Mentorship in Nursing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Mentorship in Nursing - Essay Example One element shall be highlighted – infection control – in order to gain depth of analysis required at the academic level. Reflection on the infection control for these students will be evaluated in terms of policy, professional literature, and theoretical concepts that relate to my role as an assessor. I would also identify what I have learned as a result of this process and make the recommendations for my future practice as a mentor. Gibbs Reflection Description As an assessor I had the opportunity to observe other students and even myself in terms of how infection control measures were being undertaken and fulfilled. During my observation, I have discovered that many students were not complying with infection control measures. Some were not washing their hands before and after each nursing intervention, and some were not practicing aseptic techniques during the implementation of interventions. As such, the risk of transferring bacteria from one patient to another incr eased. At one point, I observed a student I was mentoring (student A) coming from a patient with pneumonia and as she was about to administer medication to another patient without washing her hands, I called her attention. At which point, she went to wash her hands. As an assessor, I noted the infection control techniques being carried out (or not being carried out) by the students, and the common errors in infection control practices. At some point, I had to call the student’s attention, reminding her of her hand washing as well as infection control strategies. After which, the student became more aware and vigilant of her actions. I also assessed some of the student’s hand washing techniques and found out that some of them did not practice hand washing correctly. I then called their attention on proper techniques in hand washing. Feelings I felt that in making my assessment of infection control practices that nurses need to be more aware of their actions, and I felt that with lesser experience as is often the case for students, infection control can be simply forgotten. I felt however that with a greater awareness and with continued practice and experience, it is possible for students to eventually hone their skills in infection control and to eventually make it an unconscious part of their clinical practice. I felt anxious about my mentee’s actions because I was concerned about her causing more harm than good to her patients, especially when she comes from a patient with a contagious disease. I felt that it would not be healthy and fair to the patient to experience hospital-acquired infection because of her incompetence, lack of vigilance and awareness, or because of her limited knowledge and skills. In calling the student’s attention on proper hand washing techniques, I felt nervous about correcting her and I also did not feel very confident in reminding her of the proper techniques in hand washing. However, I felt more confiden t in carrying out this responsibility when I was armed with the appropriate knowledge on infection control. At times, my mentee was not too receptive to the criticism and correction but she eventually understood the importance of the correction. I felt good about how the event turned out and how I was able to provide guidance to my mentee and I felt more confident as a future mentor after I carried out the task. Evaluation In assessing the incident, I found out that