PGC’s reflection

PGC’s reflection
Penina Pierre
Delaware Technical and Community College
RN to BSN Nursing Program: NUR 460- 201 Nursing Capstone
Mrs. McNight
4/14/2024

As a nurse, I’ve always relied on the ability to perform a patient’s bedside care, and it was my

goal to become a nurse since I was little pretending that my doll was sick, and I was a doctor

1
PGC’s reflection

providing care to it. At that time, I could not differentiate between a nurse and a doctor.

Everybody wearing a scrub back then was a doctor to me. Just to tell how meaningful the nursing

profession is to me: I ‘ve been providing direct patient care for about 16 years. I wanted to

pursue higher education in nursing to acquire more knowledge to be able to provide better high

care for patients. Not only to perform direct care but also to integrate into managing the health

care environment, and participating or influencing in the creation of nursing policy that can

change the way nursing care is delivered in a way that will be beneficial for both patients and

health care facilities. To gain access to a higher level in Nursing career, I stepped out of my

current position and entered the RN to BSN Nursing Program. The RN TO BSN program

enriches my knowledge through the nine program graduate competencies that allow me to

provide a safe and high quality of care with equity, respect and fidelity.

My integration into the BSN Nursing program directs

me in the right way of increasing my education to have more knowledge to care for patients

directly and indirectly through the nine Program Graduate Competencies. I am very fortunate to

have the opportunity to attain the BSN Nursing program. This program enhances my enthusiasm

in providing better care to patients. The RN to BSN program competencies also prepares me to

perform safe and high quality of care, and also challenges me to further pursue my nursing

education to obtain a MSN in nursing to be able to deeply and widely practice in the nursing

profession. This program has changed the way I was narrowing nursing just as a bedside

caregiver, to a more wider nursing profession that opens the opportunities to integrate in the

higher levels of the nursing field to provide more complex holistic care to patients for their well-

being. With BSN Nursing, I am more confident in providing care to my patients. I accomplish

the objectives of RN-BSN required to be qualified to manage the healthcare demand. It is

2
PGC’s reflection

evidence that the courses information and the practicum experiences prepare me to provide care

with confidence.

The RN To BSN Program Graduate Competencies

resources and the practicum experience direct me in the right way to accomplish my nursing

goals. There are 9 PGCs as follows.

PGC # 1: Integrate general education knowledge, skills, and aptitudes to advance nursing

education, and growth in professional practice.

According to Sheikh , et al “Nurses need to be promoted to flourish and develop in their

profession (1, 2). When working in an organization, nurses usually think about career

progression and promotion after gaining experience and professional skills. Staff promotion

motivates them and helps them to develop a sense of value. Following advancement, they feel

greater commitment and responsibility toward their jobs (3, 4); therefore, career advancement is

a requirement for nurses. They need to reach the level of perfection that they are capable of, and

achieving that level depends upon their competence and success. In healthcare settings, nurses

require a complex range of skills, from personal to organizational levels, to achieve career

advancement” (Sheikh et al., 2016). I received knowledge from the program courses, and the

practicum experiences. I attributed knowledge from my work experiences to provide high quality

of care using evidence-based practice to advocate, and to educate on the way to maintain good

health and well-being. This program allows me to see patients and to consider their cultures,

beliefs and practices, and the environment in which they are living.

PGC #2: Demonstrate leadership skills to promote patients’ safety and the delivery of high-

quality healthcare.

3
PGC’s reflection

Nurse leaders “Developments in health care ask for well-trained nurse leaders. Advanced

Practice Nurses and Clinical Nurse Leaders are ideally positioned to lead healthcare reform in

nursing. Nurses should be adequately equipped for this role based on internationally defined

leadership competencies. Therefore, identifying leadership competencies and related attributes

internationally is needed” (Heien et al., 2019 background section). The RN to BSN program

contributes to my confidence in providing patient care. It increases my knowledge and my

perception toward the nursing profession. Throughout the program, I learned leadership skills

that allow me to work in collaboration with my healthcare colleagues and to provide effective

care to patients. In my practicum experiences I learned leadership skills and I use leadership

skills learned in my workplace.

