The Evidence of Activities: The Eight Domains of Mentorship in Nursing - Essay Example

?ASSESSING THE EIGHT DOMAINS OF MENTORSHIP DOMAIN Establishing Effective Working Relationships 1a. Develop effective working relationships based on mutual trust & respect I have always believed that relationships will last longer when it is based on filial trust and mutual respect. As such, I made it certain to commence my relationship with my student on such terms. Since this is the first day that I met with my pupil, I made use of this period to introduce myself and gave a passing glimpse as to how I ended up in this career. I also endeavoured to lay the foundation for a more open relationship between us so that my pupil will come to regard me as more than just a teacher. I made it certain for this day to mark as the beginning of a lasting bond. 1b. Demonstrate an understanding of factors that influence how students integrate into practice Our work requires being up on your toes and having those same toes stilted by nothing less than education, skill and confidence. I believe that my student will best attain these if I were to groom my pupil following the strictest standard of well-roundedness, discipline and competence. For this reason, I introduced my student to my co-workers and permitted the creation of working relationships amongst them so that my student will have an alternate source of training and instruction. I believe that allowing my student to assist other nurses and health practitioners will provide her with the necessary consciousness necessary for her to ascertain her commitment and passion for the job. 1c. Provide on-going and constructive support to facilitate transition from one learning environment to another With my student gaining enough foothold to consider her as being able to adapt well into the responsibility required in this field, I talked to her and made her promise to come see me anytime she feels uncertain or hesitant about a particular duty. I also gave her instructions to feel free to ask her superiors and not be intimidated and reticent to voice out her concerns or questions. My student and I chanced upon an opportunity to talk and I told her of the time when I was starting in on my career and had to undergo everything that she is going through including the uncertainties, misgivings and exhaustions. I told her that she is free to come up to me anytime and that I would not hesitate to lend my support and even willing to see her as a friend to help her through and not her mentor. Domain 2 – Facilitation of Learning 2a. Use knowledge of the student’s stage of learning to select appropriate learning opportunities to meet their individual needs Before commencing on the mentorship program, I have already created an outline detailing the tasks that would comprise the duties and responsibilities in the field. I listed down the tasks according to its degree of difficulty and I endeavoured to group together the tasks that are manageable and packed them in one or two days, while the more difficult task, I opted to spread out into more days. I believed that indoctrinating my pupil with the obligations in the field in a gradual manner would enable her to perform better as she would be able to have mastery of the tasks at hand. Allowing her to gain sufficient knowledge in performing assignments in phases would allow her to adapt and cope with the life in the field better and more effectively. 2b. Facilitate selection of appropriate learning strategies to integrate learning from practice and academic experiences With the relative acceptance and assistance that my mentor and I get from the other staff members, I was able to gain insight as to how to handle my pupil as would enable the best manner to instil certain matters into her training. I realized, from a remark made by a co-worker that my pupil is actually very hard working and is set on learning new things. She remains objective even during toughest and critical moments and she seldom gets nonplussed even when under extreme duress. Furthermore, I was able to observe that my pupil responds positively to commendations and that she works hard even more seemingly to challenge more from herself. As such, I believe that it is viable for her training that she receives well-deserved approval from her superiors as she utilizes these as reasons to push her forward. 2c. Support students in critically reflecting upon their learning experiences in order to enhance future learning With the number of students undertaking the mentor program, I distinctly remembered having told my pupil to be conscious of how her fellow students are doing in their program. I made her do this with the intention of noting certain mentoring styles that students approve of and other teaching or mentoring techniques which receive criticisms from her peers. I wanted my pupil to be able to pinpoint the teaching approach that works best for her so that she would be able to adapt to a trainer or mentor whose style is different from what works well with her and from that, she would know how to intensify her learning process. Domain 3 – Assessment and Accountability 3a. Foster professional growth, personal development and accountability through support of students in practice During the first day that my pupil and I met, I specifically remember asking her what her expectations are with regards our working relationship. I was informed that all she expects was to learn every nook and cranny of the job and to carry with her bits and pieces of how to survive the field on her own. Thus, our relationship became that of an older sibling showing her the ropes, giving her tips and boosting her morale once in a while. With my seniority, I became my pupil’s automatic prototype of what to become in order to survive in the workplace. 3b. Demonstrate a breadth of understanding of assessment strategies and the ability to contribute to the total assessment process as part of the teaching team I believe that the performance of the pupils involved in the mentorship program must not be gauged according to numbers or based on statistics. The fact is that these students, as they get involved in their work, perform tasks that are atypical of a common job. These students evolve into public servants where the number of people served and attended to should not matter but the breadth, depth and detail of how they performed their duties should account for their marks. After all, there really is no proper way to count and quantify services rendered when founded on human subjectivity and conception. 