Personal and Professional Accountability
Personal Growth
After rating myself using the Nurse Manager Skills Inventory (NMSI), I realized that I am competent when it comes to personal growth and development. This is due to my quest for advancing my nursing education so that I can enhance my skills and be updated about the current practice. Baxter et al. (2013) reported that advancing and continuing education are essential elements that shape an individual’s personal as well as professional growth. The health care field is quite diverse and the values and facts that one learned change with time. In order to deliver quality care, it is essential for nurses and other health care providers to frequently update their knowledge. It is for this reason that I always visit various nursing journals and online studies to learn about what is being done by other professionals with regard to evidence-based practice. I plan to pursue a Master in Nursing as a means of improving my knowledge on patient care.
Ethics
I am competent with regards to ethical behavior and practice. This is because during my practice I always support and uphold the standards and ethics of nursing practice. I also observe the essential components that are stipulated in the nursing code of conduct by respecting patients, protecting patients’ rights, maintaining patients’ dignity, and creating an environment of respect and mutual trust not only with the patients but also with other health care providers. I believe this helped in promoting patients outcomes and enhanced my ability to network.
Professional association involvement
I am a member of the American Nurses Association (ANA). Membership of this organization helps nurses to advocate for various issues that could be affecting them and also advocate for patients not only at the bedside but also on the legislative arena. However, I must confess that despite being a member of ANA, I do not participate actively in the activities of the organization, this is why my rating from the NMSI is novice.
Certification
My score was novice because I am not certified in many areas.
Career Planning
Knowing my current and future role
Career planning (Knowing your rule (expert); Knowing your future (competent), Positioning yourself (novice).
I must point out that I properly understand my job description, hence the expert score in the NMSI scale. I am also confident that I know my future since I comprehend my areas of specialty as well as how to provide patient care as an advanced professional. I have also advanced and gained more nursing competencies so that I can suit various patient needs and deliver quality patient care that is in line with the recent nursing trends of making evidence-based decisions and patient-centered care.
Positioning myself
Dickerson & Bernard (2018) noted that for one to be a competent nurse he/she should learn continuously. Personally, I have endeavored to advance my education hence can confidently say that I am competent with regards to positioning myself to achieve the current and future roles of nurses in health care. For instance, I am updated with evidence and practice concerns, current legislations, and can also make timely decisions when I encounter tough practicing scenarios. According to the (IOM, 2011), about 80-percent nurses should have attained a BSN by 2020. From this, it can be noted that for nurses to be well positioned in future, they should go come back to school and fulfill this requirement. By 2020, most health care organizations could be recruiting BSN nurses hence having a BSN will provide me with an edge over other practitioners.
Personal Journey Disciplines
I am a novice with regards to shared leadership because I do not have enough skills and knowledge about managing councils that promote shared leadership. However, my score for action leading is competent since I can easily organize action-focused peer discussions with an aim of addressing patient care issues. I also appreciate the impact of reflective practice during improving care decisions. Reflection can also be used to develop new skills and articulated new approaches of patient care.
Reflective Practice Reference Behaviors/Tenants
After scoring myself on this area, my overall score was competent. Most of these elements are guided by the Code of Ethics for Nurses which I diligently uphold to. Moreover, my score was competent on discovering my potential and quest for knowing. This is because I have always been fascinated by exploring and learning new things which can help me to advance patient safety. For instance, I have enrolled in various nursing journals in order to be updated about current practice. In terms of nurturing the emotional and intellectual self, I am also competent since I respect the beliefs and practice of other people and avoid perceiving other people’s actions as being misguided. I am committed to myself especially when it comes to my personal goals which I must pursue until I achieve them. Giving up is not in my school of thought.
Current leadership
I intend to use my set of leadership skills to introduce desirable changes in the health care field. I believe that every nurse has an opportunity of making introducing positive impacts on the profession through various activities such as patient advocacy. Therefore, I am determined to use my leadership skills and adopt strategies that strengthen patients’ voices.
Personal goal
One of my personal leadership goals is to pursue education up to the master’s level so that I can acquire more knowledge and competencies that will help me to make important decisions as a clinical leader.
References
Baxter, P., DiCenso, A., Donald, F., Martin-Misener, R., Opsteen, J., & Chambers, T. (2013). Continuing education for primary health care nurse practitioners in Ontario, Canada. Nurse Education Today, 33(4), 353-357.
Dickerson, P. S., & Bernard, A. (2018). What’s in a Word? Understanding Terms in Continuing Nursing Education and Professional Development. The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 49(1), 19-25.
Institute of Medicine (US). Committee on the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Initiative on the Future of Nursing. (2011). The future of nursing: Leading change, advancing health. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
