Blog 5

I have gained valuable skills and knowledge from clinical this past semester. I will carry this with me throughout the rest of my student nursing career and beyond as an RN. Therapeutic Communication, in particular, has taught me a lot of helpful techniques, tips, and methods in order to achieve effective communication with patients and families. I was very nervous during my very first clinical. Everything was so new to me and I did not know what to expect. I was dedicated to spending additional time interfacing with patients and families in order to improve on my communication skills. After several clinical visits, I am far more confident in my care as a student nurse. I have learned how important nonverbal communication is and how it says a lot about someone. By learning certain techniques in class, I was able to apply this knowledge when taking care of patients. For example, I have personally worked on exhibiting an open, friendly body position and maintaining eye contact and actively listen. This has allowed myself to develop an open, trusting relationship with my patients.

In regard to my future practice as an RN, I hope to continue to grow in my communication skills. I have learned a lot of phrases that can be used when asked difficult questions and/or concerns. With more experience and practice, these phrases will come more naturally. I want to become more confident in my communication with patients and families. At times, I do not know what to say to a patient and/or family member on the spot. This can be very challenging and I need to make sure I educate myself as much as I can in order to grow into a quality care provider. For example, I had a patient who was feeling hopeless and voiced to me that he was dying. I replied with, “I want you to know that I am here for you and your care team is doing all they can to ensure that you get better.” After some reflection, I realized that I probably could have said something different. I should have acknowledged his feeling of fear first and then provided comfort. I realize that these skills will come with time and I need to be patient. I am looking forward to gaining more experience in order to grow into a respected RN.

Blog 4

The video I chose to watch was called “The Waiting Room.” This documentary shows clips from inside an American public hospital struggling to care for a community of uninsured patients. A healthcare provider, who I perceived to be a RN, continuously called patients “baby” and “honey” during initial assessment. It is important to not use terms of endearment with patients since it may come off as disrespectful and may cause the patient to feel powerless. The nurse should address patients formally until told otherwise out of respect. The nurse made patient eye contact and built a relationship with her patients. She was able to connect to the patients and made them feel comfortable. During another patient interaction, the physician was closely listening to the patient’s concerns about not getting HTN medicine and also about his other health issues. The physician was sitting next to the patient’s bed and leaned forward in order to provide quality non-verbal and verbal communication and actively listen.

I noted various therapeutic communication techniques used by RNs when getting a health history report. Some of the techniques that stood out most to me included broad opening statements, acknowledging feelings, and clarification. The use of asking close ended questions was also commonly utilized since many patients did not have a chart within the system. It was important for the providers to gain quality health history and information about the present illness. Before a nurse inserted an IV into the top of a child’s hand, she made sure to comfort the patient by telling her, “I won’t go until you’re ready. Do you want to hold your mother’s hand?” By saying this, the patient was able to feel more comfortable and was less fearful. One nurse in particular really stood out to me when watching this documentary. She was very patient with a man who was having difficulty speaking. She told him to take his time when she noticed him struggling to speak. The patient began to get emotional and started crying. The nurse wiped his tears for him using a tissue since he was in critical condition and could not do it himself. She told the patient, “Everything is going to be okay. You’re going to be just fine.” Although she was empathetic, the use of clichés should be avoided when speaking to patients.

It is important to communicate therapeutically in order to provide patient-centered care. This type of care consists of being respectful of the patient’s choices and values and responding to his or her needs. It is important to have quality provider-patient communication since the provider and patient partner in clinical decisions.

Blog 3

Thus far, I have only had one day of patient care interaction since my instructor was ill this past week for clinical. However, I had a very beneficial experience during the third week. I was able to meet and communicate with other healthcare professionals in the unit. My biggest communication challenge so far has been attributed to my nerves. It took me a full day to feel comfortable interacting with patients and other healthcare providers. Clinical rotation is a huge adjustment that takes some time to get used to. I would classify this as a challenge or barrier because my nerves may have been apparent to my patient since it was my first day. Ultimately, this would have affected the quality of care that the patient was receiving. It is important for nurses to be confident in their care so that they can earn a patient’s trust. I spoke in a professional manner and made sure to ask my patient if there was anything I could assist her with and I checked in on how she was feeling numerous times. I also made sure to note any nonverbal communication that may have differed from the patient’s words. I can overcome my clinical anxiety with more patient interaction. I plan on spending extra time with patients to better understand how to be a patient advocate. In addition, I can improve on my listening skills when talking to patients and their families. It would also be beneficial to observe how other healthcare professionals interact with patients.