3c. Provide constructive feedback to students and assist them in identifying future learning needs and actions I would like to believe that being more than just a mentor to my pupil counts for a lot in her struggle to accomplish the program and even in jumpstarting her career. I would like to believe that having someone to serve as an active example of what it is like to be in the field contributes a lot in the development of my pupil as this allows her to identify key areas that she must dwell and focus on. 3d. Manage failing students so they may either enhance their performance and capabilities for safe and effective practice or be able to understand their failure and the implications of this for their future I have always believed that there are no individuals that are inherently incapable of understanding or comprehending matters. I attribute failures to emotional, physical, psychological, social or other aspectual setback in a person’s being. I believe that there are always “reasons” that causes an individual to not perform better whether in school or at work. As such, I make certain that I extend extra help to a student who is lagging behind and I see to it that whatever is causing such student to fail in his or her undertakings is resolved before I may expect to see improvement in his or her performance. 3e. Be accountable for confirming that students have met or not met the NMC competencies in practice I have repeatedly hounded my pupil of the importance of informing the patients and the clients of the need to maintain a healthy lifestyle. I have constantly stressed to my pupil the need to pass on to our patients that treatment transcend the bounds of the hospital doors and that medicines does not singularly equate to cure but healthy food and exercise translate to medication as well. This is in high consonance to the principles espoused in NMC stating that health professionals must always take the opportunity to promote the health and well-being of the patients by encouraging them to maintain active and independent healthy lifestyles. Domain 4 – Evaluation of Learning 4a. Contribute to evaluation of student learning and assessment experiences- proposing aspects for change as a result of such evaluation The mentorship program is a good way of assimilating new graduates into the field. I believe that this works well for their end as they are gradually made to become part of the team without having to field unchartered territories on their own. However, in some instances, these programs could actually take a toll on the mentors seeing that they are cramped with the usual tidings at work which is exacerbated with the need to assess and monitor the progress of their respective pupil. I believe that this program would work well if the mentors are given specific time or off duty days with which they can properly conduct the mentoring and not make them steal off minutes from their own short rest times. 4b. Participate in self and peer evaluation to facilitate personal development, and contribute to the development of others With the support I enjoy from my co-workers, I was able to realize certain attitudinal factors that affect my behaviour toward my pupil and towards the program as a whole. I have been regarded as a hard-working person with a firm sense of focus that allows me to perform my duties efficiently. However, this rigid focus has also caused me to unconsciously discount and take no notice of other events or occurrences around me. This mentorship program has allowed me to grow as a person as I have been given the opportunity to dwell on my career while minding the advancement of my pupil. Domain 5 - Creating an Environment for Learning 5a. Support students to identify both learning needs and experiences that are appropriate to their level of learning My student and I have kept a very healthy working relationship where we have been relatively open to the needs and wants of the other. If my student feels that there are certain aspects in the job that she has not been keenly trained on, she unhesitatingly informs me and we quickly device a way or arrange our schedules so that I would be able to teach her about it. Likewise, when I feel that her performance in one task is below par, I inform her of my observation and again, we organize our module to allow a re-training or a mastery of that particular task. We make sure that both of us approve of the way and the speed of the mentoring. 5b. Use a range of learning experiences, involving patients, clients, carers and the professional team, to meet the defined learning needs The willingness of my co-workers and the rest of the team to assist and instruct these students have been a great support in the program’s aim of moulding these pupils into worthy professionals. Everyone takes an active part in the students’ training by making it a point to instil knowledge on the pupil based on his own field of expertise. For example, my colleague who is often called to assist in the situations involving children due to her bubbly nature, has taught the students of the importance of maintaining a cheerful personality when dealing with kids as they have the tendency of running away from treatment of whatever kind. 5c. Identify aspects of the learning environment, which could be enhanced negotiating with others to make appropriate changes There is a general tendency of the students to clump together and establish their own clique. I guess this is just but natural considering that they are relative outsiders in the workplace. I believe it would be for the advantage of the students and foe the benefit of the program as well if such propensity is to be taken advantage. Although the mentorship program entails for a student to be assigned to his or her own designated mentor, I believe that conducting lectures or conferences involving all the students as a group would be beneficial to their learning process. 5d. Act as a resource to facilitate personal and professional development of others The mentorship program alone has enabled me to become a resource person tasked to facilitate the professional growth of another individual. Being a mentor and being tasked to assist in the training and education of my pupil has transformed me into a career counsellor and guide. The fact that I stand as a “life coach,” mentor, teacher and consultant to my pupil has caused me to earmark my contributions to her education as testaments to the fact that I have assisted in her professional and personal growth. Domain 6 – Context of Practice 6a. Contribute to the development of an environment in which effective practice is fostered, implemented, evaluated and disseminated With my pupil and I’s relatively open and receptive approach to learning, we have permitted the entry of other mentors in the face of my colleagues. As such, we have, in a certain way, instigated the revolution in the program where the mentoring is not limited to the two active participants but to the entire team of workers and even patients and clients who all stand to be affected by the outcome of the said program. 