Several similar themes and experiences are encountered by many nursing degree students, who may choose to use a structured reflection process. Reflection is one of the basic elements of nursing education through which students learn and gain deep insights into their experiences. Become a critical thinker, enhance self-esteem and attain professional and communicative skills in the process of running the program. Such milestones are usually accompanied by a lot of obstacles, lessons, and valuable information about how to care about patients, progress in a career, collaborate with colleagues, and be strong as an individual.
Nursing students frequently employ organised models for reflection, including Driscoll’s “What? So What? to methodically analyse and gain knowledge from their clinical experiences using the “Now What?” approach or Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle. The purpose of these reflection models is to encourage students to reflect on their actions, feelings, and outputs in a structured way. It helps them to understand how complex situations make sense and what areas of their program need improvement.
Furthermore, before we discuss the universal aspects that students reflect on, if you need any assistance with writing a sample of a reflective essay in nursing, then you can get professional assistance from experts by visiting our platform. Now, let’s have some basic understanding of the nursing program and how students reflect upon using a structured reflection model. Let’s get started.
A Nursing Program: The Basic Overview
A nursing program refers to the study that gives academic and practical background to becoming a nurse. The nursing programs enable one to earn a certificate, associate degree or a bachelor of science in nursing. Nursing programs typically include study, practical experience, modules, and skills. The organisation, content, teaching strategies, and evaluation of nursing programs can all differ. Additionally, they could vary in the amenities they provide as well as the level of supervision and assistance they provide.
Every student has a different experience throughout their nursing program as they have different levels of skills and understanding, and adaption power as well as the organisation they are learning from. Still, there are a few common experiences that every student has during their program and that apply to every nursing student globally. Now, let’s first get to know the models and how students reflect upon them based on their experiences. After this, we will jump into the common experiences that every student encounters. Tune in.
How Do Students Reflect Upon A Systematic Model of Reflection?
By following a predetermined series of procedures, nursing students may thoroughly examine and gain knowledge from a given incident or clinical contact when they use a structured reflection model to reflect on their experiences. By organising their ideas, examining their feelings, and gaining new perspectives, using a model helps them convert the experience into a teaching moment. The following are some typical ways that students apply structured reflection models:
1. The Reflective Cycle of Gibbs
The six steps of Gibbs’ model—description, feelings, evaluation, analysis, conclusion, and action plan—are among the most often used. Every step helps students reflect critically on the event and derive useful lessons. These 6 stages make the Gibbs reflective cycle. Let’s take an example to understand this.
Example-
Suppose a nursing student recollects a time when they were struggling to put an IV (Intravenous) on a patient the first time.
Description: The student begins by supplying an unbiased account of what transpired, such as particulars including the place, the people concerned, and the steps that were taken. “” needed help from my preceptor due to the fact that I was having trouble locating a vein at the same time as trying to begin an IV on a patient.”
Feelings: In this section, they express their feelings at some point in the encounter. Since it was my first time the use of this ability unsupervised, I became annoyed. The truth that I needed to seek help also made me feel ashamed.”
Evaluation: The scholar assesses the reveal in high-quality and terrible factors. “n the plus side, I maintained my composure, but I became aware that I need to work on my strategies.”
Analysis: The student investigates the motives at the back of the activities in this step. ” Trust that my technique was impacted by my tension and inexperience, which made it harder to find a vein.”
Conclusion: The student provides a summary of their learning in this section. “Discovered that maintaining composure and self-assurance is crucial to properly executing this talent. I also came to see that asking for assistance is acceptable.”
Action Plan: Lastly, they specify how to do better in like circumstances in the future. “o gain confidence, I will practise IV insertion in the skills lab and ask seasoned nurses for feedback.”
2. Reflection Model
The reflective process is reduced to three primary questions by Driscoll’s model: What? What the heck? (So what?) And what comes next? (Now what?). Let us understand this with an example.
