Self reflection - Essay Example

1 Reflection on Population Health and Primary Health Care Principles This is my reflection on the issue of population healthand primary health care principles as related to my current clinical experience at 3EB, where majority of the patients are amputated as a result of diabetes or accidents. In order to better attend to the clinical needs of my patients, I realized that I need to improve on some of my nursing skills in the areas of wound care and the insertion of Foley catheter that would be performed in the Amputee Unit.

I also acknowledged the significance of knowing the right procedures needed in carrying out glucose test. I observed that choosing the appropriate equipment for would care and explaining the necessity of such a task to the patients took a long time but interesting. It is quite helpful to be aware of the determinants of health as far as the 3EB patients are concerned: I spend some time identifying the socio-economic factors that may affect the quality of nursing treatment they received.

I also looked at their physical environments and their personality/characteristics in order to determine the appropriate nursing attention that would be of utmost usefulness to them. I worked hard on my communication skill as I gently prodded the patients to voice out their concerns. I was able to achieve some success in this regard because I showed absolute interest in the patients and expressed my willingness to help them by actively listening to their health-related complaints (Thomas & Pollio, 2002).

I adjusted my tone to the patients’ so as to win their hearts and trust. In the course of this process, I was able to quickly pass their requirements to other health officials that were directly connected to their treatment. I realized that the individual factors could either hinder or assist the smooth application of clinical treatment on the patients (Thomas & Pollio, 2002). If I have decided to be selfish and uncaring, the patient would be reluctant to communicate with me. But since both the patient and I felt the individual responsibility to communicate meaningfully, it was possible to elicit vital information that would help the patient to recover.

I reckoned that the bulk of nursing activities I carried out at 3 EB required that I first of all paid serious attention to the patients’ needs, and then mapped out my solutions to whatever health problems using my mini care plan. This involved collective action from both the patient and I: I was ready to help, and the patient was ready to be submissive to my care. I also learned about the importance of time management and self-assessment: I spent a great deal of time documenting my encounters with the patients.

I also identified practically the clash of principles when it comes to the disagreement between medical and nursing interventions (Thomas & Pollio, 2002) It was great recognizing the demands of nursing in the areas of self-denial but paying much attention only to the clients’ needs. This dragged me through a mental process of re-assessing my personal values and the possible clashes it might have with the client’s values. Offering nursing services in a diverse cultural settings or multicultural environment required that I appreciate the cultures of the patients while doing my best to help.

This is the very first step to giving perfect nursing services to the clients. It is also leads to recognizing their individual rights and social justice. However, I came to realize that leadership, in nursing, meant being a servant to one’s clients. Through this process, it is possible to build mutual trust and long-lasting relationship between nurses and their patients. All the facts related to my patients’ care were documented and properly filed away as parts of their medical histories for future reference.

It is also advisable to identify the population/demographic of the patients and monitor the outcomes of the health services such people receive. Inequality in health services sometimes occur due to the different levels of determinants of health that are not evenly distributed in every locality or area. ReferencesThomas, S.P., & Pollio, H.R. (2002). Listening to patients: a phenomenological approach to nursing research and practice.

New York: Springer Publishing Company.