Throughout the day, I interacted with nurses and a PCA. It was important to ask questions when there was any uncertainty or an educational opportunity. I communicated with the PCA that I was going to take my patient’s vitals at 1100. By doing this, the PCA knew that the patient’s vitals were going to be reported. I consider this a success since I made sure to communicate the care that was going to be provided. If I did not communicate with the PCA, then the patient’s vitals may have been unnecessarily taken twice and the patient may lose our trust. It is critical to communicate with the health care team when providing care.

Blog 2

One morning, I decided to spend 30 minutes in an on-campus Starbucks. After I got some coffee, I sat down and started observing everyone within the store. I noted a handful of individuals who were intently studying or doing assignments with their computers. Majority of them had headphones in while concentrating. Personally, I cannot listen to music when I am trying to focus so I found it to be interesting, but this is also a very common observation. Out of those individuals who were studying, a few of them would make small talk with their friend(s) sitting nearby. On the contrary, some were alone and keeping to themselves. I watched customer and worker interactions when ordering drinks and/or food. It was interesting to see how many people did not make eye contact and seemed distracted by their phones. Some people were very friendly, but others came off as very rude. Some customers did not even say “hi” or “thank you.” One couple (I am assuming) were very interesting to watch. There was solid conversation, but their phones seemed to interfere with their conversation numerous times. It was interesting to see that when one person started looking at their phone, the other individual instantly checked their own. It seemed as if the person was avoiding the awkwardness of staring at someone who was on their phone and felt it was a good time to check their own device. When two people exited the store right after one another, I noted the nonverbal and verbal communication. It was interesting to watch how people with headphones in made little recognition of the other individual when holding the door for them. It seemed as if they were in their own little world. Those who were alert to their surroundings, were more likely to smile and say, “thank you” and “you’re welcome.”

I found this experience to be very eye opening yet it reassured some of my current notions. I have always seen technology as a barrier to communication both verbally and nonverbally. It was beneficial to take the time to just observe for once because when I am in public settings, I tend to be focused on my studies or distracted by the people I am with.

Blog 1

Hi Mrs. Christa Newtz!

My name is Lauren and I am a sophomore here at OSU. I am from the Cleveland area so I live approximately 2 hours from campus. I attended Padua Franciscan High School in Parma, OH.

My family is a huge part of my life and I miss them every day. My mother works for a pharmaceutical company as a Cell Therapy Account Manager. I enjoy hearing all about the new, innovative cancer treatments/drugs that her company deals with. My father is a math teacher at a Catholic, private high school in Cleveland Heights called Benedictine. He loves his students and I enjoy hearing his interesting stories! My older brother is an EMT and is currently in school working towards becoming a paramedic. It took him quite some time to figure out what he wanted to do career wise and I am so proud of how far he has come. My older sister is a pediatric nurse at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital in Cleveland. She absolutely adores her patients and coworkers. I am so grateful to have her support while in nursing school and I consider her a role model.

Ever since I was 9 years old, volleyball has been a big part of my life. I have some incredible friends from over the years that I met through JO (basically club) and high school. Unfortunately, I had to stop playing once I came to college. I knew I wanted to go to a division I university like Ohio State and focus on my academics. Even though I do not play at a collegiate level, I am still able to enjoy my passion. I have played intramural sand and court volleyball with some friends here at OSU. We always have a blast together!

One of the hardest things for me freshman year was adapting to the life style of college. At times, I found it to be extremely challenging being on my own and not having my family by my side. However, I have become very independent and I am proud of my ability to change. I had a rough first semester due to living with a roommate who was disrespectful and rude. She ended up transferring schools and I got a new roommate second semester who was very respectful and kind. Overall, it was a very challenging first year but I am appreciative of all the hardships since they changed me into a better person. I would not be the person I am today if I did not go through it all.

Getting accepted into the nursing program was one of the best days of my life and such a huge relief! All of my hard work had finally paid off. I am very happy I decided to pursue a career in nursing. Until senior year in high school, I had always wanted to be a veterinarian. I spent a lot of time researching and pondering different careers to make sure I knew what I wanted to do. I love volunteering within my community and helping other people which is why the nursing career felt like a perfect fit. In addition, I have always been someone who is extremely interested in health care and new medicine/innovations/treatments. I am surrounded by numerous health care professionals within my family which also had an impact on my choice of career. I am not 100% sure as to which speciality in nursing I would like to pursue. I have a strong interest in pediatrics and traveling nursing. After a few years of working as a nurse, I plan on going back to school to become a pediatric or family nurse practitioner.

It was very nice meeting you the other day in class. I am looking forward to a great semester with you!