Rn Interview

RN Interview Nursing, is a profession that I have long admired and considered to be one of the most gratifying positions that a person can hold due to the ability to positively affect so many people’s lives. This also comes with a huge responsibility to constantly be aware and monitor one’s own emotional state while adjusting to each patients needs and maintaining a high level of professionalism. When looking at the two areas of professionalism and emotional intelligence I believe that they are absolutely essential to the development of a well rounded nurse. Emotional intelligence is defined as nurses who have insight and an understanding of their own and others emotions and behavior (Watson-Druee, 2012). Professionalism has long been the topic of conversation among health professionals due to its meaning and how different people interpret it. Professionalism in its most basic understanding is; attaining the highest quality of care by maintaining standards and demonstrating good judgment and competence at all times (Hughes, 2012). When considering these areas I have come to understand and define them in my own way; I’ve also been able to interview another healthcare professional and get their insight into these issues. In any professional setting there is a level of respect and way to carry yourself at all times. It is essential to our profession because we are dealing with people on a daily basis which also means we deal with an array of emotions, good and bad. Because of this, confusion and frustration can arise due to the handling of a situation, which could be completely interpreted and handled differently by separate nurses. The question then becomes who handled the situation properly? No matter who’s right or who’s wrong, I believe that it is critical for a nurse to maintain a high level of professionalism in all situations. Regardless of their own preconceived notions of what they feel is right. When looking at professionalism, I define it as always putting the patient/family concerns first. Giving the patient and their family the utmost respect; even if being berated by their negative emotions/ comments during their trying situation. Their ethnicity, background, social status, or religious affiliations should never be a factor in their overall treatment and the nurse’s responsibility to offer 100% professionalism. Not only is it very important to maintain a high level of professionalism verbally it is just as important if not more essential that your non-verbal professionalism is also constantly self-monitored. Many people are “feeling” beings, meaning that there will be a stronger reaction to what’s not said then what is actually said. Due to this fact, it is very key that a nurse is constantly aware of what her non-verbal actions are saying. A nurse should always be aware of what his/her body language and gestures are saying because people read them and can easily misinterpret them. This misinterpretation can then lead to inefficiencies in effectively communicating with patients, family or even with your co-workers. So being aware of what your non-verbal body language is saying is critical in interaction but it’s also very important that the nurse watches and pays attention to the non-verbal actions of others. Even while paying attention to this, a nurse must not react or overreact to them due to the possibility of wrong interpretation. Overall the verbal and nonverbal messages being sent out are the key to the effectiveness and quality of care. Although nurses are expected to maintain constant professionalism there are incidents of unprofessional and inappropriate behaviors. I define these incidents as anytime that a nurse judges on any factor that doesn’t directly relate to the situation. For example: if nurses give subpar service due to the patient/families current appearance or hygiene, if they perceive them to be poor or of a different social class. Other behaviors that are unprofessional/ inappropriate are the hurtful comments that can be said to the patient/family or to another coworker regarding the patient or their family. Another behavior that I have witnessed is a nurse treating the patient/ family as if they were beneath them just because they are an RN. I’ve also seen nurses treat the aides as if they were inferior due to their job title. This is one area that really bothers me, it’s as if now since the nurse has RN in front of their name they are suddenly exempt from helping out on the floor or they are too good to do some of the “dirty” work that’s often left for the aides to do. Many nurses start out on the floor but some of them once they reach RN status forget where they came from and treat the aides with little to no respect. This is one area that I will ensure that I never participate in, I will always remember where I started and try to encourage others that want to become an RN to strive for their goals; and for the ones that don’t, I will always make them feel appreciated and like they are just as important if not more than I am. Other behaviors that are totally unacceptable are a nurse not wanting to provide care for a patient with a particular aliment. The nurse is supposed to provide the best care possible for the patient regardless of what their particular aliment is and the nurses own feelings about it. These unprofessional and inappropriate behaviors are not limited to the actual verbal interaction between the nurse, patient/ family but also include the non-verbal communications that take place. Although these can be very subtle or done without full awareness on the nurses’ part they can have a very negative effect on the communication and quality of care that is being offered. These behaviors include rolling your eyes, hands on the hips, heavy sighing, and other hand gestures. Pretending to listen is also an inappropriate and unprofessional behavior that I believe to be very common in the field. Due in part to the feeling of superiority on the nurses’ part and thinking that whatever is being discussed is irrelevant and of no significant value. A nurse can also non-verbally make a patient, family or coworkers feel as though they are wasting his/her time. As stated above, these sometimes occur without any knowledge of the offender which is why it is very important to always be aware of your outward appearance. You never want to be put in a position where there is a cause to perceive something that may or may not have been intended to be received. When looking at what professional characteristics are the most important to incorporate in caring for patients, family and coworkers I believe there is one that pretty much incorporates all of the rest. At all times the patient/family has to be put first in terms or priority. As a nurse you must genuinely care for them holistically as a person and being cautious to not treat them as another task/job to do. If these aspects are adhered to I believe that it will create and very effective patient/family- nurse relationship. I also believe that with this cohesive relationship it will provide a healthier environment for the patient to recover in. In terms of emotional intelligence I come to understand it as being aware of my own emotional state and the effect it may/may not have of the patient/family that I am caring for. I have to make every effort to not bring my own problems and feelings to work and try not to judge my patient/ family. This does not mean that I have to be cold-hearted or that I can’t have compassion but simply that I must hold myself on a higher level and represent myself in the most respectable and positive form possible. Part of my task was to interview a RN who’s worked for at least five years in the profession. I was able to interview one that has over ten years experience and has firsthand experiences of good/ bad professionalism which has formed her opinions on acceptable and unacceptable behaviors of any healthcare professional but especially nurses. She works at Miami Valley Hospital in the ER. She is a clinical Nurse Manager (charge nurse) and is responsible for the flow within her department, patient/family customer service, complaints, staff development with education and any corrective action that may be necessary. Being involved in all these areas has allowed her to gain experience in the areas of professionalism and building emotional intelligence. She agreed that to define professionalism can cause controversy but simply put, it’s remembering the reason why you became a nurse; to help those that can’t help themselves. The patient should always be the first priority of the nurse and that judgment and preconceived notions have to be put to the side once you’re at work. In accordance with maintaining that high level of professionalism she stated that she holds everyone accountable and expects them to do the right things at all times. She said it was also very important for a person to own up to their own mistakes. Mistakes will happen because no one is perfect but it is up to that particular nurse to accept the mistake and make changes to prevent future mistakes. Being in a position of authority she has dealt with numerous incidents of unprofessional/ inappropriate behavior pertaining to the care a nurse provided. The act that is tolerated the least is the nurses placing any type of judgment on the patient/family. She stated that it is very easy to want to judge a patient or their family by outward appearances such as being intoxicated, overdosed, poor hygiene or limited education but that a nurse had to resist natural instinct and regard them as with the highest level of respect. Talking about the patient/family at the nurse station to other coworkers is also an example of very poor professionalism/ inappropriate behavior. Talking on a cell phone and eating at the nurses’ station is also regarded as unprofessional and inappropriate. Another point that she emphasized was the nurses’ non-verbal messages. She really stressed to me the importance of the nurse always being aware of the non-verbal messages that may be being sent because often times messages are being perceived unknowingly to the offender. This misinterpretation can cause conflict in care because once an opinion has been formed by the patient/ family it is hard to regain the trust and lines of communication. It boils down to the nurse accepting responsibility and always maintaining a high level of professionalism and acceptable behavior. When asked how she defined patient-centered cared she said it was summed up in one sentence. As a nurse you are there for the patient/family, which means that you are expected to give the upmost care and collectively with patient/family figure out what works best for them. At MVH she said that they strive to always treat each patient as an individual as well as involve their family completely for the best approach. She was not familiar with IOM or the QSEN but said that they had a procedure that they followed for all incidents. In the event of an incident, after gathering all of the pertinent information she files a report with her manager. This includes but is not limited to any falls, medication errors or complaints. They also