Reflection paper - Essay Example

The first week as an LPN was a little hazy having missed some of the induction programs due to some unavoidable engagements. However, on the reporting day I met the friendly and professional staff who took me to the units. The environment was challenging dealing with the middle-aged, the elderly and the dementia patients. A typical day while in shift, I was attending to an elderly man who had diabetes. We were just two nurses on the night shift. As I went round monitoring the patients and collecting data on the patients’ conditions, I noticed that a number of patients needed great attention but the elderly man was in a severe state.

I became terrified and confused wondering where to start. I attended to the diabetic man and arrested the condition and decided to attend to the other patients. I didn’t even think of asking for help to save time but decided to try my best. Some of the patients could look at me with pleading eyes. I remember one patient who said that she had lost hope and felt neglected when she saw me pass her and attend to someone else. However, she admitted that I was not assuming her but had to attend to a serious case.

Some of the patients also were not co-operating, and some could keep quiet completely when I question them so as to understand their health progress. Among the tasks, I was entitled to include personal hygiene duties such as brushing the teeth of the residents, bathing them, changing clothes, combing hair and shaving them. Toiletry duties such as assisting those who needed help going to the bathroom, changing bedpans and emptying catheters. In addition, I could do the monitoring of the respiration, blood pressure, temperature, oxygen levels and heart rates of the patients.

Also inserting catheters, treating bedsores, giving injections, administering injections and changing bandages and developing care plans for the