Suggestions for Clinicians’ Reflection in Action

The past one week has been a tough week. I have been involved in situations that required in-depth analysis and critical thinking skills to be able to handle them. It has been a festive season where most people move out and about celebrating as the year comes to the end. I happened to have travelled to Kenya with my friends for this Christmas holidays. Here is where I encountered very complex situations that needed careful and well thought out decisions bearing in mind that Kenya is a third world country.

We had gone camping with my friends in Maasai Mara national park. An unknown animal bit a friend of mine and she immediately developed a reaction to that bite. Her body was swollen, she developed a high fever, and was breathing very heavily. The nearest hospital was about 80 km away. The only way I managed to help my friend was by quickly turning to the locals who helped me to determine which specific animal that had bitten my friend. I administered the necessary first aid and then rushed her to the hospital. A life was saved. If I had not turned to the locals then I could have lost a friend (Falise, 2007).

Back in our hotel room in Nairobi, another friend of mine developed an allergic reaction to a food she had consumed. I had to list down all the foods she had eaten the whole day and identify new food substances she was exposed to on that day lowering the number to only three food types. This hastened the treatment process of my friend making the doctors work easier.

The above situations put a test on my critical thinking skills. I had to be flexible and seek advice from the locals. I had to make the right decisions to save a life. I had to be actively involved in my practice as a nurse even though I was on a vacation. In the situations where I was not sure of the way forward, I stopped my activity at the point where I requested for the necessary support (Falise, 2007). This shows the importance of critical thinking skills in medical practice, especially in nursing. These skills helped in gathering the required information that was used in saving a life. Although the locals were somehow uncooperative and the language barrier was a problem, I did not give up; I managed to extract very relevant information pertaining my patient’s situation.

The “Clinicians’ Reflection in Action” is a very important form of assessment which is directly relevant to my practice. It is a well-elaborated stepwise guide ensured the correct decision is made (Falise, 2007). The use of the “Am I…” ensures that I come up with the most amicable solution or way forward to a specific medical condition. This guide ensures a methodological approach to nursing profession is attained (Redman, 2006). This enhances efficiency and accuracy in an individual’s judgment as a nurse. During my last week’s experiences while facing the critical situations I used the guideline and lives were saved.

This guideline is an integrated interdisciplinary continence that ensures effective service delivery as a nurse (Redman, 2006). Therefore, it is an effective tool that must be made a requisite knowledge to the nursing profession. This guideline ensures that a nurse is in a position to work independently or with minimal guidance. The skill ensures that a nurse is able to help others and help them effectively.

I employed this guideline when I was in a life saving situation and it worked. It observes the reflective cycle, ensuring that a nurse uses the correct descriptions together with the feelings to come up with the correct evaluation. A correct evaluation ensures the relevant analysis is carried out leading to the most effective conclusion on the necessary action plan to be employed (Redman, 2006).

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