ACU NRSG367: Transition to Professional Practice Clinical Reflection

This report provides a reflective account of a nursing student's clinical practicum experience in an emergency ward, utilizing the Gibbs reflective model to analyze a specific incident involving a medication dosage calculation error. The student reflects on the application of the National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) standards, particularly clinical governance and effective communication, and how these principles were tested during the practicum. The report details the student's feelings, evaluation of the experience, analysis of the situation, and conclusions drawn, including an action plan to prevent similar errors in the future. The student emphasizes the importance of effective communication, adherence to clinical standards, and the significance of continuous improvement in ensuring patient safety and quality of care. The assignment demonstrates the student's ability to integrate theoretical knowledge with practical experience, highlighting the challenges and rewards of transitioning to professional nursing practice and the importance of reflective practice in professional development.

Running head: TRANSITION TO PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
TRANSITION TO PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author note

1TRANSITION TO PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
Introduction
Reflection is termed as an important process for nursing professionals as it helps them
to understand the strengths and limitations of the nursing process so that they could retrospect
upon their actions and develop scope of improvements. Upon reflecting, they are provided
with opportunities to highlight their process related loopholes and work on them to enhance
their personal and professional skills (Barksby, Butcher & Whysall, 2015).
In this paper, I would also be reflecting upon one of my bachelor’s practicum session
in which I, along with a group of 4 student nurses were assigned with clinical duty to assist
registered nurses in emergency ward, I would be using Gibbs reflective model. The primary
focus of my reflection would be the way I was able to implement the theoretical NSQHS
standards in my nursing practicum practice.
Description
In the final section of my bachelor’s nursing curriculum, we are provided with
multiple practicum so that we could understand the clinical settings and the way nursing
professionals conduct their functions effectively. I was also assigned with a clinical
practicum session for three weeks and along with four student nurses, I was asked to assist
registered nurse in emergency ward so that we could understand the process of emergency
wards. However, upon joining I decided to maintain clinical governance and developing
effective communication by maintaining reliability, safety and quality of health care so that
positive patient outcome could be observed. Despite this, while calculating the drug dosage, I
made minimal calculation error that could have affected the reliability and effectiveness of
the interventions. Therefore, in such condition, my effective communication abilities helped
me to rectify my mistake and I was able to protect the patient to consume improper dosage of
medication (Safetyandquality.gov.au, 2019).

2TRANSITION TO PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
Feelings
After knowing about my clinical placement for practicum, I was excited as I was
about to explore the busiest and crucial department of healthcare. As per (), emergency
nursing professionals requires effective knowledge and rapid decision making abilities so that
they could provide timely care to the patients. Upon attending the ward for clinical placement
I decided to follow all the NSQHS standards for my care delivery. Especially, I was eager to
observe and maintain clinical governance and effective communication for the improvement
of my professional skills. However, the first mistake that I made while calculating the
medicinal dosage affected my confidence and made me reflect upon my calculating and
dosage maintaining calculations. Despite this, I was able to control my nerves and inform the
registered nurse about my mistake and implemented my effective communication abilities to
prevent the adverse effects of medication error (Bramhall, 2014).
Evaluation
This experience was only about positive and neutral experiences as I gained this
experience during my bachelor’s days and I was unaware of the processes that I could be able
to implement the theoretical knowledge in the practicum sessions. Further, I was able to
identify the complications that would affect my ability as nursing profession and hence, this
experience helped me to understand the way I would be able to rectify my professional
practices.
Analysis
From the entire scenario I understood that effective communication is very important
in the clinical setting. As I committed a mistake and was scared to confess that to the
registered nurse, my knowledge and skills regarding effective communication helped me a
lot. As the dosage that was calculated by me was wrong I violated the rules of the clinical

3TRANSITION TO PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
governance. However, registered nurse made me understand that as I was working in the
healthcare sector thus,as the leaders of the healthcare service organization and thus have a
responsibility for the community that will help in the continuous improvement of safety and
the quality of their services, and also ensures that they are patient centered are safe and as
well as effective.
I analyzed that the entire situation is very critical as it was against the clinical
standard as well as could have violated the ethics of nursing profession if I had not
communicated effectively with the registered nurse. Thus I analyzed in order to perform my
responsibilities in a proper manner as a nurse I had to be transparent in providing the patient
the required amount of care and had to speak up against the unethical practices as I did in my
case (Makaroff et al., 2014).
Conclusion
The conclusion that I drew from the experience is that being a part of the healthcare
system I have to be ready for all kind of situations that can often give rise to emergency
situations. If this situation arise again then apart from speaking with the registered nurse I can
calculate the dosages correctly and then administer the medicines as per the prescribed chart
provided by the doctor. This will help me to maintain my clinical governance standard as that
will aim to ensure the fact that the systems are in respective places within the healthcare
organizationsin order to maintain and this will help me to improve the safety, reliability, and
the quality of care.
As per NSQHS, the clinical governance standard always prioritizes the qualities of
leadership and patient safety. Thus, even if I committed a mistake while calculating the
dosage of the medicines I can correct the dosages at that moment only after I confessed the
mistake to the registered nurse.

4TRANSITION TO PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
Action Plan
The action plan that I prepared as a precaution in order to prevent any such mistakes
in the future involves the proper planning and preparation of a chart that contains the
calculated dosages of the medicines that has to be administered to each medicines. I had
planned to make use of this chart whenever I had to give the patients with their prescribed
medicines. In order to avoid medication errors I will also document everything that will
include the proper labeling of the medicines, legitimate and proper
documentation of the medical records, and the proper recording of the
administered medicines. I have realized that a lack in the proper
documentation for any medicines can cause an error in the outcome.

5TRANSITION TO PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE
References
Barksby, J., Butcher, N., & Whysall, A. (2015). A new model of reflection for clinical
practice. Nursing times, 111(34-35), 21-23.
Bramhall, E. (2014). Effective communication skills in nursing practice. Nursing Standard
(2014+), 29(14), 53.
Makaroff, K. S., Storch, J., Pauly, B., & Newton, L. (2014). Searching for ethical leadership
in nursing. Nursing ethics, 21(6), 642-658.
Safetyandquality.gov.au. (2019). Clinical Governance Standard | Australia Commission on
Safety and Quality in Healthcare. Retrieved 20 August 2019, from
https://www.safetyandquality.gov.au/our-work/clinical-governance/clinical-
governance-standard