In this assessment, I will be aiming to cover the importance of professionalism from a student nurse's perspective. As a student nurse, professionalism plays a very important role in the quality of care of a patient as well as maintaining respect, personal beliefs, and personal development. My definition and understanding of professionalism within nursing as a student nurse is to appraise my knowledge and involvement in high-quality practice guidelines as I have an impact on the community as a healthcare professional. Throughout this assignment, I will be discussing certain topics in regard to professionalism such as safe person-centered care, accountability, the scope and obligations of being a student nurse as well as the importance of professionalism and its advantages and disadvantages. When discussing these topics I will ensure confidentiality as per NMC by not enclosing or mentioning any personal information.
Following my research which I carried out based on professionalism as a student nurse, to me, professionalism means understanding the role of a student nurse as a care provider in an interprofessional healthcare team along with an understanding of the influence of my actions, as well as the effect of it on the patient's care experience. When it comes to being a student nurse there are many scopes and obligations such as patient needs, charting, medication, bathing, and basic nursing care, these all fall under the duties of student nurses where professionalism is required as well as communication and competence. As a student nurse or as any healthcare worker or a service provider professionalism is expected and is an expectation that is required to be upheld despite what the circumstances may be. Remaining professional at all times in a healthcare setting can be difficult and overwhelming at times. For example, if a service user is not cooperating and is verbally abusing the student nurse as well as behaving and responding in a negative, inappropriate manner then as a student nurse the best way to address this type of situation is to remain calm and get a registered nurse such as your assessor or supervisor involved by communicating with them, making them aware of what the situation is, seeking advice from them and letting them handle this situation as they are more trained and qualified then the student nurse and it is their duty as a registered nurse as well are your assessor. This is an appropriate method of handling and overcoming this situation, this also portrays that the student nurse is able to remain professional in difficult situations and can sustain policies and guidelines related to professionalism. Such as the framework provided by the nursing and midwifery council, the role of this framework is to allow healthcare workers to use it to apply professionalism in practice and to reflect on how they applied professionalism in practice and see if they are able to make improvements which shall improve and develop their practice as well as patient care. (NMC2017).
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When it comes to being a student nurse, accountability is linked in with professionalism as it is an important factor within the healthcare setting and is a requirement. As stated, professional accountability is integral to professional practice and is fundamentally concerned with weighing up the interests of patients and clients in often complex situations, whilst using professional knowledge, judgment, and skills, based on evidence, to make a decision (NMC 2009A). This advocates that accountability is important when it comes to professionalism. Accountability is important in every workplace, especially in healthcare, as this promotes trust and commitment due to it being a form of protection for service users from bad practices such as neglect, abuse, and maltreatment and ensuring patient safety as well as promoting safe person-centered care. This also allows the NHS to perpetuate and maintain trust for healthcare workers and service users due to the patient value of care increasing. Accountability links in with recognizing limitations this is where a student nurse is working within their level of qualification and competence. This is because student nurses do not have the qualifications or training to carry out certain duties and need to be supervised by their supervisor. If a student nurse does carry out a duty that they are not qualified or trained to do then the registered nurses who are the student nurses' assessors and supervisors will be accountable for the student nurses' actions. Even if the student nurse carried out the duty effectively it still is wrong and against the nmc, as it is a matter of the service user's safety which leads to bad practice. However, it is understandable as to why a student nurse may carry out a duty which they are not competent for, for example, the shortage of nurses within and the demands being substantial and hefty, nevertheless, this doesn't mean that the student nurse is authorized to go ahead with it. If as a student nurse you are put in this type of situation then speak to your accessor and your link lecturer.
When it comes to professionalism there are many factors that contribute, such as appearance. As a student nurse, there is a certain manner in which the student nurse and healthcare workers have to represent themselves to others. For example, a student nurse has a certain uniform, white and dark blue uniform, black wipeable shoes, nothing below the elbows, no jewelry other than one pair of studs and a plain ring band, no eyelash extension or fake nails and hair has to be above the shoulders. Professional appearance allows the student nurses to make a good impression on the service user as well as those working alongside the student nurse. The reasoning behind student nurses and healthcare workers having a certain uniform is so that it is made easier for nurses when it comes to hygiene and ensures that it allows nurses to carry on their duties without any struggles and it makes it easier to identify who is who. This leads to professionalism as well as promoting good practice. However, as much as physical appearance is important, so is your appearance on social media and how you come across it. As a student nurse, the way you portray yourself on social media and what you post and express is very important as it can have severe consequences such as job termination and nmc getting involved. So there are some reasonable scopes and obligations when it comes to social media and physical appearance but it should be handled professionally as advised by the nmc. The student nurse's professional image and professional identity are important as it doesn't just represent the student nurse it also represents the whole of the NHS, so it is important to act in a certain manner when in uniform, as this can clarify student nurses what is acceptable and what is not.
When it comes to professionalism in a healthcare setting as a student nurse there are many advantages as well as some disadvantages. A few advantages are that professionalism is not just beneficial for student nurses, it is also beneficial for service users as they will be receiving respect and be treated with good quality care, making them feel satisfied that they are receiving good care and treatment. This will be effective in the long run and improve and develop the NHS even more as healthcare providers experience a development in self-confidence together with reliability from patients, co-workers as well as most of the appreciation from others (Gage, 2007). Another advantage is that professionalism allows student nurses to provide non-biased care that links in with the equality act (2010). Another advantage is honesty, as healthcare professional student nurses can not lie to their patients they have to be honest with them and tell them everything they want to know as it is their right as a service user and a student nurse's duty as a healthcare professional (Behrend et al., 2006). professionalism will allow service users to receive consistent good quality care which will help in improving the service users' quality of life. However a disadvantage may be that not all service users respect and appreciate the student nurse being professional, and the student nurse may get treated inappropriately by the service users. However, the advantages of professionalism outweigh the disadvantages.
In conclusion, my opinion in regards to professionalism is that it is an important aspect when it comes to student nurses as it is the foundation of their nursing career it will help them short and long term, and this will allow them to provide as well as promote and ensure good practice and safe person-centered care. Student nurses being efficient when it comes to professionals can lead to successful outcomes such as the consistent provision of safe, effective care. As a student nurse, the service user's family or carer should be treated formally and in a professional manner, the reason behind this is to achieve an optimal status of health and well-being. (nmc 2018).
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