Example-
Considering a communication breakdown with a patient’s family, for instance.
What? The student explains what happened. “” had trouble explaining a treatment plan to their family during my shift, and they got frustrated.”
What the heck? The student examines the influence and ponders why the occurrence was noteworthy. “”realised I need to work on my communication skills because of the family frustration, establishing trust, and making sure family members comprehend the care plan requires open and honest communication.
What comes next? Lastly, the student creates a course of action to get higher. “I work on making clinical causes simpler and watch pro nurses engage with families.”I’ll the consideration of attending a workshop on communication as well.
3. Cycle of Experiential Learning
To encourage ongoing studying from experiences, Kolb’s four stages are: Concrete Experience, Reflective Observation, Abstract Conceptualisation, and Active Experimentation. Let’s recognise this with an example of human autonomy.
Example-
Contemplating a moral conundrum of the affected autonomy.
Concrete Experience: The learner explains the specific incident. ” Came across an affected person who declined a remedy that the scientific team of workers had advised.”
Reflective Observation: The learner considers their feelings and thoughts in this example. “” became torn because I wanted to honour the preference, but I became additionally worried about their health.”
Abstract Conceptualisation: The pupil thinks about essential ideas, like affected personal autonomy and moral judgement. “his made it clearer to me how essential it is to appreciate autonomy to make their selections, even if the choices are hard.”
Active Experimentation: Lastly, they placed what they’ve learned into practice in the future. “n the future, I’ll focus on a well-mannered way, outlining all of my options to patients in an effort to make knowledgeable decisions at the same time as juggling my duties as a carer.”
4. Reflection Model
John’s model, which specialises in elements like professional standards and private ideals, is thorough and often used for deeper introspection.
Example-
Consider a difficult encounter with a patient who’s in pain.
The experience was defined as follows: “I was tasked with providing comfort to an affected person who became in intense pain, but I struggled to discover a powerful solution.”
Reflection on emotions: “I felt pissed off that I couldn’t offer immediate comfort and helpless seeing the affected person in pain.” The writer displays their emotions.
Influential Factors: The student considers the historical past, understanding, and personal values that shaped the enjoyment. “I realised that my incapacity to control pain efficiently constrained my potential to offer care.”
Assessment: They take patient-concentrated care and professional standards into consideration at the same time as comparing the experience. “This enjoy made it clear how important it is to realise your options for coping with pain and to contain sufferers in their care.”
Learning: Finally, students think about the way to apply what they have learnt in practice. “I’ll study ache control techniques and am seeking recommendations from pro nurses.” I’ll also speak with patients more in the future to understand their needs better.
Nursing Students’ Reflections With Examples
Nursing students encounter numerous common situations and challenges that create an informative reflection moment. The common experiences include adjustment to clinical settings, learning to communicate, managing uncomfortable feelings, and juggling between work and school. Considering such experiences, students will have an opportunity to develop their skills in patient care, comprehend their roles as members of the healthcare team, and learn about their strong and weak sides. They can utilize them to compose a sample of reflective essays in a nursing program.
Here are a few universal themes that nursing students often consider, along with examples of nursing student reflection on how to use them in a reflection model such as Driscoll’s or Gibbs’.
1. Getting Used to Clinical Settings
The process of changing a classroom to a clinical setting might not be easy. Students also recollect how they were both anxious and thrilled at the beginning, and how they managed to meet the demands and the reality of the healthcare industry work. Self-reflection helps the students to understand the need to achieve self-confidence and familiarise themselves with the workflow of the hospital.
Example of Reflection:
Description: “As I adjusted to the routines and expectations, my first clinical experience in the hospital felt overwhelming.”
Emotions: “I felt each tense and thrilled. Dealing with real patients rather than digital mannequins became frightening.”
Assessment: “I discovered that even though I possessed the theoretical know-how, setting it into practice proved to be greater difficult than expected.”
