Self-Assessment
Exploring one’s personal development is critical to determining issues that could hamper the progress and ensuring continuous psychological and emotional growth. Thus, it is necessary to assess one’s learning abilities and determine possible areas of concern, outlining the further course of personal improvements. The proposed self-assessment tool is a perfect means of locating the direction in which one can develop professionally and personally (Skela-Savič & Kiger, 2015).
Due to the multilateral nature of the assessment and its ability to define one’s strengths and weaknesses in several domains of learning, the test should be seen as a valid instrument for determining the directions for one’s personal growth. Based on the outcomes of the analysis, it will be important for me to participate in cross-disciplinary teams and understand how theory is translated into practice, thus analyzing the available evidence to ensure high-quality clinical practice.
According to the test results, there is a lack of ability to link theory to practical experiences, which is why the specified area should be the focus of my efforts this semester. An NP student must be able to translate theoretical information into practice to address patients’ needs (Saifan, AbuRuz, & Masa’deh, 2015). For this purpose, I will have to learn how to integrate the available evidence into clinical practice and connect it to the acquired theoretical knowledge. The specified objective should also be connected to the promotion of continuous improvement of my professional skills so that I could broaden the area of my expertise.
The issue described above should be correlated with the problem of maintaining the continuum of care, which I may have according to the test results. Moreover, the significance of culturally diverse care that implies recognizing patients’ culture-specific needs should also be mentioned as the scope of my further studying. Indeed, in the ever-changing setting of the global community, a nurse needs to learn how to target different types of patients and provide culture-specific care.
Thus, improving my cultural competency is the key issue that I should explore during this semester. For example, sociological aspects of health should make an important aspect of my learning (Ebrahimi, Eklund, Dahlin-Ivanoff, Jakobsson, & Wilhelmson, 2017). Learning how to change patients’ behaviors and habits by appealing to their cultural background will allow me to practice culturally competent care.
The importance of offering the full spectrum of care and giving a full range of services, including health promotion, disease prevention, and management of health issues, should also be on the list of my priorities in learning. As an NP, one should maintain competency in a range of domains from medicine prescription to counseling to anticipatory guidance (Ebrahimi et al., 2017). Therefore, I will need to coordinate the process of learning by building a knowledge system in which every element of nursing practice is linked to the rest of the components, and where collaboration and knowledge sharing are crucial for maintaining the quality of care high.
Professional Development Plan
To start my learning, I will need to prioritize my needs as a learner. For instance, at present, I need to develop the skills of cross-disciplinary cooperation and a culturally sensitive approach toward meeting the needs of diverse patients. Therefore, the study of interdisciplinary collaboration and culturally sensitive nursing care currently the core phenomena that I will need to attain.
Determining the essential learning objectives is another important stage of the professional development plan. To improve my current skills, I will need to split the task of building cultural competence and interdisciplinary collaboration skills into several objectives. First and foremost, I will need to explore strategies for information sharing and negotiation in the nursing setting. Thus, the levels of stress during interdisciplinary cooperation will be reduced (Islam, Hutchinson, & Bucknall, 2018).
The next step will involve expanding my cultural competence and related skills. As a student, I will need to seek all available community resources that shed light on nursing in a multicultural community (Ebrahimi et al., 2017). Specifically, the latest studies on nursing strategies for advancing cross-cultural care, articles that detail the needs of vulnerable groups, and similar resources will be consulted to improve my current level of cultural competence and recognize the need to address the needs of diverse populations. In this regard, the means of building a reciprocal connection with a multicultural community will be explored, including the latest innovations in ICT as the pathway to establishing a nurse-patient dialogue. Thus, I will be ready to address the requirements of a particular cultural group appropriately.
Concerning the connection between theory and practice, as a nurse, I will have to participate in simulations that will guide me through the process of adjusting theoretical principles to nursing practice. Thus, I will learn how to translate the existing theoretical knowledge to practical issues that I will have to face in a nursing setting. Furthermore, the collaborative effort mentioned above will also help me to advance in applying theory to practice since sharing knowledge will enrich my set of skills and inform my choices in future practice.
Simultaneously, analyzing carefully current clinical cases and studying recent research concerning nursing practice will allow me to develop a profound understanding of the essence of nursing practice (Hussein & Osuji, 2016). As a result, I will become prepared for the challenges that await me after I finish my studies and enter the realm of evidence-based nursing.
One should also expect several obstacles that may hinder the process of personal and professional growth. For instance, the lack of peer support should be seen as a potential barrier that may hamper the acquisition of the required skills and information. The specified problem is quite common in the modern nursing environment due to the strenuous setting in which nursing experts are often forced to work (McKenna, Halcomb, Lane, Zwar, & Russell, 2015).
Apart from a reluctance among the rest of the participants to engage in meaningful collaboration, arguments, and conflicts in the workplace can be expected as a result of the described issue. Therefore, one will need to promote the principles of shared knowledge and cooperation to a team, thus encouraging other students to grow professionally and personally.
Practicing nursing implies dealing with an ample number of challenges, yet, with the focus on interdisciplinary collaboration, the needs of culturally diverse patients, and the connection between theory and practice, I will be able to succeed. I expect that, during this course, I will build the platform for becoming a successful nurse. The personal development plan outlined above will help me to become a better expert and meet the needs of my patients. While requiring much effort and numerous resources, the plan provided above will serve as the starting point for my professional improvement.
References
Ebrahimi, Z., Eklund, K., Dahlin-Ivanoff, S., Jakobsson, A., & Wilhelmson, K. (2017). Effects of a continuum of care intervention on frail elders’ self-rated health, experiences of security/safety, and symptoms: A randomised controlled trial. Nordic Journal of Nursing Research, 37(1), 33-43. Web.
Hussein, M. T. E., & Osuji, J. (2016). Bridging the theory-practice dichotomy in nursing: The role of nurse educators. Journal of Nursing Education and Practice, 7(3), 20-25. Web.
Islam, T., Hutchinson, A. M., & Bucknall, T. K. (2018). Nurse manager risk information management for decision-making: A qualitative analysis. Collegian, 25(4), 401-407. Web.
McKenna, L., Halcomb, E., Lane, R., Zwar, N., & Russell, G. (2015). An investigation of barriers and enablers to advanced nursing roles in Australian general practice. Collegian, 22(2), 183-189. Web.
Saifan, A., AbuRuz, M. E., & Masa’deh, R. (2015). Theory practice gaps in nursing education: A qualitative perspective. Journal of Social Sciences/Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, 11(1), 20-29. Web.
Skela-SaviÄŤ, B., & Kiger, A. (2015). Self-assessment of clinical nurse mentors as dimensions of professional development and the capability of developing ethical values at nursing students: A correlational research study. Nurse Education Today, 35(10), 1044-1051. Web.