PGC#3: Apply Skills of inquiry analysis and information literacy to support evidence-

based professional nursing practice: “Evidence-based practice is a systematic problem-solving

approach that is evidence-driven and translates new knowledge into clinical, administrative, and

educational practice” (Brint & Morris, 2023). The BSN program and the practicum experiences

allow me to use evidence-based practice to safely provide care for patients, safely administer

medication, follow infection control, and respect patients’ beliefs and practice.

PGC#4: Integrate information management technology to improve patient outcome.

“National advisory council on nurse education and

practice addresses nursing practice challenges; and mentions electronic health records, patient

monitoring systems, bar code medication administration, computerized provider order entry, data

capture tools, care planning tools and telehealth; and the need to consider nursing shortage,

reducing medical errors, improve tracking of patient data, improve efficiency of data collection,

4
PGC’s reflection

improve access to care, support national surveillance capabilities”( Darvish et al.,2014,Related

Organization Activity section).

Never was I able to provide care where everything is computerized. Patients’ health records are

easier to access, which helps provide better care to patients, eMAR and eTAR make it easier and

safer to administer medications. I collaborate with the interdisciplinary team and with the

provider to provide good quality of care to patients.

PGC #5: Advocate for patients and the nursing profession with regards to healthcare policy

at the local, state, national and global level:

“Health care and public health systems around the world operate within frameworks of health

policies. These health policies vitally and directly affect the delivery and availability of care for

populations, health outcomes, health disparities, health equity, and the environmental, socio-

cultural and industrial contexts of health workers” (Turale & Kuaviktikul, 2019). The resources

from the RN-BSN program and practicum experience help me provide care for patients

according to their beliefs and practices, and documentation is essential in caring for patients. I’m

continuing to advocate for the patients regarding the local policy that needs to be changed or

modified for the benefit of the patients. Patients suffer when the floor is short of staffing. This

short staffing issue has often made me feel incompetent for not having enough time to spend

talking to patients and family members and it hurts the patients as they cannot get their needs

met on time.

PGC #6: Direct patient-centered care through advocacy, interprofessional communication,

collaboration, and delegation.

5
PGC’s reflection

“Developments in health care, like a growing number of patients with chronic diseases, an

increased complexity of patients, a stronger focus on person-centered care and a demand for less

institutionalized care ask for well-trained master level-educated nurses operating as partners in

integrated care teams, with leadership qualities at all levels of the healthcare system” (Heine et

al., 2019, introduction section).

Patients of different group ethnicity, cultures, religious beliefs, norms, and practice represent a

big challenge for the health system to provide care that fits each patient as an individual. For this

to happen, health care professionals should prepare and understand the role of culture and

diversity in relation to delivering care. As I stated before, every day I encountered patients of

different cultural norms and values. Patients are different in so many ways even with something

as simple as meals, times to eat, time to take medications, eyes contact, hours of sleeping, days

observation, kind of food to eat, and even where the bed is facing. This program prepares me,

and I can get to know each patient individually and perform care in an efficient manner to them.

Nurses play an important role in the health care system. Patients usually rely on nurses to obtain

information about their health. Nurses serve as an intermediate between patients and providers

and other interdisciplinary health care teams. Nurses are the voice of the patients. Whatever a

patient needs, nurses are the first person available to answer their questions. Nurses are always at

the bedside to give support, provide care, answer questions, delegate care on behalf of patients,

execute referral and provide resources for patients to ensure patients’ well-being.

