Week 1: 8/30-9/5
The first week of applying the newly acquired skills to practice was admittedly the most difficult one due to the amount of information that I had to process and the range of issues that had to be addressed. It was clearly the most informative stage of my practice as a DNP, and it required the greatest range of adjustment skills. Particularly, the process involved setting goals and designing a succession plan that would allow promoting a change in my perspective on nursing. Indeed, the development of an individual plan that included setting goals for further professional growth served as the means of learning more about myself and my aspirations. In addition, the plan helped me align my priorities in order, outlining my advantages and the gaps in my knowledge. Therefore, the specified step was critical in shaping my understanding of nursing, its significance for the community, and the role that it plays in my life.
Week 2: 9/6-9/12
The second week, which included getting familiar with the essential theoretical tenets of nursing, was also a crucial step for me in becoming an expert in nursing. Specifically, I learned to draw connections between theory and practice, which was especially inspiring since this link used to seem quite tenuous for me. After reading the assigned literature and performing several crucial assignments, I finally understood what adjustments theoretical tents required to be implemented in a practical task. The specified experience was critical in developing nursing skills. Specifically, I managed to design an approach toward handling practical cases and addressing the needs of vulnerable groups. At the end of the week, nursing practice no longer seemed as excruciatingly distanced from theory as it used to be.
In addition, the introspect into the major theories of nursing allowed me to understand the very concept of nursing better. Instead of viewing it solely from the perspective of administering basic healthcare services to a patient, I saw it as an opportunity to make gradual yet noticeable changes in the public health setting. For instance, the significance of patient education and the role of media finally became evident to me once I began to explore the depth of nursing theories. Furthermore, the concept of a patient-centered approach and the encouragement of a nurse-patient dialogue gained weight and significance in my eyes during the second week. Thus, this week marked an important shift in my professional growth.
Week 3: 9/13-9/19
However, learning the basic concept of shaping the general nursing theory in order to manage a practical assignment was not enough to understand the subject matter in depth. Therefore, the third week with its exploration of middle-range theories and their effect on the quality of nursing services also revealed a plethora of useful information that shaped me as a nursing expert. The very concept of a middle-range theory as a framework for addressing the needs of specific populations was paramount in my development as a nurse since it prevents misconstruing the concept of addressing health issues in a particular demographic. By learning about middle-range theories in nursing, I realized that it is imperative to narrow the scope and take patient-specific factors into account when developing a framework for managing particular health deficiencies in vulnerable groups. Therefore, learning about middle-range theories was essential to my professional growth.
The identified knowledge helped me to shape my own approach to nursing and create the framework for addressing the needs of diverse populations. By placing emphasis on nurse-patient communication and the education of both, one will be able to create the platform for the continuous improvement of nurses’ skills and patients’ outcomes. Thus, I realized that it was critical for a nurse to recognize a patient’s independence and ability to develop an essential understanding of health management. Similarly, it became apparent to me that a nurse also has to acquire new skills and knowledge on a regular basis in order to cater to the needs of a particular demographic.
Week 4: 9/20-9/26
The significance of ethics in nursing may often be overlooked by students, yet nurses have to face ethical dilemmas on a regular basis in the context of the nursing setting. Therefore, learning about the ways to manage the specified concerns is critical to becoming a good nurse. During the fourth week, I acquired crucial information about ethics in nursing and the key theories that should be used when handling complex dilemmas. Furthermore, the practical experience that I have gained allowed me to develop a better understanding of the problems within the contemporary nursing setting.
