Personal Reflection In Nursing

According to Bulman (2008), reflection is described as “reviewing experience from practice so that it may be described, analyzed, evaluated, and consequently used to inform and change the future practice”. I believe that reflection is a process that helps one to have a better understanding of a situation, which leads to better management in the future. Through this reflection exercise, I hope to have a better understanding on communication with patients, with a focus on stroke patients. Communication barrier affects the patient care. Effective communication with patients is fundamental to good health care (Borthwick, 2012).

My partner and I had only five minutes to rush through the case file due to poor compliance of process by another party.

If the following continues, it may have a detrimental effect on the patients. However this can be prevented through proper stress management. Milliken (2007) states that proper education on stress management and self-soothing techniques that are directly applicable in nursing environment can be of significant benefit. Nurses would be able to utilize these skills to maintain their composure while at work thus having an immediate effect on them. Further examples of relaxation technique include stretching, music therapy, controlled diaphragmatic breathing and also exercising (Benson & Klipper, 2000). There are many ways in which one can de-stress and this could also be practiced out of nursing environment to further promote better stress

The National Patient Safety Agency (2007) identified communication difficulties as a key factor affecting patient outcomes. The manner in which nurses provide information is equally important as the information conveyed. The message the patient receives may not be perceived in the intended manner thus causing misunderstanding. I was not confident in communicating with my patient due to inadequate knowledge and I was afraid that I would not be able to provide an accurate and satisfactory answer. In my opinion, knowledge correlates highly with effective communication and help build a good nurse-patient rapport. Surveys by Casey & Wallis (2011) reported that the lack of communication is “palpably felt and can lead to patients feeling increased anxiety, vulnerability and powerlessness”. The common reasons for dissatisfaction with communication were due to poor explanation and incomplete response (Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman 2011). It has also been proven that patients are more likely to accept health problems, understand their treatment options and adhere to follow up instructions when they understand information provided by the nurses (Patient-centeredcare.org, 2014). This further substantiates the point that knowledge is key for effective communication with