Nearing the End – My Clinical Reflection

This year has been full of new and exciting opportunities for me as a nursing student. This semester was my first real experience in a clinical setting and while overwhelming and a little scary at first, I grew to appreciate and love it. I was even inspired enough by how much I loved clinical to become an SNA at the Wex. At the beginning, I overlooked communication and didn’t think much of it, but because of taking N2460 I have learned and grown so much in the area and I am much more confident in my skills.

I believe that one thing I have really improved on is my electronic communication. Since transitioning to online classes, I have had to utilize email and zoom even more than before. This has required me to really think about my online communication etiquette!

The last time I wrote about my clinical experiences and challenges, I noted that I wasn’t very comfortable using IHIS. Through both my clinical and my job, and even using IHIS learn, I feel like I have really improved. I spent a good portion of my extra time in clinical looking back at past nurses notes and charting and learned a lot about how they used the system. Given that IHIS is one of the main ways people in the hospital communicate with each other, having more confidence in using and navigating the system has helped build my confidence as a student nurse and employee as a whole. I can spend a little less time worrying about where to find a certain section for charting and even more time focusing on my patient and what they need from me.

I also noted in a previous blog that I was terrified when talking to nurses and worried about messing something up or saying something wrong. This added a lot of unnecessary stress to my clinical days and was really something I needed to work on. Understanding and coming to terms with myself that for the rest of my career I was going to need to talk to nurses and even doctors really drove me to work on this skill. I found that writing down/making small notes about what I wanted to say to the nurse helped me be more confident when actually relaying the information to them. This way I knew I had all of my thoughts together and thus made me more relaxed when having the conversation in person.

While I have improved in the area of talking to people who are “higher up” than me, this is also something I want to continue to work on. I’m hoping that my job will also help me with this skill over the summer so I can be even more confident when it comes time to hop back into the clinical setting next semester.

In my future practice, I would like to see more growth in my use of the different therapeutic communication techniques we were taught in N2460. I think a lot of this semester I spent trying to find the confidence to communicate at all with the people I was working with, whether that be my instructors, nurses, or patients. Now that I have this confidence, I am planning on focusing more on how I am communicating with them. With the multiple tools and references from class, my future communication will hopefully be more therapeutic as a whole.

I am looking forward to reflecting again next year after being in a couple different clinical settings and hopefully noting a lot of growth. I’m also hoping I’ll laugh at the fact I was scared to talk to other people in the field I love!

Grey’s Anatomy!

I chose to watch Grey’s Anatomy for my blog this week. I have been watching since my sophomore year in high school and it is probably my all-time favorite TV show. Every episode brings something new and exciting and being in nursing just makes me love it more!

Last week’s episode was an interesting one to observe for communication issues. Suzanne, a patient who came in for a very routine surgery, was still in the hospital days after her procedure with a puzzling disease process. Her case especially required active listening, clarifying, and asking relevant questions to hopefully put together the pieces of her case.

None of the doctors knew exactly what was wrong with her and this did nothing but tear the team apart. The communication in this particular situation between providers went downhill from there while everyone was trying to solve Suzanne’s case on their own. Doctor DeLuca was one of the most involved in trying to help Suzanne and eventually called in Doctor Riley, a deaf diagnostics expert, to help.

Dr. Riley had figured out what communication strategy worked best for her and her personal situation. She carried around an iPad that allowed her to sign to a translator through FaceTime and have the translator speak back aloud what Dr. Riley was saying. When it came time to do bed-side reports, her iPad and translator ensured that everyone around her could hear and understand what she was communicating. This made communicating with all parties easier and more comfortable. I thought this was a positive example of communication between both providers, and provider and patient.

Suzanne and her family were especially worried about her condition since her husband had recently passed away in a hospital from a similar situation. Her daughters and sister were at the bedside most of the time and were obviously very worried. This made the healthcare provider and patient communication even more important and also added the family dimension. The doctors did their best to communicate with Suzanne and her family but, not knowing what was going on was making it difficult. The lack of information sharing was a barrier that couldn’t really be controlled.

Another one of Dr. DeLuca’s factors for negative communication issues was him not taking care of himself. He hadn’t slept for days, eaten like normal or acted like his normal self. He was putting in too many extra hours that resulted in him being fatigued and as a result, not the best team member or provider. Even though he was doing what he thought was right to help Suzanne, he wasn’t at his best. It was evident that he was frazzled when talking to both his coworkers and Suzanne and this didn’t help comfort anyone over the situation.

When Suzanne’s case was finally cracked, both positive and negative communication issues arose.

Without telling the rest of the care team, Dr. DeLuca gave Suzanne a steroid through her IV that could have either saved her life or killed her. Doctor Grey, a general surgeon, was disappointed and furious at DeLuca’s reckless behavior and this was what ultimately broke up both their professional and romantic relationship. However, because Dr. DeLuca was right about his diagnosis and treatment, Suzanne was able to recover. He used therapeutic communication when explaining what was going to happen to her in the future as well as educating her on her condition.

Communication played a huge part in Suzanne’s situation. Because her situation was so unique, all people involved needed to be informed and kept up to speed with what was happening. The relationships between the provider and patient were important because if they hadn’t had been positive, Suzanne’s sister would have transferred Suzanne to a different hospital and they might not have diagnosed her before it was too late. Hopefully the doctors and other people involved in the situation learned how valuable communicating effectively is throughout the entire hospital stay and will use this lesson in their futures.

