Nursing Competency Statement

As I complete my final 144 hours needed to earn my second baccalaureate degree, my practicum comes to an end. The purpose of this paper is to perform a self-assessment of how I have progressed throughout the 12-month accelerated nursing baccalaureate program. Areas of focus based upon my own strengths and weaknesses include: clinical skills, leadership and management skills, professional conduct and behavior, and professional communications. Overall, I believe that I have grown an immense amount as a person, while my nursing skills and knowledge have developed significantly since my first day in the accelerated nursing program through my last day of practicum.

The Nurse of the Future Nursing Core Competencies were selected to serve as the backbone of nursing. This means that every nurse that has the initials RN behind his/her name has the exact same competency-based education, no matter where they obtained their degree. These competencies serve as a foundation to nursing.

I have had the distinct privilege and honor of practicing the art of nursing since 2000. Throughout this time, I have seen the profession evolve through technology, practice and theory. With the recent and constant change created by the healthcare reform, today’s nurse must realize that learning is a lifelong process that does not end upon graduation. The nurse is never done learning, especially as technology and medical knowledge are constantly evolving. My most recent endeavor has been the pursuit of my Bachelor’s degree in Nursing at Western Carolina University. This education has broadened my mind to the opportunities nursing has to offer and has enriched my personal and professional goals.

In May of 2015, I completed my nursing degree from the accredited nursing program at Carteret Community College with an Associate in Applied Science in Nursing. My dedication and hard work to my studies can be seen through my three year membership in the Phi Theta Kappa National Honor Society. As a new graduate in the nursing field, my objective is to grow and engage in the knowledge and expertise of my chosen profession. I am very flexible and eager to begin utilizing my newly acquired degree. Therefore, please considered my resume for the Transition to the Practice New Nursing Resident Program at Carteret Health Care.

In conclusion, I've finally transitioned from being a nurse assistant to becoming a nurse, I'm fulfilling my dream of becoming an RN since I was a child. I'm going to one day have more responsibility of taking care of people. And I'm going to have the educational background, my experience in the health field as a nursing assistant can help prepare me for my future. I’m one step closer to my goal and one day I will be proud to say I could be a blessing in anybody's

I have pushed through so many obstacles while still in school and since starting as a professional working nurse, it’s a wonder how I managed to stay committed to nursing these past three years. I will admit there was a dark time about a year ago where I just felt that nursing was letting me down and I was becoming too jaded too quickly. Dangerous staffing ratios, experienced nurses isolating themselves from us newer nurses, plummeting morale and a difficult patient population all helped push me into a disconnect with my profession. It was then that I realized I needed to take a step back and analyze and evaluate what I wanted to gain from my career. I needed to figure out how to change my perception and fall in love with my job again. That’s when I decided to learn more about the varying pockets of nursing, their advanced counterparts and go forward with what appealed to me. I was desperate to make a change and take on a new challenge.

My grandmother’s nurse served as an inspiration for me to pursue a career in healthcare. When I was sixteen years old, my grandmother had her left knee surgically removed and replaced. After such a severe surgery, a nurse was sent to my house to assist my grandmother for a few weeks. It was astonishing to watch the nurse work so compassionately and genuinely care for a complete stranger. Not only did she directly contribute in enhancing my grandmother’s health, she was also able to provide our family with hope and confidence.

I have been practicing the art of nursing since 1993. I started my career as a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN), graduating with a diploma from Long Beach City College in California December of 1992. Compassion and caring were embedded into my philosophy during my LPN educational track. While the Registered Nurse population was being drilled to learn the books and problem solve, the LPN was being taught to learn the books, but to have an excellent, caring and compassionate bedside manner. In 2007 I received my Associate’s Degree from Cincinnati State Technical School. In 2010 I was accepted into the College of Mount Saint Joseph Bachelor of Science in Nursing cohort from Saint Elizabeth. In 2013 I graduated with my Bachelors. My career with Saint Elizabeth began in 2004 on the Orthopedic floor. After graduating with my Associates Degree I began to look for a career in a specialty area. I thought I wanted the Emergency Department, but ended up in the Endoscopy Department. I started as a staff nurse and have worked my way up to Assistant Nurse Manager.

