( Practicum topic is Catheter associated urinary tract infection and control)
Students are required to submit weekly reflective narratives throughout the course that will culminate in a final, course-long reflective journal due in Topic 10. The narratives help students integrate leadership and inquiry into current practice.
This reflection journal also allows students to outline what they have discovered about their professional practice, personal strengths and weaknesses, and additional resources that could be introduced in a given situation to influence optimal outcomes. Each week students should also explain how they met a course competency or course objective(s).
In each week\’s entry, students should reflect on the personal knowledge and skills gained throughout the course. Journal entries should address one or more of the areas stated below. In the Topic 10 graded submission, each of the areas below should be addressed as part of the summary submission.
New practice approaches
Interprofessional collaboration
Health care delivery and clinical systems
Ethical considerations in health care
Practices of culturally sensitive care
Ensuring the integrity of human dignity in the care of all patients
Population health concerns
The role of technology in improving health care outcomes
Health policy
Leadership and economic models
Health disparities
While APA style is not required for the body of this assignment, solid academic writing is expected, and in-text citations and references should be presented using APA documentation guidelines, which can be found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.
This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion. Practicum Reflective Journal Essay Paper
New Practice Approaches
8.0
New practice approaches are not present.
New practice approaches are present, but they are incomplete or otherwise lacking in required detail.
New practice approaches are present. Some minor details or elements are missing, but the omissions do not impede understanding.
New practice approaches are present and complete. The submission provides the basic information required.
New practice approaches are present, complete, and incorporate additional relevant details and critical thinking to engage the reader.
Interprofessional Collaboration (C4.3)
8.0
Interprofessional collaboration information is not present.
Interprofessional collaboration information is present, but it is incomplete or otherwise lacking in required detail.
Interprofessional collaboration information is present. Some minor details or elements are missing, but the omissions do not impede understanding.
Interprofessional collaboration information is present and complete. The submission provides the basic information required.
Interprofessional collaboration information is present, complete, and incorporates additional relevant details and critical thinking to engage the reader.
Health Care Delivery and Clinical Systems
8.0
Health care delivery and clinical systems information is not present.
Health care delivery and clinical systems information is present, but it is incomplete or otherwise lacking in required detail.
Health care delivery and clinical systems information is present. Some minor details or elements are missing, but the omissions do not impede understanding.
Health care delivery and clinical systems information is present and complete. The submission provides the basic information required.
Health care delivery and clinical systems information is present, complete, and incorporates additional relevant details and critical thinking to engage the reader.
Ethical Considerations In Health Care (C2.3)
8.0
Information regarding ethical considerations in health care is not present.
Information regarding ethical considerations in health care is present, but it is incomplete or otherwise lacking in required detail.
Information regarding ethical considerations in health care is present. Some minor details or elements are missing, but the omissions do not impede understanding.
Information regarding ethical considerations in health care is present and complete. The submission provides the basic information required.
Information regarding ethical considerations in health care is present, complete, and incorporates additional relevant details and critical thinking to engage the reader.
Practice of Culturally Sensitive Care (C5.3)
8.0
Information regarding the practice of culturally sensitive care is not present.
Information regarding the practice of culturally sensitive care is present, but it is incomplete or otherwise lacking in required detail.
Information regarding the practice of culturally sensitive care is present. Some minor details or elements are missing, but the omissions do not impede understanding.
Information regarding the practice of culturally sensitive care is present and complete. The submission provides the basic information required.
Information regarding the practice of culturally sensitive care is present and complete, and incorporates additional relevant details and critical thinking to engage the reader.
Preservation of Integrity of Human Dignity in the Care of All Patients (C5.4)
8.0
Information regarding the preservation of integrity and human dignity in the care of all patients is not present.
Information regarding the preservation of integrity and human dignity in the care of all patients is present, but it is incomplete or otherwise lacking in required detail.
Information regarding the preservation of integrity and human dignity in the care of all patients is present. Some minor details or elements are missing, but the omissions do not impede understanding.
Information regarding the preservation of integrity and human dignity in the care of all patients is present and complete. The submission provides the basic information required.