The Coffee Hall and Creamery – N2460 Blog 2

The Coffee Hall and Creamery is a brand new, locally owned business in my hometown of Marysville, Ohio. One of my best friends from high school owns it with her older brother and sister and they have worked tremendously hard to get the shop to this point! I went home this week for a couple of days to watch my sisters play basketball, spend some time with my family, and visit my friends at The Coffee Hall!

Coffee shops are great places to observe others. There are people here on dates, grabbing something quick to eat or drink before work, studying, and/or just enjoying the atmosphere. That being said, multiple forms of communication were being used when I visited the shop.

Verbal communication in this setting is very prominent. In order to ask for a drink or pastry, customers have to verbally communicate what they want to the barista. Then to confirm, the barista responds with the order to make sure it’s correct, asks for the customer’s name and then tell the customer their total amount owed. They then write on the cup what drink is to be made and hand it off to the next barista to create. Once the order is ready, the barista calls out the name of the customer so they can come pick it up. Besides interactions between customers and baristas, people within the shop communicate verbally as well. Couples and friends are having conversations with each other; telling stories and talking about anything and everything. There were also many examples of written words throughout the shop. Signs with information about different products, sales and prices filled the walls and made it easier to communicate when it was time to order. It also took the place of having to ask one of the workers in the shops certain questions that were answered somewhere in writing. Whether it was a simple “hello”, a thirty-minute conversation, or a note on a chalkboard, verbal communication plays a big part in this setting and is important also to the success of the business as a whole.

Nonverbal communication was also evident in the coffee shop. Positive facial expressions are important when the baristas are interacting with customers. The shop is full of smiles and encouraging nods from both parties. I also noted a lot of finger pointing to the menu from the baristas. When someone was not sure about what to order, the barista would simply point and talk about the different menu items until one was decided on. Hand motions were utilized when welcoming people into the shop and when waving goodbye. Many people were also using gestures and hand motions while having conversations to emphasize certain points.

The use of technology has become more and more important when it comes to small businesses. The Coffee Hall purchased a new iPad to house all of their receipts and order information. When an order is placed, the barista simply types it in on the iPad and then prints the receipt for records. They also use the iPad to play music throughout the store and help keep the atmosphere calm and work-friendly. A business phone is located in the back and is used when communicating with different venders about supplies and products and when they will be shipped or brought in for use. Throughout the shop, people are using technology in all ways. Some people just have their cell phones out and are texting or using social media to communicate with friends. Others have computers and Bluetooth devices out while they work on things for their own jobs and communicate with coworkers in that way. I visited the coffee shop during the afternoon so there were even kids from my local high school there with laptops, textbooks and notes scattered on the table, studying for an upcoming test.

I didn’t realize how many different types of communication I was going to encounter just by sitting down at a local coffee shop for thirty minutes. It was beyond interesting to me trying to pick up on and note down all of the different forms that the people around me were using and I’m sure I didn’t catch them all. However, this exercise has made me more aware of the different types of communication and how big of a part they play in our everyday lives.

My N2460 Blog Introduction!

Hello Professor Newtz!

My name is McKinzi Lee and I am a second-year nursing student here at The Ohio State University College of Nursing!

I’m from Marysville, Ohio and grew up on my family’s grain farm that produces corn and soybeans. Farming has always been and always will be a huge part of my life and people from home are often shocked to hear that I chose a career in nursing instead of agriculture. Nevertheless, they are proud that I found something I am truly passionate about and are just as excited about my journey as I am.

I also surprised myself by choosing nursing as a major and future career. When I first came to Ohio State, I planned on majoring in business, but started out in the University’s Exploration Program. This is where I was first interested in the College of Nursing and after talking it out with my parents, I decided to apply (against my advisor’s recommendation). I was told multiple times that the program was too hard to get in to and the classes I still needed as prerequisites would make my upcoming Spring semester too challenging to handle. This just made me work harder and want it more.

Throughout my first year, I spent a lot of time visiting my grandpa at the new James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute. Seeing how the nurses there made his already miserable experience a little bit more bearable, made me realize that nursing was truly what I wanted to do. Receiving my acceptance letter in June was a day I’ll never forget, along with my grandpas smile on FaceTime when I told him the news. He never missed a chance to tell me how proud of me he was.

Along with my parents, I live with my four younger sisters and my dog, Tressel. My house as you could guess, is never quiet and I wouldn’t want it any other way! All five of us kids have always played soccer and basketball and shown sheep and chickens at our county fair. My summers are always super busy and packed with all kinds of family fun, and therefore summer is my favorite season.

My interests include all things Ohio State! Both of my parents graduated from The Ohio State University so, ever since I was little, I’ve been taught how to be a Buckeye! I love watching any OSU sport but football and basketball are definitely my favorite. My dog is named after the football coach Jim Tressel and my house is always decked out in all kinds of OSU decorations. Hopefully my sister who is a senior now, will join me here next year and carry on the family tradition.

I also love Grey’s Anatomy, baking, spending time with my friends and family, and exploring Columbus.

As far as nursing goes, I’m not quite sure what specialty I want to pursue during my career. I have always loved working with kids and babies and can definitely see myself as either a Pediatrics or OB nurse in the future. I also love working with people in general so I’m open and excited to branch out through my clinical experiences during the program and hopefully find an area that I love. While the program is challenging, I hope that in the end all of the long nights and hours studying will be worth it. I want to make a difference in people’s lives for the better and I can’t wait to continue my journey in this program to eventually reach that goal!