The competence in nursing had explored by Benner, which in her study of nursing professional skill provides a rich of nurses’ experience in nursing practice which identify the process of knowledge acquisition and nature of knowledge that acquired through the experience at the different clinical setting. Benner has grouped potential competencies of nursing to live their experience in clinical practice which consist of helping role, the teaching-coaching function, the diagnosis and mentoring, the effective management of the rapidly changing situation, administering and mentoring therapeutic interventions and regimens, monitoring and ensuring the quality of health care practices and organizational work role competencies. Those competencies above are highlighted by Benner as a domain into nursing practice which influence the nurses to live their experience

I would love to enroll into the nursing program here at Cambridge Institute, for several reasons. Reminiscing, back to when I was in kindergarten; I remember it was career day and a nurse came in to speak to us, and I instantly knew that I wanted to be just like her. It’s hard to believe at the minor age of just five years old, I had my life all planned out. Let’s take a leap into the future, in high school I joined the medical program at Boca Raton Community high school, and I loved it. My passion for nursing is what drives me to enroll into the nursing program here at Cambridge. I believe that Cambridge has the resources and academic plan to help me strive and blossom; also developing the skills I need to become a professional skilled nurse.

Making small changes in units sometimes lights the spark that can promote critical thinking, aim for competence, affect the whole system, and can bring quality in care delivery. Quality improvement processes help to identify issues and barriers in care, design safety techniques to prevent errors in the future, and provide patient-centered care in terms of individual needs, differences, preferences, education, and coordinate care depending on the health needs of that individual (IOM, 2010). Nurses make up the largest workforce in the healthcare system and have the privilege to play a leading and fundamental role in the transformation and initiation of changes in the field. The use of competency of a nurse, especially the use of communication, knowledge, technical skills, clinical reasoning, emotions, values, and reflections in practice, brings quality outcomes and improvement in care delivery (Rubenfeld & Scheffer, 2015). Patient-centered care is intertwined with quality and safety; to achieve high quality and safety, nurses have to understand the complexity of the work environment and engage in strategies to improve situations. Competency and knowledge of professionals play a major role in quality improvement. Effective, safe, timely, efficient, and equitable patient-centered care to customers bring quality to the nursing profession.

My professional goals are to become a well-rounded, knowledgeable nurse who is competent in many fields of nursing. I feel that this

my learning journey continues, it is my intent to obtain my certification as a nurse executive, to grow

My nursing career began in 1980. Armed with a BSN, my early career was spent as a staff nurse on the medical-surgical units of two, large teaching hospitals in Boston. When my knowledge, skill, and confidence grew, I then became the nurse manager of an in-patient unit of the health service of a large, prestigious university. In addition to direct patient care, I had leadership and administrative roles as well as mentoring new nurses. I later transitioned into the role of Occupational Health nurse at a small community hospital. My duties included screening prospective employees, safety and health education, as well as follow-up of work-related injuries. After a brief hiatus from nursing, I became a home care and hospice nurse. It was then that I discovered what I enjoyed most about nursing was the hands on, caring connection I made with my patients. Based on my diverse experiences and love of nursing, I wanted to share my knowledge and skills with those wanting to pursue nursing. I have been a PN nurse educator for the past nine years. My long-term goal is to remain in academic nursing education, moving to an ADN program. In doing so, I must take the recommendation of the Institute of Medicine (IOM, 2010), for nurses to achieve higher levels of education. As a master’s prepared nurse, I will be equipped with the knowledge and skill necessary to educate the future nursing workforce.

These past 4 years have been challenging but very rewarding. Many things in my personal life have changed but nursing is something that has always been a steady and positive relationship. I enjoy being able to make such an impact on someone’s life. As stated in the test plan Nursing is both an art and a science, founded on a professional body of knowledge that integrates concepts from the liberal arts and the biological, physical, psychological and social sciences. It is a learned profession based on knowledge of the human condition across the lifespan and the relationships of an individual with others and within the environment (NCSBN, 2016). I agree with this statement in the sense that nursing such be holistic and incorporate the whole person and all their needs. I have noticed a big change in my clinical practice in this past year. It is amazing how my confidence has increased so much.