Nursing Portfolio Development Paper

Do you think professional portfolios are more important for entry level job seekers or experienced professionals? Justify your view.week 7

A portfolio is an organized, purposeful compilation of evidence documenting a child’s development and learning over time (McAfee, Leong, & Bodrova, 2016, p. 98). I thin k that implementing the Portfolio Plan would definitely contribute to the knowledge that I have already learned from my observation of Camden. After interviewing her mother and observing her, she seems to already be on a good path in her development and learning. I believe that some of the things that I have planned out on the Portfolio Plan would be very beneficial for her.

Nurses develop professional skills through a process called “Professionalization.” Ghadirian uses four factors to describe this; cognitive dimension, attitudinal dimension and psychomotor dimension. They then further describe the cognitive dimension as the “professional knowledge” a nurse must have (2014). Without knowledge of illness or the human body, a nurse can not practice professionally. Ghadirian then suggests that even with extensive professional knowledge, a nurse can not be professional without the ideals and ethics of a nurse, or the ability to provide care (2014). A nurse can not be professional without all the dimensions. A nurse must have the values of a nurse, knowledge of a nurse and the ability to provide care.

For this assignment, I will be explaining how my portfolio, meets my target audience and purpose.

Professionalism in nursing is a key component to have. The nurse that exhibits professionalism can go far in a career. As nurses identify strengths and weaknesses, careers can change for the better. The strengths that I see in myself are optimism, good listener, and quick learner. When I think about who I am as a nurse, I don’t focus on tasks and to do lists. Although skills are important for patient care, there are psychosocial aspects that should be addressed.

With the increasing demands in Healthcare needs, newly licensed competent nurses are a commodity that simply do not exist. Every year there are new nurses graduating from associate and bachelor’s degree programs that enter the work force. Nursing students whom complete their degree program, whether it be an associates or bachelor degree sit to take the same state sanctioned nursing licensure exam. Upon successful completion of this exam a student quickly transitions from student to professional, in as little as two days, and is now deemed competent to practice safely and effectively. Unfortunately for new nurses whom enter the workforce, they are subjected to an environment that nursing schools simply cannot simulate accurately, and therefore not prepare students for. New nurses are expected to come out of school, especially by the patients they tend to, with competencies that are unrealistic. The reality is that new nurses lack skills that allow them to perform at a truly competent level. What this paper will discuss are the competencies that new graduate nurses enter the work force with compared to what is actually required in order to be proficient in this professional field. This paper will also discuss how the transition from student to professional can be facilitated through extensive orientation programs that have been proven to elevate nurses from novice to professional.

One of the challenges posed by the IOM in its report is that nurses “practice to the full extent of their education and training” (IOM, 2010, para. 4). The transformation of the health care system, first and foremost, would only be realized if “competent professionals understand their own limitations and are able to provide safe care autonomously according to defined responsibilities, professional standards, education and qualifications” (Lau, Cross, Moss, Campbell, De Castro, & Oxley, 2013, p. 656). Studies have shown that not all organizations support practice nursing with “competency standards, a well-defined role, a career pathway, and a professional organization” (Lau, et al., 2013, p. 656). Nurses, on the other hand, as cited by Lau,

The NMBA has set several specific requirements in place that outline professional development and evolving prerequisites for nurses. Some of the fundamental components include nurses “participating in at least 20 hours of continuing nursing professional development” – which may incorporate participation in mandatory skills acquisition – per year and keeping written documentation of it for verification, (NMBA, 2016). This continuation of professional education and development, as well as documenting it concisely, is critical in the assessment process of a successful nurse in the field of contemporary healthcare.

Certification is a voluntary process that requires nurses to obtain additional education and exhibit proficiency in a specific area of clinical practice for the purpose of protecting the public (Cherry & Jacob, 2017). According to Fritter and Shimp (2016), the benefits of certification include eligibility for job opportunities, personal satisfaction, increased pay, and an enhanced reputation. Not to mention, research suggests that nurses who achieve certification stay in the field longer than those who do not, as well as allowing organizations to earn Magnet status (Fritter & Shimp, 2016). The first certifications were issued by many specialty nursing organizations (Cherry & Jacob, 2017). To organize and structure the programs, American Nurses Credentialing Center was established in 1990, and is the organization responsible for issuing certification for nurses today (Cherry & Jacob, 2017).

The three portfolios I reviewed were different in the way each person wrote their life stories and their different skills and aspirations. Reading through the three portfolios, there are many different things I liked and I disliked in each of them. J.Johnson portfolio, number 20, wrote her personal/ career portfolio based on her high level of achievements and her dream future job to become a veterinarian. C. Stanley portfolio number 30, wrote his personal/ career portfolio based on his career has a hockey player and how hockey has had the biggest impact on his life. H. Khammash portfolio number 15, based her personal portfolio on her family, her life and ambitions thus far. It goes in depth during the different years in her life and what she

An important aspect of training for student nurses is evaluating a student’s fitness to practice, which would require nursing students to exhibit their clinical and theoretical knowledge and skills, by professional standards (NMC, 2015). The NMC (2008) has laid out clear guidelines for mentors in the assessment of student nurses during their clinical practice, ensuring that students that are not fit to

Portfolios have been used to showcase the work of artists, fashion designers, models, photographers and architects, spanning several decades (M.Williams., K.Jordan., 2007) These career portfolios have been adopted in to the nursing profession where they serve as an augmentation but not a replacement of their curriculum vitae (Lettus, 2001). They have not only transcended beyond the traditional listing of basic information such as relevant past work experiences and positions held, educational institutions attended and achievements but provide additional information that resumes would have presented (M.J. Jone., 2007). A professional portfolio is a thoughtfully prepared and organised compilation of different types of professional information and evidence that illustrate an individual’s record of continuing professional development activities, skills, experiences, knowledge, competencies, professional achievements and goals as well as their level of expertise that one has attained as a result of their experiences.’ (Andre & Heartfield, 2011)The basic components of a professional portfolio include personal details, resume and documents such as certificates graduate transcripts, licensure, (Davis, 2015) professional organisation memberships, professional awards, annual performance appraisals, dates of promotions, recommendations from current or previous supervisors or employers, peers and others (Timmins & Duffy, 2011).

Approaching this class, I thought I knew more about writing. It turns out, there were lessons I had yet to learn. I learned a lot more than I had expected. This class taught me the importance of time management, in-depth research, and more. It’s hard to realize what kind of an impact one single class has on an entire field of learning. But making connections with people who are doing the things I want to do in the future, has shown me how important this and every class is.

An effective e-portfolio should present higher order thinking, through the display of accumulated works, which themselves include reflective statements and personal experiences (Morton, 2012). Pelliccione and Raison (2009) state that e-portfolio components should include learning objectives, and provide a retrospective review of learning to transform future practices. Throughout the capstone course at Arizona State, I have created an e-portfolio to facilitate the ability to analyze and synthesize learning in the format suggested earlier by Morton (2012) and Pelliccione and Raison (2009).

If you want to build a quality portfolio you have to focus on these three things: