of the decision I made to commit to four years of school to become a nurse. Looking back, I am glad I took the plunge because I have found and strengthened characteristics of myself that I never thought I could possess. I believe that a strong self-image positively reflects all aspects in one’s practice, including critical thinking skills, accountability for patient’s health, and confidently delivering nursing care. This essay will reflect on my journey from a first year nursing student to a beginning …show more content…
Additionally, as I am transitioning to beginning graduate nurse, my responsibility and accountability for my patients has also increased. I have developed coping skills to overcome my anxiety and strengthen my self-confidence. Each shift, I utilize critical thinking skills. When assessing patients, my subsequent questions are based on my critical thinking skills. As well, ensuring a patient is NPO, doing ECG’s and obtaining urine samples are all examples of using critical thinking in my everyday practice. When I expressed my anxiety to my preceptors about uncertain situations, they suggested that I do what I can do. This makes it easy for me to look at a situation and narrow in on one thing that I know I will have success in. For example, we had a female patient who had fallen and had sustained a head injury. I knew that while another nurse was starting an IV on her, I was able to obtain vital signs, neurovital signs, an ECG, and a Foley. The advice from my preceptors gave me the confidence to narrow into one thing that I could accomplished, which ended up having a domino effect, and I was capable of more than I thought when placed in a hectic situation. In first and second year, I completed nursing research before clinical. This consisted of a document with pathophysiology, physiology and anatomy, medications, and a care plan. At this point, I was only skimming the surface when it came to connecting medical diagnoses with lab values, test, and medications to be given. In third year, I transitioned to concept mapping and my critical thinking skills were most prominent then as I connected these components of my patient. I became more accountable for my decisions regarding patient care because I had a comprehensive understanding of my patient and their