Action Plan: “To boost my self-assurance and familiarity with medical protocols, I will spend extra time in abilities labs and intently have a look at experienced nurses.”
2. Developing Communication Capabilities
A communique is essential in nursing, and college students often reconsider their experiences with sufferers, families, and members of the clinical team. Introspection allows them to review their successes and failures and perceive the importance of caring, clear communication, and listening to patients and their relatives.
Example of Reflection:
Description: “I treated a patient who turned into traumatic approximately an approaching manner,” the outline reads.”
Emotions: “I desired to reassure the affected person; however, I wasn’t sure how to do it.”
Evaluation: “I realised I may want to improve by using learning extra comforting strategies; however, the patient liked my time and interest.”
Action Plan: “To enhance my capability to connect to sufferers in the future, I’ll engage in active listening and empathetic verbal exchange strategies.”
3. Organisation and Time Management
At first, nursing college students may also have the hassle of correctly dealing with a lot of responsibilities, from offering direct care to finishing paperwork. Students who mirror time management problems are better capable of prioritising their duties, preserving employers, and growing productivity without sacrificing the same old patient care.
Example of Reflection:
Description: “I found it tough to stabilise the needs of the affected person’s care and timely documentation for the duration of my shift.”
Emotions: “I turned into worrying about maintaining up and felt compelled to finish all the obligations.”
Assessment: “I realised that progress in time management is essential to guarantee that every affected person receives complete care.”
Action Plan: “To help prioritise duties and analyse time control techniques from my preceptor, I will create a checklist for each shift.”
4. Managing Feelings and Strengthening Resilience
New college students are frequently shocked by the emotionally charged nature of nursing and can try to manipulate their emotions in trying situations, including affected persons suffering or loss. Students can recognise their emotional reactions, recognise the force of resilience, and accumulate coping talents to address stress with the aid of thinking back on those events.
Example of Reflection:
Description: “The revel in of worrying for a patient who is near loss of life becomes emotionally taxing.”
Feelings: “I became unable to pay attention to different obligations because I felt depressed and overburdened.”
Assessment: “I came to apprehend that controlling my emotions is vital to giving every patient regular care.”
Action Plan: “To preserve my emotional well-being, I intend to study coping mechanisms and participate in self-care activities out of the door of work.”
5. Gaining Clinical Proficiency
Trial and error is not an unusual part of getting to know realistic abilities like treating wounds or placing an IV. Through introspection, students verify their stories, perceive areas for improvement, and set up exercises and comment objectives to enhance their technical proficiency and self-efficacy.
Example of Reflection:
Description: “I implemented my first dressing on an affected person who had complex damage.”
Emotions: “I become annoyed about making a mistake; however, I became determined to finish the assignment efficaciously.”
Evaluation: “Even though I changed into cautious, I knew that exercise could assist me enhance my technique.”
Action Plan: “To improve my skills, I will search for extra opportunities to prepare wound care under supervision and evaluate suggestions.”
6. Adjusting to Criticism and Monitoring
A common issue in nursing training is receiving comments from professors and preceptors. Many college students take into account how hard it can be to take an optimistic grievance and discover ways to view it as a chance for personal development. Through mirrored images, they could domesticate a positive mindset in the direction of grievance and practice it to enhance their skills and output.
Example of Reflection:
Description: “My preceptor gave me remarks on my documentation, highlighting areas where I could make upgrades,” the outline reads.
Emotions: “At first, I was disheartened, but I noticed it as a chance to benefit from expertise.”
Evaluation: “I recognised the fee of accurate documentation and appreciated that my preceptor desired to assist me in improving.”
Action Plan: “To make sure I’m assembly expectancies, I will evaluate documentation standards and ask my preceptor for added guidance.”
7. Collaborating in a Group Setting
Nursing college students regularly don’t forget their reviews running with different crew contributors due to the fact healthcare is a very collaborative subject. They regularly broaden an extra appreciation for the importance of cooperation, clear verbal exchange, and help among participants of the healthcare crew as a result of reflection.
