Scholarly Reflection Assignment

Scholarly Reflection Assignment
Undoubtedly, the transition from a senior nursing student to a graduate nurse can be challenging. Graduate nurses often experience a complex but relatively predictable array of emotional, intellectual, physical, sociocultural, and developmental issues, especially during the initial phase of employment (College and Association of Registered Nurses of Alberta, 2013). I have always had a keen interest in pediatric nursing and was fortunate enough to practice in the pediatric surgical setting at the Stollery Children 's Hospital for my final preceptorship. I identified learning and implementing family-centered care (FCC) as an ongoing goal at the beginning of the preceptorship due to my insufficient amount of knowledge

I decided to develop a career in nursing due to the exceptional FCC that I have received at the BC Children 's Hospital as a patient. The HCPs treated me and my family with respect, actively listened to and addressed my concerns and incorporated my family into my care. The concepts of the PCC were introduced to me in nursing school and I was passionate about PCC and have tried to implement relevant concepts while having my clinical practicum in adult acute care settings. I found that due to the high patients to nurse ratio and the inadequate time management skill I possessed, it was challenging to build a good rapport with patients and provide individualized PCC to them. The concept of FCC was introduced to me as the standard of pediatric health care during the preparation course of this preceptorship and it immediately drew my attention. I quickly realized that this type of care was provided to me by the nurses at the BC Children’s Hospital. Knowing the significant impact that the FCC has made in my life, I chose to learn more about FCC and implement it in my practice so that the families can participate in their children 's care and the patients can receive individualized and compassionate treatments from

This in return enhanced my motivation to work and to provide quality care to assigned patients. I have gained knowledge from different healthcare disciplines by learning and explaining pediatric related diseases, surgeries, and procedures (e.g. G-tube flushes, dressing changes, appendectomy etc.) to families. Additionally, sometimes families have taught me about some unfamiliar medical conditions that their children have been diagnosed with (e.g. thalamic ganglioglioma) and how to perform certain procedures (e.g. tracheostomy care). This two-way communication taught me the importance of working with the families instead of for them.
Furthermore, I have learned to be non-judgmental and to recognize and respect the intrinsic worth of each patient and family member. After getting to know the patients and families ' background through two-way communication and being an active listener, I realized that sometimes unexpected and uncontrollable scenarios happen and there is no one to blame. The care that nurses can offer is tantamount to treat to all people receiving care with respect and support patients and families in maintaining their dignity and integrity (Canadian Nurses ' Association, 2017, p.