As the current set of objectives and key milestones shows, it is principal to introduce an improved system for information management and build an enhanced value system. The specified steps will contribute to a gradual rise in the quality of care and the creation of the platform for successful patient education. Furthermore, the active acquisition of nursing-related knowledge will become one of the key priorities for staff members as well. It was important to learn not only about the fundamental principles of nursing ethics, such as beneficence, nonmaleficence, and other principles but also about the challenges that one is likely to face when managing a practical issue, such as the choice between disclosing patients’ information for their benefit or keeping it private and ignoring an opportunity for recovery. As a result, I managed to build the framework for a gradual improvement of patient’s health status by embracing critical components of the nursing ethics/
Week 5: 9/27-10/3
While the previous weeks shed a lot of light on different issues in nursing, it was the fifth week that defined the major change in my perspective on the subject matter. The introduction of the concept of interdisciplinary communication by pointing to the connections between nursing and other disciplines such as biology and sociology helped me to recognize the need to cooperate with other experts. The suggested framework will have a positive impact on communication between nurses and other healthcare staff members, thus leading to a drop in the instances of conflicts in the workplace. The specified issue is especially important in the CCU setting, where the response toward a change in a patient’s state must be quick and effective.
Conflicts and misunderstandings, in turn, hamper the process of managing patients’ needs, which leads to a rise in nosocomial diseases, readmission rates, and mortality levels among the vulnerable population. Therefore, the proposed changes will have a positive effect on the quality of nursing care in the CCU, as well as in the nursing environment, in general. Promoting interdisciplinary cooperation and patient education, the suggested technique will help me improve significantly as an expert in nursing.
Week 6: 10/4-10/10
Since the concept of multidisciplinary cooperation in nursing is far too complex to be explored in a single week, the sixth week was also very important for my professional development. During this period, I had to locate the connection between the theory of interdisciplinary cooperation in nursing and its practical application, which was both challenging and engaging. The specified assignment helped me dissect the very nature of nursing, approaching it from multiple perspectives.
Particularly, the link between technology and nursing seemed especially important to me since it allowed for the promotion of patient education through active patient-nurse communication. However, other elements of the learning process were also critical. For instance, the link between nursing and medicine, as well as nursing and psychology, provided a connection to one of the previously studied themes, particularly, multidisciplinary cooperation in nursing. Thus, I managed to create a philosophy of interdisciplinary communication based on collaboration as the platform for performing the key nursing tasks. Thus, opportunities for embracing as many factors as possible when analyzing a patient’s condition and the success of a nursing intervention become possible.
Week 7: 10/11-10/17
In retrospect, when considering the aspects of nursing that used to be especially vague to me, I had to mention the system approach. The idea of every nursing theory and concept being connected, intertwined, and mutually dependent on each other seemed far too large to embrace. However, during Week 7, I finally grasped the reasoning behind the specified statement and managed to accept the system framework as a part of my nursing philosophy. After reading several crucial chapters addressing the concept of the systems theory, as well as providing an opportunity to embrace different theoretical frameworks, I finally managed to develop a clear concept of the systems theory and its significance in nursing.
The specified step was the final stage in dissecting the concept of interdisciplinary cooperation and its importance since the systems theory finally helped me view nursing in the context of other disciplines interconnected to nursing and each other. Thus, the seventh week was crucial to shaping my understanding of nursing as a concept and the practical application of theoretical tenets. Furthermore, during this week, I realized that the systems approach was necessary for creating the platform for unceasing professional growth and the ability to meet the health-related needs of a diverse population. Therefore, Week 7 was also filled with insightful discoveries and ideas that prompted my development.
Week 8: 10/18-10/28
During the final week, I had to embrace and systematize the crucial information that I had learned by that point, which was admittedly one of the most difficult tasks. However, the specified effort was worth making since I was finally aware of my strengths, weaknesses, and the further course of professional development. Particularly, I had to explore the concept of the systems theory in-depth and study the opportunities that interdisciplinary cooperation offered. Thus, the specified stage helped to cement the crucial knowledge and skills that I had acquired by that point. As a result, the Week 8 activities empowered me to explore nursing further, thus building a more profound system of knowledge and gaining the skills needed for catering to the needs of an increasingly diverse population. Specifically, the problem of patient-nurse communication became especially interesting to me as one of the most promising tools for promoting health in the global community. Thus, I have identified new areas to study and gained the confidence to start the learning process.