6b. Set and maintain professional boundaries that are sufficiently flexible for providing inter-professional care My pupil and I have enjoyed a great working relationship that begins and ends at the door of the workplace. That is, inside the workplace, I am her mentor, her senior and the person who is tasked to adjudge her work as either competent or lacking. Concomitantly, she stands as the pupil, the apprentice and the person who requires guidance and supervision. However, when the doors of the workplace are behind us, we become good friends who would not dare let professional issues get in the way of our camaraderie. 6c. Initiate and respond to practice developments to ensure safe and effective care is achieved and an effective learning environment is maintained In 2010, the Practice Education Facilitators of the Aintree University Hospitals enacted a policy concerning the Nursing Mentorship Program where it is aimed that only the highest standard of clinical education, training and support for the pupils shall be provided for so as ascertain an effective functioning of the entire medical unit. This particular enactment, although limited in scope, if sufficient proof that the mentoring program is an effective means of training and educating the students entering the field. Domain 7 – Evidence–Based Practice 7a. Identify and apply research and evidence-based practice to their area of practice The practice involving health responsibilities and tasks is one industry that cannot match the relative leniency involved in other industries such as banking or information technology. The fact is that the health industry is not composed of finite numbers and precise measurements. After all, illnesses are in large part, subjective. As such, I have stressed the importance of utilizing only treatments or medications to patients that have long been deemed as effective and beneficial. I believe that the health industry would do better to rely on the findings of studies and not be involved on experimental and untried methods of cure. 7b. Contribute to strategies to increase or review the evidence-base used to support practice By the mere fact that most of the mentors under the program instils the importance of relying on evidence-based deeds, I believe that the preponderance of this approach would be amplified largely due to the maturity of these students into the practitioners of the coming generations. Such simple action from our end then entails the success or even just the earnest support that would be coming from our apprentices is sufficient and substantial to support the practice. 7c. Support students in applying an evidence-base to their practice area As a mentor, I have instilled the value of utilizing evidence-based practice on my pupil as a means to ascertain only the beneficial and most advantageous consequences possible of whatever treatment of medication. During the course of the mentorship program, I have often observed certain decisions of my pupil involving the conduct of an act that has been relatively performed before as a proof that she has inculcated the principles and reason behind the evidence-based approach. Domain 8 - Leadership 8a. Plan a series of learning experiences that will meet students defined learning needs My pupil has evolved into a more active participant in the program. That is, she has exhibited initiative in learning more of the more complex areas of the job and has even taken it upon herself to stand as a mentor to her colleagues who appear to be behind in certain areas. As such, in one instance, I allowed one of my pupil’s colleague to join in on our training and after I have provided a general background of the task, I permitted by pupil to take over the training as she appears to be also fond of gaining knowledge without actually having to teach it to her. My pupil enjoys learning and she is often fascinated by her own discoveries. 8b. Be an advocate for students to support them accessing learning opportunities that meet their individual’s needs-involving a range of other professionals, patients, clients and carers This program has helped the entire field in ascertaining the maturity and readiness of the students before letting them out on their own to field all the crosses that the practice may see fit to throw their way. In whatever industry, I believe that this practice is beneficial as this permits the new graduates to have a sense of what goes on inside before setting them loose in a world that they have no knowledge of. 8c. Prioritise work to accommodate support of students within their practice roles This mentorship program has allowed me to grow as an individual as much as it has permitted me to grow as a professional. The fact that being bestowed with the privilege of mentoring younger generations seems to be a feat on its own as this provides you with some sort of a legacy to leave behind. But the sad fact is that most of us are just plainly too tied up with the hustle and bustle of everyday activity to have to manage another task. Though the idea of mentoring and having someone to assist you in some instances appear to be the greatest benefit of the program, having to look into the over-all growth of the student and taking time to jot down his or her development are tasks that we sometimes are not too keen on performing. 8d. Provide feedback about the effectiveness of learning and assessment in practice In general, the mentorship program is a good and effective way to assimilate new blood into the mainstream. Not only that, it also allows the mentors to grow personally and professionally due to the fact that it involves an active participation on their end to assess and monitor the advancement of their pupil thereby entailing an instinctive examination of their own personal accomplishments and competencies. I only fervently hope that this program be administered in a manner that would not be seen as additional workload on the part of the mentor but as a welcome variety to their long list of things to do. 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