Meticulous review of the professional life - Essay Example

1. Introduction My professional biography is a less formal version of my professional information that would usually appear in my curriculum vitae, and it will highlight some of my interesting facts as well as a little of my personality. Generally, it will give the reader a precise account of who I am, what I do as well as provide my expertise, credibility, experience and background. All these components will help in developing trust in my professional brand (Forde, McMahon and Reeves 2). My biography will detail the factors that influenced my decision to become a nurse, my studying experience, my foundational achievements, and the general experience after my graduation and how it has affected my life. This will enable me to critically examine my professional needs, weaknesses, and strengths, which will help in correcting any mistakes and improving on my strong areas (Kelly 394). I grew up in a caring family where all family members took care of each other regardless of their age. Furthermore, all members of my community collaborated in many activities, and the emotional attachment made sure that I felt other people’s happiness or sadness. Cultural values are the enduring belief systems that a society commits to. My culture adopted a collectivistic approach where personal loyalty to the community exceeded individual rights. This entailed that even health decisions were made by the family or the community (Ludwick and Silva). In addition, when I was 14 years old, a close family friend was involved in a serious car accident and was admitted in a hospital. I would visit him quite often, and I had the opportunity to observe while the nurses were taking care of him. I was impressed with keenness, kindness and caring that the nurses exhibited while performing their duties. Unlike other physicians that only spent a few minutes with the patients when they got to do their rounds, the nurses spent most of their time around the patients. This is because a nurse strives to protect the rights, safety and health of patients. Therefore, a nurse should develop professional relationships, practice with compassion, and respect the dignity, uniqueness and worth of all individuals without consideration for nature of medical problems, personal attributes, economic or social status (Nursing World). Therefore, I decide to enroll for a nursing course to develop my cultural values and enable me to have the necessary skills to extend similar care and support to those that require it. Nurses must utilize a wide range of communication approaches, both verbal and non-verbal, in acquiring, interpreting and recording the knowledge and in understanding people’s needs. Thus, they must incorporate the beliefs and values in their communication with others. Furthermore, nurses must recognize the anxiety and distress in their patients and respond effectively through therapeutic principles. This ensures promotion of their well-being, management of personal safety and resolution of conflicts. Lastly, a nurse must know when to seek consultation from a third party and when to make referrals for arbitration, mediation, and advocacy (Nursing & Midwifery Council). Since I am a sociable and friendly individual I developed an interest in nursing as it would give me an avenue to interact, know and assist people. Saudi Arabia’s first formal nursing training, coordinated by the country’s Ministry of Health and World Health Organization, had male students only and admitted students with at least six years in elementary school for a one-year program. Eventually, with the progress in female education, the training was extended to a three year course and admissions were open to students who had completed nine years in elementary education. Saudi Arabia’s MOH then introduced a post-high school nursing training program alongside the post intermediate nursing training program. The continuous upgrading led to the introduction of Bachelor of Science and Master of Science in Nursing programs (KFSHRC). I enrolled for a two year Diploma in Nursing program, which is considered an intermediate degree, at the College of Health Sciences in the City of Jazan, Saudi Arabia. After attaining my diploma, I proceeded to the School of Nursing and Midwifery at Curtin University in Australia for my Bachelor’s degree in Nursing. Bachelor of Nursing (BSN) programs in Australia normally run for three years. However, students who hold a Diploma in Nursing take a two year course program. The international recognition given to Australian universities presents an interesting opportunity for any international student who has the necessary minimum requirements (OEA). Both my diploma and bachelor’s degree courses covered general caring principles. Therefore, to get more specialization in the nursing field, I decided to enroll for a post-graduate course. Hence, I am currently in Salford University in the United Kingdom where I am pursuing a Master’s degree program in Nursing Education. I am pursuing this course through sponsorship granted to me by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Health and I hope I will graduate in July 2014. Students who wish to pursue a nursing career or develop it through obtaining additional qualification have many options to choose from institutions in the United Kingdom. These institutions offer a wide range of specialist areas and provide work placement programs to expose the students to practical experiences in suitable healthcare settings (CUG). Many top-ranked nursing programs are located in the United Kingdom, by Complete University Guide rankings, thus the Ministry of Health in Saudi Arabia feels that UK institutions offer proper training that will help it develop its health sector. 