Clinic Observation: Reflection on Pediatric Learning - Essay Example

Running head: NURSING i CLINIC OBSERVATION: REFLECTION OF LEARNING (PEDIATRIC) Presented By goes here] To [your ’s name goes here] [Your class name goes here] [Your university’s name] [Due date of the paper] Answer No: 1 The verbal communication techniques, which I observed during the clinical experience, include courteousness, clarity and convenience. Courteousness Courtesy means showing polite behavior to each other during communication. What I observed during my clinical experience was that everyone dealt with each other in a well-behaved manner. For example, senior nurses used to say thanks to their subordinates in order to appreciate them. I think courtesy was the main reason behind the quality of the working relationships that I observed during my clinical experience. Convenience Convenience refers to the concept of availability. From the organizational perspective, the process of communication needs all employees to show willingness to communicate with each other. During my clinical experience, I never observed that one employee was talking while others kept quiet during the whole process of communication. Clarity Clarity is also useful technique of verbal communication. People need to convey information clearly to others in order to play a valuable role in the process of communication. During my clinical experience, I observed that nurses and other employees communicated clearly with each other. I never observed anyone speaking in a vague tone. Answer No: 2 The nonverbal communication techniques, which I observed during the clinical experience, include the use of gestures, eye contact and paralanguage. Gestures I observed everyone making use of gestures while communicating with each other. Unexpressive communication processes do not come up to the expectations. “If you fail to gesture while speaking, you may be perceived as boring, stiff and unanimated” (Ritts, n.d.). Eye Contact Another nonverbal communication technique, which I observed, was the eye contact between communicators. Everyone used to look into the eyes of the listeners while speaking something. Eye contact is also an important part of the communication process because it promotes honesty and understanding. If two employees working in a team make eye contact frequently and show thumbs up to each other on completion of some specific task, it improves the working relationship of the employees. Paralanguage Third technique, which I observed, was the use of paralanguage. Paralanguage is a nonverbal form of communication in which a person makes use of some special tones or accent in order to convey some special meaning to the other people. Answer No: 3 The roadblocks to effective communication, which I observed, included language difference, overloading and misconception. Language Difference Sometimes nurses do not understand the language of the patients, which is a major roadblock to communication. Overloading If a nurse asks many questions with a little or no time gap between those questions, the process of communication fails because patients start feeling puzzled in such situations. Misconception Misconception about others’ level of understanding is also a roadblock to successful pediatric communication. This misconception arises when nurses think that their subordinates and patients already understand their viewpoints properly. Answer No: 4 Three techniques to improve therapeutic communication include showing empathy, ensuring privacy, and use of kinesics. Empathy A nurse needs to show empathy towards her patients to develop a healing relationship (Towle & Adams, 2008). He/she must be aware of how he/she behaves with the client in order to make the therapeutic communication effective. Showing concern by listening to patients plays a considerable role in this regard. Privacy A nurse also needs to ensure privacy of her clients not only because it makes the clients share their feelings but also because it is one of the ethics of nursing. Use of Gestures Nurses can use gestures to convey some message to her subordinates and clients using hands and body language. Some of these gestures include outspreading hands and showing thumbs. Answer No: 5 A client of mine stood up because of the anxiety, which he had when I was going to tell him about the results of his medical tests. The client showed signs of anxiety through his body language. Answer No: 6 The nurse can encourage the disclosure of feelings by supporting and persuading the client continuously during the process of feelings/information disclosure. Showing signs of appreciation to the client encourages him/her in disclosing the information. Answer No: 7 Knowledge of the culture of a client plays a considerable role in providing healthcare to the client in an appropriate manner. During my clinical experience, I faced some difficulties in dealing with one of my clients because of the cultural differences. The client was a Muslim female and her cultural values did not promote female-male interactions even in medical settings. Therefore, I requested my supervisor to assign a female nurse to the client in order to make her disclose her feelings properly. Answer No: 8 The Erikson’s stage of development, which I am going to compare, is the stage of Identity vs. Confusion. At this stage of development, a child enters the age of adolescence and starts developing new feelings and concepts. Comparing this stage of Erikson’s stages of development with that of my client’s development stage, I would say that my client (John) had less feelings and emotions. He had suffered the loss of both of his parents in a car accident due to which he went in distress and ended all of his emotions and feelings. Answer No: 9 I encouraged my client to share his feelings with me. I also tried to inject passion and enthusiasm in his mind in order to make him come back to life. To promote social interactions, I asked a couple of his school friends to come to him and share their feelings with him. Answer No: 10 To determine risks to the client’s physical and psychological safety and comfort, I used counseling. The technique helped me collect data regarding the client’s hidden feelings, emotions, and financial and social conditions. Answer No: 11 According to Timby (2009), registered nurses provide direct care to the patients (p. 9). I was successful in establishing a rapport to provide safety and comfort to the client through care, welcoming behavior and a healing frame of mind. I showed a lot of care to the client, which helped me develop a friendly relationship with him. References Ritts, V. (n.d.). Six Ways to Improve your Non-verbal Communication. Retrieved from http://honolulu.hawaii.edu/intranet/committees/FacDevCom/guidebk/teachtip/commun-1.htm Timby, B. (2009). Fundamental Nursing Skills and Concepts (9th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Towle, M., & Adams, E. (2008). Maternal Child Nursing Care. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education. Read More