Information regarding the preservation of integrity and human dignity in the care of all patients is present and complete, and incorporates additional relevant details and critical thinking to engage the reader.
Population Health Concerns
8.0
Information regarding population health concerns is not present.
Information regarding population health concerns is present, but it is incomplete or otherwise lacking in required detail.
Information regarding population health concerns is present. Some minor details or elements are missing, but the omissions do not impede understanding.
Information regarding population health concerns is present and complete. The submission provides the basic information required.
Information regarding population health concerns is present, complete, and incorporates additional relevant details and critical thinking to engage the reader.
Role of Technology in Improving Health Care Outcomes (C4.1)
8.0
Information on the role of technology in improving health care outcomes is not present.
Information on the role of technology in improving health care outcomes is present, but it is incomplete or otherwise lacking in required detail.
Information on the role of technology in improving health care outcomes is present. Some minor details or elements are missing, but the omissions do not impede understanding.
Information on the role of technology in improving health care outcomes is present and complete. The submission provides the basic information required.
Information on the role of technology in improving health care outcomes is present, complete, and incorporates additional relevant details and critical thinking to engage the reader.
Health Policy
8.0
Health policy information is not present.
Health policy information is present, but it is incomplete or otherwise lacking in required detail.
Health policy information is present. Some minor details or elements are missing, but the omissions do not impede understanding.
Health policy information is present and complete. The submission provides the basic information required.
Health policy information is present, complete, and incorporates additional relevant details and critical thinking to engage the reader.
Leadership and Economic Models
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8.0
Information on leadership and economic models is not present.
Information on leadership and economic models is present, but it is incomplete or otherwise lacking in required detail.
Information on leadership and economic models is present. Some minor details or elements are missing, but the omissions do not impede understanding.
Information on leadership and economic models is present and complete. The submission provides the basic information required.
Information on leadership and economic models is present, complete, and incorporates additional relevant details and critical thinking to engage the reader.
Health Disparities
8.0
Information on health disparities is not present.
Information on health disparities is present, but it is incomplete or otherwise lacking in required detail.
Information on health disparities is present Some minor details or elements are missing, but the omissions do not impede understanding.
Information on health disparities is present and complete. The submission provides the basic information required.
Information on health disparities is present, complete, and incorporates additional relevant details and critical thinking to engage the reader.
Outline of Overall Personal Discovery Practicum Reflective Journal Essay Paper
8.0
Outline of what student discovered about professional practice, personal strengths and weaknesses that surfaced, additional resources and abilities that could be introduced to a given situation to influence optimal outcomes, and how the student met the competencies aligned to this course is not present.
Outline of what student discovered about professional practice, personal strengths and weaknesses that surfaced, additional resources and abilities that could be introduced to a given situation to influence optimal outcomes, and how the student met the competencies aligned to this course is present, but it is incomplete or otherwise lacking in required detail.
Outline of what student discovered about professional practice, personal strengths and weaknesses that surfaced, additional resources and abilities that could be introduced to a given situation to influence optimal outcomes, and how the student met the competencies aligned to this course is present. Some minor details or elements are missing, but the omissions do not impede understanding.
Outline of what student discovered about professional practice, personal strengths and weaknesses that surfaced, additional resources and abilities that could be introduced to a given situation to influence optimal outcomes, and how the student met the competencies aligned to this course is present and complete. The submission provides the basic information required.
Outline of what student discovered about professional practice, personal strengths and weaknesses that surfaced, additional resources and abilities that could be introduced to a given situation to influence optimal outcomes, and how the student met the competencies aligned to this course is present and complete, and incorporates additional relevant details and critical thinking to engage the reader.
Mechanics of Writing (includes spelling, punctuation, grammar, language use)
4.0
Surface errors are pervasive enough that they impede communication of meaning. Inappropriate word choice or sentence construction is used.
Frequent and repetitive mechanical errors distract the reader. Inconsistencies in language choice (register), sentence structure, or word choice are present.
Some mechanical errors or typos are present, but they are not overly distracting to the reader. Correct sentence structure and audience-appropriate language are used.