2. Professional Timeline After attaining my diploma, I was employed as a registered nurse from 2006 to 2008. Here, I worked as a Chronic Ward nurse at Jazan Psychiatric Hospital. I was suited for this role because I had taken a three months course in mental nursing. This job gave me the chance to improve my experience and thoughts about how to take care of patients. Mental health nurses offer treatment and care for people’s mental, spiritual, social, psychological and physical needs. Their interventions extend to the friends, families and caregivers of a patient who all support recovery. This provides its distinctiveness as mental health nurses have to develop professional relationships with all these groups of people (NMC). Later, I moved to King Fahd Central Hospital where I worked at the Ophthalmic Ward. This gave me an opportunity to practice the ophthalmic knowledge that I had acquired in my nursing diploma and from a seminar I had attended. It also exposed me to the significant eye problems and blindness in Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, some individuals with eye problems are not able to seek advice because they reside in remote areas or because they think blindness is caused by old age (Tabbara). These varied experiences provided me with invaluable understanding and knowledge in my nursing career and facilitated me to obtain the membership of the Nursing Board of Saudi Commission of Health Specialties (SCHS) in 2011. Every country has the responsibility to define nursing and legitimate roles that nurses should conduct in a way that consistent with international definitions and relevant to the health needs of its population. The nursing board under the SCHS set the criteria for registering and licensing nurses, established accreditation standards for high education nursing programs, and developed a nursing ethical code in 2003 (Aldossary). Nursing regulation is well developed and dates back to the 1800s. Currently, it is conducted by the Nursing and Midwifery Council which replaced the United Kingdom Central Council for Nursing in 1983. Its main functions include the maintenance of a register for nurses, health visitors and midwives in the UK, provide supervision to registrants, and handle complaints about professional misconduct (NMC). Through the various nursing roles that I have held this far, I have realized that professional values are critical in my career as they guide a nurse’s decisions and actions. The various duties that I have participated in require conscientiousness and a high degree of professionalism. For instance, improper record-keeping could result in a patient getting the wrong medication. Therefore, it is important to be aware of any action and the result it would have. Nurses are confronted with many ethical dilemmas. Therefore, they are required to be conversant with values that will help them to reach the most suitable solutions. Thus, their actions and interactions should not cause harm, and they should strive to provide similar commitment and care to all patients regardless of sexual, religious, ethnic, racial and cultural backgrounds (JSU). 3. Future Plans One of the most important aims of nursing education is to inspire nurses to acquire the necessary skills. This enables them to offer suitable and quality healthcare services to patients with many complicated health issues. Research indicates that a significant obstacle to clinical education is the absence of motivation and interest among students. Therefore, nursing educators need to provide long-term motivation to their students for them to continue offering the required healthcare (Nasrin, Soroor and Soodabeh 1). Therefore, my plan to pursue a Master’s degree in Nursing Education is justified by the fact that I have always found it important to impress upon train nurses the significance of appreciating and embodying nursing professional values in order to achieve the suitable academic skills from their training. Apart from efficiency, nurses should be compassionate, kind, and sympathetic towards their patients. Therefore, the delicate nature of the nursing professional requires integrity and care in the discharge of duties which should be guided by some professional values. After I graduate my master’s degree, I plan to go back to my country and assist the Ministry of Health and nursing institutions to develop the nursing society in Saudi Arabia. The country still faces a biting nurses’ shortage. Therefore, nursing leaders and educators should focus on offering incentives in order to encourage aspiring nurses to join the field as well as ensure job satisfaction amongst practicing nurses. Since, the country is faced with a rapidly growing population the government through the Ministry of Health should offer desirable incentives to attract both local and international nursing professionals, especially to the government hospitals. This should be a long-term strategy that aims at motivating, attracting and retaining nurses to alleviate the shortage (Alamri and Zuraikat). I plan to lecture in my home country for a few years before I pursue a PhD. This will enable me to explore nursing further before I can decide on which area to focus on at that level. 4. Conclusion This meticulous review of my professional life will be critical in shedding light on important milestones that I have achieved or plan to achieve throughout my nursing career. In the future, in order to formulate clear career objectives and suitably measure my achievements in both clinical and scholarly endeavors, it is necessary to adopt a scientific approach such as the SWOT analysis. Such an approach will significantly improve my career progression. Works Cited Alamri, Majed and Nashat Zuraikat. “Financial incentives system for nursing in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.” Journal of Accounting and Finance (2011): 53-57. Print. Aldossary, A M. “The role legitimacy of Nurses in Saudi Arabia.” 2013. J Health Spec. 2 Dec 2013. . CUG. “University Subject Tables 2014: Nursing.” n.d. The complete university guide. Web. 2 Dec 2013. . Dibie, Robert. The politics and policies of Sub-Saharan Africa. Lanham [u.a.]: University Press of America, 2001. Print. Forde, Christine, Margery McMahon and Jenny Reeves. Putting together professional portfolios. London: SAGE, 2009. Print. Fyle, C Magbaily. Introduction to the History of African Civilization. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 1999. Print. JSU. “Professional Values: Nursing.” 2013. Jacksonville State University. Web. 2 Dec 2013. . Kelly, Cordelia W. Dimensions of professional nursing. New York: MacMillan, 1968. Print. KFSHRC. “Development of Nursing Education in Saudi Arabia.” 2011. King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Centre. Web. 2 Dec 2013. . Ludwick, Ruth and Mary Cipriano Silva. “Ethics: Nursing around the world: Cultural values and ethical conflicts.” 14 Aug 2000. The online journal of issues in nursing: A scholarly journal of the American Nurses Association. Web. 2 Dec 2013. . Martin, Phyllis M and Patrick O'Meara. Africa. Bloomington [u.a.]: Indiana University Press, 1995. Print. Mentan, Tatah. The state in Africa: an analysis of impacts of historical trajectories of global capitalist expansion and domination in the continent. 192. Bamenda, Cameroon: Langaa Research & Puiblishing, 2010. Print. Nasrin, Hanifi, Parvizy Soroor and Joolaee Soodabeh. “Nursing challenges in motivating nursing students through clinical education: A grounded theory study.” Nursing Research and Practice 11 Jun 2012: 1-7. Print. NMC. “Mental Health Nurses.” 20 Apr 2010. Nursing & Midwifery council. 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