Professional Development Plan - Term Paper Example

Professional Development Plan Nursing as a line of work is one of the most demanding professions. It is founded on the principle of serving humanity to ensure promotion, upholding of healthy quality life. This aspect of service to humanity is what attracted me to pursue nursing. I find fulfilment from helping an ailing person to feel comfortable in their state of wellness. In addition to this, I find joy from providing individuals with the chance to enhance the quality of their lives. Offering people with solutions that improve the quality of their lives also gives me a sense of fulfilment. What people need to understand is the absence of disease or health complications does not guarantee good health. This realization has been another motivation in my professional life. My educational life was initially like that of any other learner. Elementary school and high school education was similar to that of any other learners. My interest, however, was based in the sciences. I had the desire to understand the working of the human body and what causes disease. My nature inclines me to caring for people, so seeing people suffer really affects me. I am a firm believer that if all people worked together to help those who are less fortunate, the world would be more habitable for all. Interest in sciences directed me to participate in science clubs and activities all through my elementary and high school education. I also actively participated in the first aid society at my school. The members participated in community service. Community service has been a significant part of my learning life. Whenever opportunities presented themselves, I found this experience enlightening. I am currently pursuing a nursing career, and I have an associate degree which helped me realize the aspects that nursing incorporates. During the course of study, I was able to get experience in addressing real-life patient situations. My goals are, however, focused on advancing my nursing career beyond my current qualifications. There are several options that I could pursue, and as such, ensure a productive career that not only is fulfilling, but also of benefit to the society. Goals In planning for my nursing career, I have come to the realization that following a course without planning is equivalent to career suicide. In pursuit of my nursing career, there are particular goals I have laid out for myself. Some of the goals are short-term and for the period that I will be in University. Some, however, are for the long run and for future guidance on my nursing career path (Duncan & DePew, 2010). Some of the short term goals are to ensure that I present academic papers to help me attain good grades in my classes. I also intend to join a focuse group discussion in order to improve my grades for the current semester. I aim to look for an attachment opportunity at a health facility near my home, so as to hone my nursing skills. There are many volunteer opportunities in health centres that are capable of helping me gain the knowledge in the nursing industry. Since advancing my nursing career is going to require substantial financial input, I aim to work hard in my academics in order to obtain a scholarship. At the moment I do not have a family, but I plan for that in the future. Since studying and bringing up a family is a demanding role, I aim to complete my studies in five years to come. By so doing, I will be able to concentrate on raising my family when the time comes. The wages I get from my career will also be useful in helping cater for family needs when the time comes. Following on my career before settling down will also give me enough time to obtain the satisfaction of both a family and a career. The public currently does not have sufficient knowledge on the use of Nitrous Oxide analgesia during labour. I aim to pursue study on this field, and possibly publish a paper on the same. Strengths and Weaknesses Considering that nursing is a dynamic profession, some of the values that I consider to be strengths are self-respect, innovativeness and flexibility. With these attributes under consideration, I am able to adapt to whichever situation arises and give it the best input. I am also a very strong person in character, which enables me to work for long hours. I also highly value trust and dependability in high regard. These aspects can also become a weakness since I end to expect others to stick to similar vales. When this is the case, people tend to interpret this as being too demanding. Following the strength quest activity that I carried out, I came to the realization that I am suited for my current nursing position. The confidence I have in myself and my job has been influenced by my development both educational and personal. Empathy and positivity have been significant in helping me grow in the nursing career that I am pursuing. This activity helped me realise that participation in group activities is a strength considering that nursing is a group profession. My playful spirit helps when it comes to dealing with serious challenges since it helps reduce pressure. Whenever pressure mounts, there is the possibility of becoming irrational in dealing with demanding situations. From this quest, I have learnt that to be an effective leader, one does not necessarily have to dominate others. A leader, as I have learnt, is one who is a good listener and who searches for knowledge relentlessly. In addition to this, a good leader also is a good communicator, since he has to coordinate activities in the group. This is an impossible feat especially if good communication skills are not followed. An effective leader is also focused, calm and reliable. These qualities help a leader stick to the plans made and achieve results. There are times when plans will show difficulties in following them, but if the leader is calm, he/she will be able to come up with timely interventions for the issue at hand. Barriers During the implementation of any plan, there will always be barriers that are encountered. The pursuit of my nursing career is also faced with some barriers. Financial constraints present the toughest barrier to the achievement of my career goals in nursing. Every stage of learning requires financial input, and this is increasingly hard when there is no steady source of income. Nursing studies at university are very demanding requiring an input of many hours (Petersons, 2011). In this case, it becomes difficult to include hours where one can take up a part-time job. Without a part-time job, it becomes hard to finance tuition and other academic requirements. The work place itself is also a barrier to follow while advancing my nursing career. As an entrant to the nursing community, the seasoned nurses tend to heap the bulk of work on nurse trainees. This puts a trainee under immense pressure for performance in the work environment. The unfair and unequal treatment of personnel in the nursing environment constitutes workplace bullying. I have experienced such behaviour, and the exceeding pressure causes one to doubt about their choice of career. Such pressure, coupled with poor working conditions in some medical institutions, make the nursing profession a less than favourable choice. Long working hours, especially in cases of understaffing, cause overworking of a nurse, leading to growing dislike for the profession. Action Plan Mentorship is an essential tool for any person who wants to ensure they progress in their academic endeavours and develop their careers accordingly (Masters, 2009). While I was working in health institutions, I have had to endure workplace bullying. Due to my playful spirit, I was able to downplay the incidences. There are times, however, when these cases become discouraging to the extent that they make me want to reconsider pursuing a career in nursing. To my advantage, I have been able to meet other persons who have experienced similar situations in their course of work. Some of these people were strangers who we started a conversation with. My carefree and easy gong nature helped me in coming into contact with an aged nurse who experienced the same scenario in her advanced age in nursing. She utilizes her free time as a crusader against bullying. Her work is done mostly through writing of blogs, but she has aided me greatly in dealing with my situation. I know there are other nurses who silently go through the same situations too, and so I intend to contribute in the enlightening of people in this regard. Nursing to me is more than a career path, it is a vocation. Helping people attain a state of wellness in health makes me feel fulfilled. Helping someone in need also gives me the sense of having done my religious duty. There is immense suffering in the world, and if anyone can reduce it in any way, then the world becomes a better place. One of my weaknesses is the over-assertiveness that is in most cases interpreted as being bossy in work. The desire to see that plans are implemented to the latter also comes out as being pushy. This angers most people, who either resort to ignoring whatever needs to be done, or becoming bullies. I intend to reform the way I portray my sentiments to other people to ensure that I do not give the wrong impression in work. A course in communication skills is one of my agendas at the moment. It will help me improve the way I relate with other people. It will also guide me on how to communicate my ideas properly. Since I am often congratulated for my easy-going nature, I plan on using this strength by volunteering at a nursing home. Since a majority of the clients in a nursing home need to be understood to implement a care plan properly, I endeavour to make them feel more comfortable by talking to them. References Duncan, G., & DePew, R. (2010). Transitioning from LPN/VN to RN: Moving Ahead in Your Career. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning. Masters, K. (2009). Role Development in Professional Nursing Practice. Sudbury, MA : Jones & Bartlett Publishers. Petersons. (2011). Nursing Programs 2011. Los Angeles, CA: Petersons. Read More