PGC #7: Integrate health promotion and disease prevention practices to positively

“Unhealthy lifestyle behaviors and risk factors, poor delivery of clinical and

community* preventive services, and environments not conducive to health increase the risk of

disease and injury and contribute to the leading causes of death (Table 1).1,2 Tobacco use, poor

6
PGC’s reflection

diet, and physical inactivity alone contribute to more than a third of the premature deaths in the

United States impact the delivery of care to diverse populations”(Okee et al., 2019)

The program resources and the practicum experiences allow me to effectively provide care to

diverse populations with different cultures and beliefs. I educate patients on health management

telling them to: keep their provider, follow up on appointments, attain their annual checkup, be

educated of the importance of vaccination and administer vaccines per this consent. I educate

patients on living a healthy lifestyle for their well-being. With education and support given to

patients the community and the population become healthy. My practicum experiences made me

more enthusiastic about attaining my objectives in my nursing career. Nursing doesn’t stay at the

bedside but goes further to reach the population in the community and to help them with

preventive care, to advocate for those that cannot talk for themselves, and to collaborate with the

healthcare disciplines to enhance the population's well-being. I learned that my population could

become a healthy community with education and the support of public nurses. When they learn

how to live a healthy lifestyle the health disparities will diminish. In the TB clinic it is mostly the

minority populations that are seen in the clinic. Most of them have latent TB and are treated for

it. Most of them are Spanish speaking patients, Haitians and Vietnamese. Those people needed a

translator to translate during consultation and they are helped with housing and food security.

PGC#8: Practice professional nursing within an ethical framework.

“Ethics is one of the important pillars in the foundation of nursing practice. For over a century,

nurses have identified many ethical issues in practice and developed strategies to overcome these

issues using the nursing code of ethics” (Mallari & Tariman, 2009).

7
PGC’s reflection

As a nurse I acquire knowledge from the RN-BS program and resources and information during

the practicum that allow me to respect the patients’ choices about their end-of-life decision. I

respect their right to be treated with respect and dignity and to participate in their plan of care

according to their beliefs and practices. I’m prepared to face the requirements in nursing practice,

and to engage confidently in the care of the patients. To treat them with justice regardless of

their social pertaining or their belief and practices and to be prepared to affront the requirements

in the nursing practice, and to provide care with confidentiality. With the 9 codes of nursing

ethics, I ‘m able to respond appropriately with the dilemma encountered in everyday patients

care from refusing medication to end of life decision making.

PGC #9: Demonstrate lifelong learning that empowers personal and professional growth.

“Continuing professional development (CPD) is central to nurses' lifelong learning and

constitutes a vital aspect for keeping nurses' knowledge and skills up to date. While we know

about the need for nurses' continuing professional development, less is known about how nurses

experience and perceive continuing professional development” (Mlambo et al.,2021)

Lifelong learning means to me the ultimate desire to accomplish the quality-of-care education

required to provide the best quality and effective care for the well-being of patients. Lifelong

learning is essential to acquire the level of education required to be able to provide safe and high

quality of care to patients. Lifelong learning is opening the door to a variety of nursing practices.

Lifelong learning gives me more confidence with the higher knowledge acquired to perform care

in a more complex care demand in the nursing field. With the BSN program I become more

knowledgeable to provide high quality of care that is patient centered to attain the objective goals

of well-being. Little by little I’m entering the pathway of nursing profession; starting with a

diploma in nursing, becoming a mother of three children and then twelve years after they can do

8
PGC’s reflection

the minimum for themselves, I went back to school and acquired an associate degree in nursing.

Having the desire to acquire more knowledge in the field, about 2 years ago I decided to get my

BSN in nursing. After getting my BSN, my goal is to get a master’s degree in nursing precisely

to become a family nurse practitioner.

After I have done the SWOT analysis to recognize my strength and my weakness in my nursing

profession, I end up by developed these five 5 goals that I must accomplish in my RN to BSN

nursing Program as followed:

Goal 1: Advocate for legal immigrants’ elderly patients that are not working enough to receive

Medicare and that are turned down by Medicaid for being too old to receive Medicaid by

influencing State health care policy within 2 years after this course completion. PGC 5

Goal 2: Increasing my knowledge with the latest evidence-based practice skills learning from

this course and from the practicum preceptor, and by becoming an ANA member to perform high

quality care that is patient centered within eleven months after this course completion.

Goal 3: Better collaborate with the nursing team and with the interdisciplinary health

collaborators to deliver high quality of care to patients by using the leadership skills influenced

by my receptor during practicum and leadership styles learned in the BNS program within eleven

weeks of this course completion.

