It is important to note that over the past weeks, a wide range of topics was covered, which provided me with crucial knowledge and skills ready to be implemented into clinical practice. The given reflective assessment will primarily focus on elaborating, exploring, and reflecting on the learned knowledge and experiences further to deepen my understanding and awareness of my learning outcomes.
My time and energy during the first week were allocated mainly to goal setting, establishing objectives, planning, and exploring novel practice approaches. On the second day of the week, I came across an article that explored how one of the significant issues in clinical practice is the lack of time, skills, and access to proper training and professional development opportunities (Cooper et al., 2021). In other words, the sheer workload experienced by nursing specialists is a key barrier that prevents the advancement and development of nursing professionals during their work time. It is stated that integrating evidence-informed clinical practice development programs can effectively overcome the obstacle (Cooper et al., 2021).
I met with my preceptor and discussed the study, and we both agreed that workload is a significant barrier to integrating other new approaches. In addition, I realized that my competency in APA formatting was low, so I dedicated some time to becoming proficient in it.
The second week was highly productive due to an acquisition of new knowledge and understanding regarding interprofessional collaboration. It should be noted that human well-being and health rely on an intricate work of a wide range of the bodily system, which is why medical professionals specialize in one of these systems. However, to effectively treat and ensure recovery, the involvement of several healthcare specialists is required, which is interprofessional cooperation is a cornerstone of high-quality service.
I learned that hierarchal roles are the main barriers to such collaboration, which is why the nurses need to lead the way by adopting and adhering to transformational leadership measures (Goldsberry, 2018). Nursing specialists play a central role in interprofessional collaboration since they are the direct care providers who realize the practical part of care, whereas other medical specialists collaboratively share expertise and knowledge. After learning about these barriers, I noticed similar patterns in my work environment.
During the third week, the focus was put on healthcare delivery and clinical systems subjects, where I wanted to learn more about the role of novel clinical systems and their impact on healthcare delivery. I learned that an electronic medical records system has both advantages and disadvantages. The benefits are manifested in the fact that nursing professionals can have superior time management and procedural orderliness, and they can also retrieve critical information easily and readily (Waithera et al., 2017).
However, the improvements come at the cost of over-reliance on EMR since any form of disruptive event, such as shutdown, system failing, or even hacking, can put the entire facility on hold, risking the well-being of the patients (Waithera et al., 2017). In other words, as I discussed with my preceptor, technological improvements are not solely enhancements since they can also create novel problems, which is why integrating such tools requires proper evaluation.
The fourth week was invaluable since the main subject revolved around ethical considerations in the healthcare delivery process. In the field of nursing and healthcare, the integration of moral standards into the legal system should be most pronounced. In cases of inconsistency between them, society finds itself involved in an acutely adverse process of destruction of its foundations due to an outright dehumanization of relations in one of the most humane areas of its life. I learned that it is natural that ethical standards in medicine have changed due to social relations and the industry’s development. However, at the same time, their essence, philanthropic orientation, and humanistic basis have practically not changed over the past two millennia. I became more competent in the subject since the history of medicine reflects in detail the path traveled by professional ethics. Moreover, each of the stages has a corresponding characteristic reflecting certain features.
Week five focused on culturally sensitive care practices, which is highly important since we live in a multicultural nation and world. Understanding the intricacies of other cultures and their perspectives is paramount for improving healthcare delivery quality and process. Although I knew that culturally sensitive care is critical, I was unaware that it significantly impacts healthcare service quality. I discussed the topic with the preceptor, where I learned that “patients from ethnic minority groups often receive a lower quality of care,” which is why healthcare professionals should broaden their understanding of the issue and increase their cultural awareness (Claeys et al., 2021, p. 484).
In my practice, I became more aware of my interactions with patients from minority groups, which showed significant improvements in terms of having fewer communication barriers and more information.
During week five, I focused on the subject of ensuring the integrity of human dignity in the care of all patients. It is important to note that the healthcare delivery process can be highly invasive and, thus, negatively impact the human dignity of the patients. Therefore, I sought out my preceptor to learn more about the subject since I wanted to know whether or not patient safety comes first before patient dignity if they are in conflict regarding clinical practice. I learned that respecting human dignity is deeply embedded in patient safety, and these two concepts cannot be in conflict but rather in alignment, where disrespecting patient dignity results in poorer outcomes and care delivery (Goodwin et al., 2018).
