Module Three:

Through this module, titled “Knowledge and Clinical Judgement”, we were introduced to ways to think like a nurse. This is a skill we have been practicing for a long time now and are just getting to implement it into practice through our clinical experience. It also delves into some of the jobs as nurses such as educating our patients, keeping their personal information safe, and providing them online resources that they can use to get help when needed. These skills are all crucial for nurses. By abiding by HIPAA laws, our patients will be more comfortable sharing information with us which will build our relationship. In addition, keeping patients educated will go a long way when it comes to them being able to care for themselves. It is too common now to have patients sent home and then arriving back at the hospital days later because they did not properly follow instructions on caring for themselves and now find themselves in a worse predicament. By doing these few things, it can make a huge difference in a patient feeling as though you care and that they matter. 

Module Four:

“Priority setting Frameworks” was all about just that. Being able to prioritize patients based on their condition. For this, it is important to think about airway, breathing and circulation (ABC) and Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs. We are currently learning how to prioritize patient care in many of our classes. To have the ability to recognize which patient is in the greatest need of attention and start there is crucial for nursing. This is a skill that will be key when we are given more than one of our own patients to care for. In doing this, safety is also key for us to pay attention to as it is also part of our role. Another aspect of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, is that as nurses, we need to treat patients as people. They all have their own needs, feelings and emotions and sometimes I feel that it could be easy to get caught up in the overwhelming numbers, labs and tests for all the patients we have to care for as nurses. At the end of the day, a lot of people leave the hospital given more devastating news and we need  to acknowledge that.