Prose is largely free of mechanical errors, although a few may be present. A variety of sentence structures and effective figures of speech are used.
Writer is clearly in command of standard, written, academic English.
Total Percentage 100
Professional Capstone and Practicum Reflective Journal
During my practicum, I worked on different units, where I had an opportunity to handle indwelling urinary catheters where indicated. This reflective journal will thus focus on my experience of catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) and control during my practicum. The knowledge and skills gained during the practicum improved my clinical competency and my ability to provide high-quality care and ensure patient safety. This reflective journal thus reflects on skills and knowledge gained during the practicum and how this impacted my career development.
New Approaches
New approaches such as innovative techniques, new treatments, and new technologies are useful in nursing to improve the quality of care and patient outcomes. During my practicum, I had an opportunity to search for new solutions regarding the prevention of CAUTIs. I learned that indwelling catheters should only be used when indicated and strict handwashing using water and soap ought to be performed instantly before and after any handling of the catheter position or device (Assadi, 2018). I also discovered the importance of properly securing the indwelling catheter to prevent urethral injury and routine hygiene for the urethral meatus surface (Bell et al., 2018). The use of such the latest evidence led to a reduction of the CAUTI rates for my patients. In my future practice, I plan to always research to identify the latest evidence to inform my practice to ensure high-quality care and improve patient safety. However, I discovered that search of evidence is very time-consuming and this is one of the reasons that hinder the use of evidence among nurses. Practicum Reflective Journal Essay Paper
Ethical Considerations in Healthcare
Nursing practice is characterized by different ethical issues. Therefore, ethical dilemmas were inevitable during practice and the common ones involve respecting patient autonomy for patients refusing treatment. For example, one patient would refuse daily cleaning of the urethral meatus surface for the indwelling catheter, and after consulting my mentor and experienced nurses I was advised to respect the autonomy of the patient. Additionally, as per the organizational code of ethics, while respecting patient autonomy, I also conducted patient education to ensure the decision with the patient’s best interests was chosen. After patient education and informing the patient on the risks and benefits of the daily cleaning of the urethral meatus surface for the indwelling catheter, the patient agreed (Assadi, 2018). From here, I learned the importance of seeking informed consent from patients (Kemparaj & Kadalur, 2018). I also discovered that nurses not only adhered to the professional and organizational code of ethics but also used various theories such as utilitarianism theory and deontology theory during decision-making. In my future practice, I also plan to adhere to the code of ethics and appropriate ethical theories during decision making.
Interprofessional Collaboration
Effective collaboration and teamwork in healthcare have been shown to improve care coordination and the quality of care (Rosen et al., 2018). During the practicum, a program consisting of various professionals was established to reduce CAUTI rates in the hospital. The team members included a family medicine physician, a nurse, a medical officer, a member from the infection control department, and a member from the quality and safety department. I also collaborated with members of the multidisciplinary team throughout my practicum. However, sometimes poor communication would hinder effective collaboration for the interprofessional team. In my future practice, I plan to partner and collaborate with members of different professions to improve coordination of care and hence improve healthcare outcomes and patient safety (Rosen et al., 2018).
Health Disparities
Health disparities refer to an increased burden of disease, injury, morbidity, or mortality in one population group when compared to another (James et al., 2018). During my practicum, I noted that some population groups had a higher disease burden of some chronic diseases. Individuals coming from low socioeconomic backgrounds had a higher prevalence of conditions such as obesity and cancer. I figured out that lack of proper diet, physical inactivity, and lack of access to healthcare was associated with a higher prevalence of chronic conditions. Healthcare in the organization would often educate patients on the required lifestyle modifications to improve health. Similarly, I plan to address health disparities in my future practice through patient education and advocating for interventions to address the health disparities.
The Role of Technology in Improving Health Care Outcomes
Information technology was used often in the healthcare organization to improve care outcomes and patient safety. For instance, telemedicine would be used to remotely monitor patients with chronic conditions after hospital discharge. However, sometimes technology hitches would interfere with the efficiency of the technology. In the future, I plan to use the available technology applications to improve care provision for my patients.