Before this week, I never adequately valued the importance of preserving patient dignity to improve patient safety, which is why now, I have become more aware and knowledgeable when working with patients.
The seventh week was focused on the topic of population health concerns. Healthcare delivery often accentuates the attention on the particular issues of each patient, where a “bigger picture” can be overlooked. Understanding population health trends and patterns can be a major improvement in regards to making systematic changes and adjustments since it offers predictability, prognostics, and preparedness. Healthcare facilities, which are well-informed and aware of public health changes, can be ready for potential future changes in demand for certain healthcare services. For example, an aging population in a state or region means that there will be a higher demand for nursing homes and associated services. Therefore, such organizations can make necessary adjustments to be able to respond to these future increased needs. I learned that I was unaware of the patterns and trends in population health in my community, which is why I spent a considerable amount of time studying the subject.
Week eight addressed the role of technology in improving health care outcomes. I became more knowledgeable about EMR systems since these tools interested me the most. Although there are significant challenges to adopting EMR systems, such as low funding, high costs, and the lack of necessary staff, such instruments can significantly improve the overall clinical decision-making in a patient management process as well as increase productivity among healthcare professionals, especially nursing specialists (Waithera et al., 2017).
In other words, the role of technology in healthcare outcome improvement cannot be underestimated since advantages are evident, but the majority of obstacles emerge during the implementation process since it is essential to allocate resources to the integration, such as covering the costs and training the staff. I became more competent and confident in understanding the key advantages of utilizing technology to improve patient outcomes.
During the ninth week, I worked with my preceptor to improve my understanding of health policies and how they shape the entire field of healthcare. We thoroughly discussed the implications of the current healthcare policies and how they impact public health. It is important to note that although some policies do bring several benefits to specific groups, I learned that they also come with drawbacks.
For example, I discovered that the Affordable Care Act made millions of uninsured Americans insured but also devalued the already existing insurances and created new loopholes for employers not to be obliged with the act’s mandates, such as hiring part-time workers instead of full-time (Mathur et al., 2015). In other words, my preceptor helped to realize that there are no simple and direct solutions to the current health policy problems, and thus, any systematic change brings a host of unseen issues.
During week ten, my preceptor and I focused on assessing leadership’s theoretical and practical framework for improved healthcare delivery and quality. I learned that in the current economic model of the health care system, a leader plays a multidimensional role. First, they manage the health care delivery process. In addition, regional leaders act as agents of the central government, setting the stage for health care reform. Health managers manage the workforce, and the health care system is a strategically important sector of the economy requiring adequate, skillful regulation and management.
During the last week, my preceptor and I discussed the topic of healthcare inequality. I learned that certain groups of the population are vulnerable to healthcare inequality. The experience of implementing conceptual approaches and plans for reforming health care indicates insufficient attention to one of the most important factors of intra-sectoral efficiency: the healthcare inequality aspects of care delivery.
References
Claeys, A., Berdai-Chaouni, S., Tricas-Sauras, S., & De Donder, L. (2021). Culturally sensitive care: Definitions, perceptions, and practices of health care professionals. Journal of Transcultural Nursing, 32(5), 484–492. Web.
Cooper, S., Sanders, J., & Pashayan, N. (2021). Implementing a novel program for nurses and allied health professionals to develop capacity for evidence-informed clinical practice. Journal of Research in Nursing, 26(5), 395–404. Web.
Goldsberry, J. W. (2018). Advanced practice nurses leading the way: Interprofessional collaboration. Nurse Education Today, 65, 1–3. Web.
Goodwin, D., Mesman, J., Verkerk, M., & Grant, S. (2018). Dynamics of dignity and safety: A discussion. BMJ Quality & Safety, 27(6), 488–491. Web.
Mathur, A., Slavov, S. N., & Strain, M. R. (2015). Has the Affordable Care Act increased part-time employment? Applied Economics Letters, 23(3), 222–225. Web.
Waithera, L., Muhia, J., & Songole, R. (2017). Impact of electronic medical records on healthcare delivery in Kisii teaching and referral hospital. Medical & Clinical Reviews, 3(4), 1-7. Web.