have daily morning safety meetings where they address issues such as lab machines down, ineffective equipment or anything else that may be an issue or become detrimental to the quality of care the patient/ family receives. Ultimately the goal is to create an environment that is conducive to the recovery of the patient with as little stress as possible. One of the stories that she told me that really stuck out involved a shooting where a police officer was one of the victims. Two people had come in with gunshot wounds and the initial thought was that the other victim had to be the one that shot the cop. As time passed more officers showed up at the hospital wanting to know everything about the suspected shooter. This became an ethical dilemma because even thou they suspected the other man of shooting the cop the hospital had a responsibility to protect him from the very irate cops as well as provide him with great care. This situation could have gotten out of hand if the cops were allowed to react off of emotions which would have made the situation worse especially since it turned out that the suspected shooter was not the one that committed the offense. She said that these situations happen a lot and that they have yearly in-services on proper ethics dealing so that incidences are handled properly. At MVH they do have an ethics committee but she is not on it. However at their monthly managers meeting there is training and occasional PowerPoint presentations covering ethic dilemmas and proper handling of each situation. She is on a few other committees at MVH, Sub-committee that deals with time/attendance, Redesign committee which are directly involved with any reconstruction or new construction that takes place at the hospital. The committee that she is on that I found the most interesting is the Family presence committee. This particular committee is responsible for informing the family if their loved ones health becomes worse and they are not suspected of living much longer. They help the family to see what’s going on with the patient and it allows that family to see that the hospital has done everything possible for the patient. She said that this committee is fairly new to the hospital but considers it to be extremely beneficial for the family in preparing them for the loss of their loved one. Being on this committee has also increased her awareness of professional and appropriate behavior, especially with regards to non-verbal communication. With regard to her feeling of emotional intelligence she said it really came down to the nurse leaving everything at the door when their shift begins. She said that it is so easy to allow your emotions to take over and allow situations in your life to affect the quality of care provided both positively and negatively. A secret that she uses is to sit in the car before coming in, close her eyes and get in the most positive frame of mind. This allows her to release any negative thoughts or worries that she may be harboring and get focused on exuding the utmost professionalism while remaining in complete control of her behavior and emotions. This project has forced me to take a look at how I need to carry myself not only in life but especially on the job site. Before the interview I didn’t really internalize the importance of remaining professional in all situations and the impact that my emotional state can have on my performance. Through my interview and reading I learned that standard of professionalism are ever evolving. Regulation is only one of the levers to ensuring high-quality care and protecting people who use services and the public (Hughes, 2012). It is up to the individual nurse to ensure that they are remaining professional at all times in all situations. As a nurse you are going to encounter many situations where you have to maintain proper professionalism even thou you may not be receiving the same in return. Professionalism is not fixed, but is rather fluid and is determined by providing good, person-centered cared and communicating to people in the most appropriate ways (Hughes, 2012). Before my interview I knew that remaining professional was important but I now realize just how essential it is to total care of the patient/family. I have also realized how much of a factor my emotional state plays in the quality of care I provide. Modern theorist suggests that emotional intelligence is at least as important as technical ability (Watson-Druee 2012). As a nurse it is my responsibility to constantly be aware of my emotional state because it can inadvertently affect my patient in a positive or negative manner. Caring for patients involves many personal interactions with people whose emotions are high and whose circumstances emphasize their vulnerability (Watson-Druee 2012). Being aware of my emotions is absolutely critical in my ability to communicate effectively with the patient/family. The more that I am able to relate to them the healthier the environment will be for recovery. Theorist Martyn Newman says that leaders with emotional intelligence posses these key factors: self-knowledge, self-confidence, self-reliance, passion, assertiveness, adaptability, establish/maintain satisfying relationships and optimism (Watson-Druee 2012). In my quest of becoming a nurse I will ensure that I always keep these two areas in high regard so that I can constantly offer the utmost quality of care. Summing up the importance of these areas in everyday life is a bible verse taught by Jesus who in Mark 12:31 says that we are ‘To love thy neighbor as yourself’ (King James Bible, 1995)