Reflection on Clinical Experience with an Aboriginal Patient

Running head: REFLECTION
REFLECTION
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

REFLECTION1
Introduction:
According to Antonsen, (2017), reflective practice is an integral aspect of the nursing
profession as it assists care professionals to introspect upon their clinical experiences and
accordingly identify the strengths and weaknesses. The purpose of reflective practice is to
help care professionals to adapt measures so that they can work on the identified weaknesses
and improve their scope of practice (Bulman & Schutz, 2013; Johns, 2017). This paper would
present a reflection in relation to a clinical experience with an aboriginal patient.
Description:
Emma was a 45 year old, aboriginal woman who was presented to the outpatient
clinic by her husband John. Emma complained of excessive abdominal pain and also
experienced increased shortness of breath. I was in charge of taking care of Emma before
admitting her to the care unit. I introduced myself to Emma and told her that in order to start
with the treatment process, I would need to conduct a set of vital assessment and an
abdominal assessment. I also mentioned that, the physician would then assess the data and
then devise an intervention plan. While I was communicating with Emma, I could see that
she avoided eye contact and also did not participate in the conversation and only nodded her
head.
Feelings:
While interacting with Emma, I could feel that something was wrong. It felt as though
there was a communication barrier that interrupted the flow of conversation. I started to think
that maybe because of her pain or because of the hospital environment she felt
uncomfortable. Before conducting the assessment, I asked Emma if she was fine with me
doing the assessment to which she nodded in agreement. I presumed my assumption was
correct and went ahead with the assessment.