Goals 4: Keep the nursing profession standard by providing care in an ethical manner by using

the information learned in this course throughout my nursing career.

Goals 5: Respect patient confidentiality set by HIPAA throughout my nursing career by using the

information learned in this course.

9
PGC’s reflection

During my practicum experiences, I was focusing on these areas of goals to ensure that my goals

are met. During my first day of practicum experience, I was satisfied with the care delivery

system of this facility. They provided care to patients regardless of status whether they be

uninsured, underinsured or insured. No one is left beyond. Patients receive the care they need at

no cost. I saw that all patients with diverse cultures and ethnicities received care with justice and

equality. Mostly immigrants came to the facility and facility interpreters were provided. If they

have health insurance, they use it and if they don’t have insurance, they are seen with no cost.

Patient health information is kept confidential. Through the RN to BSN program resources, the

practicum experiences, I can provide care with up-to-date evidence-based practice. With

leadership skills, I ‘m able to positively influence my coworkers to provide high quality of care

that is beneficial for the patient’s and for the facility interested in keeping the standard of the

nursing profession high. I will become an ANA member to be able to keep informed of new

events.

The nine program Graduate competencies that I learned throughout the courses and practicum

experiences have prepared me to safely provide patients care with equity, to advocate for their

rights, to treat them with respect and dignity and with compassion, to perform care-based and

evidence-based practice while keeping the nursing profession standard enhanced. This program

also helps me focus on the leadership skills that allow me to collaborate with the nursing team to

perform care that satisfied patients and promotes their well-being such as: providing care with

confidentiality, to gain patients trust, and to respect patients and advocate for the patients' will.

This program helps me with knowledge of nursing informatics and on the practicum site.

General courses such as my psychology course help me emphasize patient personality and

temperament based on their culture, and to adapt to them in the population and community

10
PGC’s reflection

course and in my practicum experiences. My practicum experiences made me more enthusiastic

when it came to attaining my objectives in my nursing career. To reach out to the population in

the community to help them with preventive care, to advocate for those that cannot talk for

themselves, and to collaborate with the healthcare disciplines to enhance the patient’s well-being.

My nursing philosophy that I used in mu nursing career, in my work place contributes to the

wellbeing of the patient and keeping high the standard of the nursing profession

11
PGC’s reflection

References
Mlambo M., Silén C., McGrath C. (2021) Lifelong learning and nurses' continuing professional
development, a metasynthesis of the literature. BMC Nurs. 2021 Apr 14;20(1):62. doi:
10.1186/s12912-021-00579-2. PMID: 33853599; PMCID: PMC8045269.
Heinen, M., Van Oostveen, C., Peters, J., Hester, V., Huis, A. (2019) An integrative review of
leadership competencies and attributes in advanced nursing practice. Leading Global Nursing
Research. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.14092
Okee J.K., Adggerton, A.E., Tuetsch M.S., Marion, N.L., Miller, T., Genevro, L. J., Loveland-
Cherry, J.C., Fieldig E.J., Briss, A.P.(2019) Integrating Evidence-Based Clinical and Community
Strategies to Improve Health. U.S. Preventive Services Task Force.
Barbara A. Brunt & Melanie M. Morris, (2023), Professional Development Evidence- Based
Practice. StatPearls Publishing https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK589676/
Mary G. Mallari, M.G. & Tariman, J. (2009) Ethical Frameworks for Decision-Making in
Nursing Practice and Research: An Integrative Literature Review. ResearchGate
DOI:10.13178/jnparr.2017.0701.0707
Turale, S. & Kuaviktikul, W. (2019). The contribution of nurses to health policy and Darvish,
advocacy requires leaders to provide training and mentorship. Iternational Nursing Review vol
66, issue 3. https://doi.org/10.1111/inr.12550
Bahramezhad, F., Keyhanian,S., Navidhamidi, M. (2014).The Role of Nursing Informatics on
Promoting Quality of Health Care and the Need for Appropriate Education. Global Journal of
Health Science doi: 10.5539/gjhs.v6n6p11

12