Fall 2010
Nurs20010: Interpersonal & Communication Skills for Health Care Professionals
Competencies
- necessary skills for presenting information to a group of people
-specific topics were teamwork, learning styles, various types of communication, generational diversity
- write an APA style paper
-how to research and cite sources in APA format.
EBP:
IPR, concept care maps
Personal Reflection
I have gained a lot from taking this course. Before this class I had never written an APA format paper, so this was very helpful with that and since we have to write our future papers this way, it is a skill we needed to know. Also, I am not usually good with group presentations and talking in front of people. This course made it seem a lot less stressful and let us find easier and more effective ways to present a seminar to other people of professional status.
Fall 2010
Nurs20020: Foundations of Assessment and Communication in Nursing
Competencies
-basic components of assessing and communicating with patients
- Aseptic technique, therapeutic communication, neurological, muscular and abdominal assessments
-ethical and moral issues with patients and families involvement in care.
Personal Reflection
I have gained so much knowledge from this course. I now feel comfortable with going into a patient’s room, talking with them and assessing their condition, and know that I am doing it correctly. I have learned how to retrieve vital signs, listen to the heart, lungs and bowel sounds, and I know what to listen for on the patient. Therapeutic communication was another crucial part of our class. I learned what to say and not say to patients and their families and how to be empathetic and not sympathetic. I know I will use these skills everyday as a nurse and I am happy that I feel comfortable practicing them in a clinical setting.
Spring 2011
Nurs20030: Foundations of Nursing Interventions
Competencies
-mobility of patients
-oxygenation, nutrition, fluid balance and electrolytes, wound care
- surgical techniques, infection control
-health, wellness and safety
-medication administration, injections, urinary and bowel elimination and nutritional therapy
EBP: IPR, concept care maps, diagnostic sheets, medication sheets, skills checklist.
Personal Reflection: This course was jam packed full of information and never had a dull moment. We really received a crash course in the true profession of nursing. This course provided us with our first clinical experience. After getting over the first day nerves, I truly felt so excited and willing to learn all that we could. On top of being student nurses on a main floor, we also got to have an operating room experience and follow wound care nurses for a day. We were able to administer PO medication and give injections for patients. We also got to do dressing changes and check blood glucose levels. I am even more excited to see what we get to experience next semester. This has been a great start.
Patient Teaching:
-showing
a patient with a total knee replacement how to safely get in and out of the
chair.
-when getting out the chair, push off the arm rests and then to grab the walker.
Basic Pharmacology for Nursing
Competencies
-phramacodynamics and pharmacokinectics of medications
-reason for taking a medication
-classes of drugs and what they do
-side effects of medications
Personal Reflection: I believe this course is more than essential for a nurse to know and understand the material in class. Pharmacology is such a huge part in nursing. We must be able to decide whether or not a patient should get a certain medication, or whether it will interact with something else the patient is already currently taking. This class is not for people not willing to work hard, but then again neither is the Nursing program. It is definitely a lot of information to over in one semester, but practice makes perfect, even in pharmacology. I am willing and ready to learn.
