Professional Development Plan for Nurse - Personal Statement Example

PEP experience Name Date Course Introduction The transition from student nurse to graduate nurses is usually a difficult process due pressure and anxiety involved in the process. The transition of knowledge into practice is also an important aspect for a Registered Nurse. This means that it is important for a graduate nurse have to undertake reflection after the professional Experience placement program. This is for the purposes of developing a professional development plan. Identifying the strengths as well of the weakness is important and it forms the basics for the development of the personal development plan (Pfaff, 2014). My personal Professional Experience was done at a hospital where I gained some experience and I was also able to identify my strengths and weaknesses. A professional Development Plan will play an essential role in ensuring that I am able to carry out my duties effectively. The paper is thus my personal development plan in relation to the Professional Experience Placement. Discussion Personal Development Plan development A registered nurse has to work under a lot of pressure most of the times and has to respond to different situations within a short period of time. In most cases, the registered nurse doe not have much time to think about the actions that needs to be undertaken and this is common when dealing with emergencies (Rush, et al, 2013). This means that a registered nurse should be competent and should also have a lot of confidence when dealing with the patients. During my placement period at the hospital, I learnt that I need to convert the theoretical knowledge gained into practice. Converting the theoretical knowledge learnt into practice is an important aspect for the nurses. I was able to gain some practical knowledge during the placement period and this enabled me to appreciate the importance of gaining the practical experience. I was also able to understand in details how the theories can be applied into practical use for the purposes of benefiting the patients. During my first six moths of the placement period at the hospital I gained a lot of practical experience with regards to the importance of self confidence when dealing with the patients. The communication process with the patient can also be a factor that may hinder the provision of effective services to the patient (Zerwekh & Garneau, 2013). This is because the lack of proper communication impacts negatively on the understanding of the needs of the patient. A lot of skills and competencies are therefore required by the nurses. During the first six months of my placement period, I have gained a lot of practical skills and I have also learnt about my strengths and weaknesses. As a reflective practitioner, I have also learnt of the areas that in need to improve in order to enhance my practical skills. The professional development plan is based on the reflection of the activities that were carried out in the last 6 months. The table below is a SWOT analysis that I carried out based on the experience during the placement period and it will be useful for the development of the Personal development plan. Strengths Weaknesses I have good communications skills which enables me to communicate effectively with the patient and my colleagues. I am able to learn easily the practical aspects of nursing which is useful when dealing with the patients. My interpretation skills regarding the nursing issues are also good. I fully understand the theoretical issues of nursing which is important when dealing with the patients. I also have knowledge on psychological skills which is useful when dealing with the patients. I have the ability to work under pressure. I sometimes emotional when dealing with the patients undergoing great pain or distress and this is not good in the nursing professionals as it may send the wrong message to the patients. I have poor skills of dealing with a team and this makes my performance in the team poor. I have poor time management skills and it usually takes me a lot of time than required to carry out some of the nursing activities. I have difficulties with working for long hours. Opportunities Threats I have an opportunity to enhance my knowledge and skills through engaging in extensive consultations with my colleagues and experienced nurses. I have the opportunity to join different groups in order to improve on my teamwork skills. I have an opportunity to learn how to use the new technological equipment in order to ensure that my theoretical skills are transferred into practical skills. The technological advancement is taking place at a fast rate which may affect the learning process (Missen, et al, 2014). The professional in the industry are usually busy throughout and this makes it difficult to ask questions and obtain more details. Development of action plan The SWOT analysis has identified my weakness which has to be worked in order to ensure that my skills are enhanced. The personal development play will thus be useful in ensuring that appropriate measures are put in place in order to ensure that solutions are obtained. Skills Desired skills Strategies to be put in place Timeline Managing emotions I need to be able to mange my emotions in order to ensure that it does not affect my performance and the patient. I also need to be able to control my emotions when dealing with the patients who feel that they are hopeless or are undergoing a lot of pain and distress. I would have to engage the services of an expert for the purpose of gaining knowledge on how to deal with emotions in difficult situations. I will also carry out personal studies through the use of literature review in order to deal with the difficult situations. I will also undertake meditation in order to enhance my skills in dealing with difficult situations. The process will take 2 to 3 weeks Poor teamwork skills I need to be an active team member and contribute to the effectiveness of the teams through cooperation with my team. I need to be an effective and reliable member of the team in order to contribute positively towards saving the lives of the patients. I need to ensure that I participate actively in the team activities with confidence. Ensuring that I consult with the team members from time to time in order to improve on my relationship with the team members. I will also have to take leading roles in the team activities in order to enhance on my confidence and improve my teamwork skills. I will also be actively involved in the process of contributing ideas and asking questions in the team so as to improve my skills and build confidence. The process will take 3 to 4 weeks. Time management I need to be effective in terms of managing my time when carrying out different activities. I need to be effective and carry out all the activities within the required time. I need to improve on my ability to complete all the duties allocated to me within the required time. I will come up with a timetable for the carrying out different activities for the purposes of ensuring that time is spend effectively. I will also use alarms when carrying out different activities in order to ensure that I carry out different activities within the required time. I will intend to obtain more information regarding the time management using literature. The process will take 2to 3 weeks. Difficulties in working for long hours Nurses have to work for long hours in order to save the lives of the patients (Halcomb, et al, 2012). I need to have the ability of working for long hours. I need to be able to work for long hours while maintaining good performance. To develop my ability and capacity in order to be able to work for long hours. I will have to improve my skills in terms of staying active for long hours in order to ensure that I can work for a long period of time. I will develop a habit of staying a wake for long period of time in order to ensure that I can work for long hours. The process will take a period of 3 to 4 hours. Conclusion In conclusion, it is evident that the graduate nurses have to undergo different a lot of difficulties when undergoing the transition from students to graduate nurses. It is evident that the professional development program has enabled me to understand my weaknesses and also develop strategies of how to deal with the weaknesses. It is evident that I will have to improve on dealing with emotions, time management, working for long hours and working in a team. It is also evident that I have learnt a lot of useful lessons during my placement period which improved on my practical skills. Improvements on my skills through the use of the professional development plan will thus be useful in enhancing my capabilities. List of References Pfaff, K 2014, An integrative review of the factors influencing new graduate nurse engagement in interprofessional collaboration. Journal of advanced nursing, 70(1), 4-20. Rush, K. et al. 2013, Best practices of formal new graduate nurse transition programs: Anintegrative review. International journal of nursing studies, 50(3), 345-356. Zerwekh, J., & Garneau, A. Z 2013, Nursing today: Transition and trends. Elsevier Health Sciences. Missen, K, et al, 2014, Satisfaction of newly graduated nurses enrolled in transition‐to‐practice programmes in their first year of employment: a systematic review, Journal of advanced nursing, 70(11), 2419-2433. Halcomb, E, et al, 2012, Graduating nursing students’ perceived preparedness for working in critical care areas, Journal of advanced nursing, 68(10), 2229-2236. Read More