NUR 4010 FA 2013 Toggle navigation

Narrative Self Reflection

Camila German Community Health Nursing – Dr. Egues  

Self-Reflection Narrative

  This is a self-reflection regarding the 9 objectives necessary to complete my Community Health Nursing class with Dr. Egues. I will be evaluation whether or not I was able to satisfactorily complete my clinical goals for the semester.   Objective 1: Demonstrates individual professionalism through personal behaviors and appearance. Throughout the semester I was satisfactorily able to maintain clients’ confidentiality by following HIPPA guidelines and the policies of the organization I was working with, Delete Blood Cancer/DKMS. I assumed responsibility for my own learning and prepared for clinical learning by doing research pertinent to the content being taught, being punctual for clinical meetings and handing in assignments within the designated time frame. I sought guidance appropriately from my professor and the staff from DKMS whenever needed. I participated actively in clinical conferences sharing ideas and information pertinent to the nursing profession. I dressed professionally according to the NYCCT Nursing Department and DKMS guidelines.     Objective 2: Employ analytical reasoning and critical thinking skills when providing care to individuals and families in the community setting. I was able to successfully apply analytical reasoning and critical thinking skills when planning all the details necessary to set up the bone marrow drives in the community. I provided care to individuals and families in the community settings by interviewing donors about their medical history and background. In addition, I was able to assess the impact of developmental, emotional, cultural, religious and spiritual influences on the client’s health status and collects significant data relevant to client’s self-care needs while interacting with prospective donors, helping them fill out their health form questionnaires and answering any questions they may have had regarding the procedure. I successfully completed a physical assessment of selected clients and applied priority-setting in planning nursing interventions while preparing all the details regarding the bone marrow drives to meet the required deadlines. I was able to implement safe, appropriate nursing interventions in a timely manner. I was not able to administer medications and treatments, as that was not required while working with Delete Blood Cancer. I evaluated the outcomes of nursing care after each of the drives and I reflected about the approach I could have used differently to attract more registrants or to raise more donations.   Objective 3: Effectively communicate with diverse groups and disciplines using a variety of strategies regarding the health needs of individuals and families in the community setting I was able to complete objective three by successfully communicating with not only members of the community, but also my group members, my instructor and the large Delete Blood Cancer staff. We collaborated and brainstormed to find ideas for setting up drives, to expand the popularity of the DKMS organization and to raise the number of potential donors on the bone marrow registry. My group and I also communicated with the school newspaper and several other student offices on campus in preparation for our drives.     Objective 4 – Establish environment conducive to learning and use a plan for learners based on evidence-base practice. I effectively completed objective 4 by developing and implementing a teaching plan for an adult in the community setting. This teaching plan explained the basic facts of a bone marrow donation and what to expect during the procedure. My group and I also provided informative pamphlets and flyers while hosting the drives to successfully educate members of the community about bone marrow transplants, and to clarify any misconceptions they might have had regarding the procedure. The environment around our donation table was conducive to learning, as our group members were committed to teaching members of the community about not only bone marrow transplant, but also about the fantastic job done by Delete Blood Cancer.   Objective 5 – Utilize information technology when managing individual and families in the community. I completed this objective by utilizing information technology to conduct a research for DKMS on the different health policies regarding reportable diseases, which varies from state to state. In addition, DKMS uses computer data bases to store statistical and demographic information about registrants and we were able to discuss the importance of technology for the organization, not only to conduct the matches, but also for statistical purposes.   Objective 6 – Demonstrate a commitment to professional development I demonstrated a commitment to professional development by getting together with my group members after every drive to evaluate the experience, assess which techniques were successful, which needed improvement and to brainstorm ways so we could attract an even larger number of potential donors and/or raise even more donations for the organization.     Objective 7 – Incorporate professional nursing standards and accountability into practice I incorporated professional nursing standards and accountability into practice by presenting myself in a professional manner and being knowledgeable about the topics I was teaching to members of the community. Furthermore, I incorporated professional nursing standards by being organized during drives and keeping our table clean to ensure that it looked neat and professional and to avoid contamination of cheek swabs or misplacement of donors’ information.     Objective 8 – Collaborate with clients, significant support persons and members of the health care team. I completed objective 8 by successfully collaborating with members of the community and respectfully and professionally collaborating with the entire Delete Blood Cancer team, from the medical team to the marketing team. In addition, throughout the semester I collaborated with my clinical instructor, fellow group members, the Health Center at New York City College of Technology and other volunteers.   Objective 9 – Recognize the impact of economic, political, social and demographic forces that affect the delivery of health care services. I was able to recognize the impact of economic, political, social and demographic forces that affect the delivery of health care services while discussing the costs of running a non-profit organization such as DKMS. The costs are very high, each swab that enters the database costs the organization $65, and there are many costs associated with traveling expenses, medical testing, advertising, etc. I learned that fund raising is another challenge the organization faces and another important part of the job they do.