Health Policy
Nurses are in a position to influence practice by advocating for policies that support better care. In my practicum, nursing staff would advocate for various evidence-based healthcare practices to the policy-makers and other leaders. From this, I learned to actively use evidence to inform my health recommendations. Similarly, I plan to use the latest evidence to support my proposals on policy changes associated with healthcare provision.
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Population Health Concerns
These are health issues with a significant impact on different populations (Masic, 2018). During the practicum, the major population health concerns included diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, and heart conditions. The management and healthcare providers would join hands to address such health concerns. However, prioritizing the health issues to address was a challenge. In the future, I will be actively involved in talking about the population health concerns in my community of service.
Health Care Delivery of Clinical Systems
Healthcare delivery systems aim to respond to the priority health issues (Figueroa et al., 2019). CAUIs were among the priority health issues addressed in the organization. As a result, the management in collaboration with the nursing staff thus implements care systems to address the issue of CAUIs. Similarly, in my future practice, I will be upbeat to identify the priority health issues and advocate for the appropriate care systems to address the issues.
Leadership and Economic Models
Leadership models in healthcare help in facilitating better leadership within healthcare organizations while economic models guide healthcare organizations to maintain financial feasibility (Hargett et al., 2017). During the practicum, I observed how leaders and managers applied various leadership theories and economic models to lead and manage the organization. During change implementation leaders would use an adaptive leadership style to ensure sustainable changes were implemented. In the future, I plan to apply various leadership theories such as transformational leadership to nurture my followers and provide a good working environment for the staff. Practicum Reflective Journal Essay Paper
Conclusion
The journal reflects the knowledge I gained during my practicum. I was able to use evidence to inform my practice, collaborate with members of different professionals, apply technology during care provision and gain knowledge on different population health concerns, health disparities, and how to influence policy changes in health care. I also witnessed how leaders and managers applied various leadership models and financial models to lead and manage different units and the organization at large.
References
Assadi F. (2018). Strategies for Preventing Catheter-associated Urinary Tract Infections. International journal of preventive medicine, 9, 50. https://doi.org/10.4103/ijpvm.IJPVM_299_17.
Bell, M. M., Alaestante, G., & Finch, C. (2016). A Multidisciplinary Intervention to Prevent Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infections Using Education, Continuum of Care, and Systemwide Buy-In. The Ochsner Journal, 16(1), 96–100.
Figueroa, C. A., Harrison, R., Chauhan, A., & Meyer, L. (2019). Priorities and challenges for health leadership and workforce management globally: a rapid review. BMC health services research, 19(1), 239.
Hargett, C. W., Doty, J. P., Hauck, J. N., Webb, A. M., Cook, S. H., Tsipis, N. E., Neumann, J. A., Andolsek, K. M., & Taylor, D. C. (2017). Developing a model for effective leadership in healthcare: a concept mapping approach. Journal of healthcare leadership, 9, 69–78. https://doi.org/10.2147/JHL.S141664.
James, S. L., Abate, D., Abate, K. H., Abay, S. M., Abbafati, C., Abbasi, N., … & Abdollahpour, I. (2018). Global, regional, and national incidence, prevalence, and years lived with disability for 354 diseases and injuries for 195 countries and territories, 1990–2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017. The Lancet, 392(10159), 1789-1858.
Kemparaj, V. M., & Kadalur, U. G. (2018). Understanding the principles of ethics in health care: a systematic analysis of qualitative information. International Journal of Community Medicine and Public Health, 5(3), 822.
Masic I. (2018). Public Health Aspects of Global Population Health and Well-being in the 21st Century Regarding Determinants of Health. International journal of preventive medicine, 9, 4. https://doi.org/10.4103/ijpvm.IJPVM_476_17.
Rosen, M. A., DiazGranados, D., Dietz, A. S., Benishek, L. E., Thompson, D., Pronovost, P. J., & Weaver, S. J. (2018). Teamwork in healthcare: Key discoveries enabling safer, high-quality care. The American psychologist, 73(4), 433–450. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000298.
Practicum Reflective Journal Essay Paper