Example of Reflection:
Description: “I took elements in a crew assembly all through my medical rotation, wherein we mentioned a complex affected person case.”
Emotions: “I appreciated taking part in the communication and was astounded by the amount of understanding that crew members shared.”
Evaluation: “I learnt the significance of clean verbal exchange and the real worth of each group member’s contribution from this level.”
Action Plan: “To enhance my getting to know, I intend to actively take part in crew discussions going forward and ask diverse crew participants for recommendations.”
8. Handling Professional and Ethical Challenges
Ethical quandaries, such as patient autonomy vs scientific advice or confidentiality problems, are common for nursing college students. Reflecting on those stories helps college students appreciate the significance of ethical standards and create a considerate approach to complicated, morally encumbered situations.
Example of Reflection:
Description: “I came across a situation in which an affected person declined a suggested manner, and I was torn between honouring their preference.”
Emotions: “I struggled to stabilise the patient’s autonomy with my choice for the nice final results for them.”
Evaluation: “I understood the complexity of moral choice-making and the significance of respecting patients’ rights.”
Action Plan: “To boost my self-assurance in handling comparable situations, I will assess ethical tips and confer with my preceptor.”
9. Gaining Cultural Proficiency
Engaging with patients from special backgrounds presents barriers as well as opportunities for studying. Through mirrored images, college students can evaluate their knowledge of cultural differences, become aware of any prejudices they may have, and reflect on considering a way to become culturally competent, a way to supply extra inclusive care.
Example of Reflection:
Description: “I furnished care for a patient from a cultural history that I changed into something surprising, and they held specific ideals concerning medical treatment.”
Emotions: “At first, I wasn’t sure the way to take care of the state of affairs, but I wanted to honour the affected person’s beliefs.”
Evaluation: “I got here to see how essential it is to realise cultural differences to set up, consider, and supply suitable care.”
Action Plan: “To deal with such conditions with dignity, I will seek guidance from professional nurses and study extra approximately cultural competence.”
10. Keeping Balance and Taking Care of Oneself
Given how rigorous nursing faculty can be, many college students should bear in mind how essential self-care is to maintaining a good work-life balance. As their nursing careers grow, students can keep away from burnout and build resilience by means of reflecting on their well-being and organising self-care.
Example of Reflection:
Description: “I observed that I changed into feeling emotionally and physically tired after a particularly hard week.”
Emotions: “I realised I had to agenda self-care because I felt overburdened.”
Assessment: “I learnt from this revelation that being concerned for oneself is critical to giving others the nicest care possible.”
Action Plan: “To keep my fitness, I will make time for relaxation, normal workout, and enough sleep part of my habitual.”
Tips for Making the Most of Structured Reflection Models
- Be truthful and specific
- Pay Attention to Both Your Strengths and Your Room for Improvement
- Connect Reflections to Nursing Standards and Values
- Create attainable objectives
- Regularly Reflect
Final Thoughts
Nursing college students get the understanding essential to improve both professionally and individually by using the usage of organised models to reflect on these common reviews. Through mirrored images, they can benefit from know-how from every experience, adapt to the needs of patient care, and broaden the abilities important for professional, worrying nursing practice. Every reflective experience students have for the duration of their education advances them in expertise in their function in healthcare and delivering excellent patient care. In the end, structured reflection turns every educational experience into a worthwhile lesson that equips students to become resilient, competent, and compassionate nurses.
Moreover, if you want to learn how to write a reflection essay, then you can get expert assistance from professionals. They will help you craft your experience in a very well-organised manner, and that will directly help you understand the whole experience better and learn further about your nursing program. So read the study, get the guidance, and shine in your nursing journey.
Search
Recent Post
Categories
No Plagiarism | No AI A+ Grade Guaranteed
