Reflective Study free essay sample

Reflective writing provides an opportunity to gain further insights from the work through deeper reflection on our own experiences, and through further consideration of other perspectives from people and theory. Through reflection we can deepen the learning from work. ’(Watton P, Collings J) (Branch Paranjape, 2002, p. 1185) states reflective writing is writing which involves Consideration of the larger context, the meaning, and the implications of an experience or action. ‘It is not sufficient simply to have an experience in order to learn. Without reflecting upon this experience it may quickly be forgotten, or its learning potential lost. It is from the feelings and thoughts emerging from this reflection that generalisations or concepts can be generated. And it is generalisations that allow new situations to be tackled effectively. ’ (Gibbs 1988) As a part of my overseas nursing programme, I was given the opportunity to present any topic of my choice on the 19th of July 2012. We will write a custom essay sample on Reflective Study or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page I was asked to do a reflective study on my experience doing the presentation. The most commonly used model by health professionals for reflective writing is the Gibbs model. I chose this model to reflect on my presentation. My presentation was on a special program run by my Nursing home for residents with advanced dementia, called ‘Namaste Care’. Gibbs reflective cycle consists of 6steps namely , Description, feeling , evaluation, analysis, conclusion and action plan. It encourages a clear description of the situation, analysis of feelings, evaluation of the experience, analysis to make sense of the experience, conclusion where other options are considered and reflection upon experience to examine what you would do if the situation arose again Gibbs (1988). I chose Gibbs model as this makes us to think through all the phases of an experience or activity. DESCRIPTION The topic I chose ‘Namaste care’ is a programme designed to improve the quality life of residents with advanced dementia. Namaste care programme which is practised at my placement area is being delivered to the residents with advanced dementia for the last one year. It has been found very effective and useful for the residents with dementia. The concept was very interesting and caught my attention on my very first day of placement. As a part of my learning experience I got the opportunity to participate in Namaste care. It gave me an understanding know that there is a spirit that lives in each person irrespective of their physical and mental condition and it is this spirit that we are nurturing through loving touch, meaningful activities and presence of others (Joyce Simmard 2007). As a part of my Overseas Nursing Programme I was asked to present on a topic of my choice. The moment i was told, I exactly knew what i was going to present on. The nursing home i am doing my placement is doing a programme called Namaste Care. It is very fresh topic and undergoing a lot of discussions among health professionals working with dementia patients. And there was a documentary aired on BBC two weeks before I started my placement. It’s such a beautiful and enriching experience, that I was eager to share what I saw and learned at the nursing home. . The most important factor of a successful presentation is selecting a topic that would educate, entertain and motivate the audience (Dlugan 2008). My gut feeling told me that this will be a very interesting topic, as most of my classmates were doing their placements in a nursing home, servicing to dementic residents. I discussed it with my mentor and she was happy that i selected a topic which is new and beneficial to UK health practice. I started gathering all the information required for my presentation through journals, websites, books, and the guidelines given to the nursing home regarding Namaste care. Most of my research came from the book ‘Namaste care’ written by Joyce Simmard. It was very helpful as it directly was written by the founder of Namaste care. I prepared a rough draft of all the information i wanted to talk during my presentation. Now i had to make the presentation intrusting, and the thought of a power point presentation came across. Studies have shown that Power Point presentation may improve student attitudes toward the instructor and class presentation (Nouri H et al 2005). Having done presentation during my Masters made it easy to use the tool. I downloaded appropriate pictures and added them to the slides. ‘Clear pictures multiply the audiences level of understanding of the material presented, and they should be used to reinforce your message, clarify points, and create excitement’ (OSHA 1996). I gathered more information about how to make interesting slides, a slide show by Satyajeet Singh helped me to prepare effective and eye capturing slides. I chose appropriate pictures and applied them in the background. I made sure the fonts were of the appropriate size. Sentences were written clearly and made in bullets, which was short and simple (Singh S). My Next task was to adhere to the time limit given to us, which was 15 minutes per person. I divided the time between introduction, explanation, showing a short video, conclusion and questions. The professional speaker George Torok says rehearsing speech standing on your feet will give confidence (George Torok 2004). George also says that rather than memorising the whole topic, know the topic and make your own points (George Torok 2004). I rehearsed the prepared slides and practiced finishing my presentation within 13 min, leaving 2 minutes for unseen mishaps. On the day of my presentation I reached the college 15 minutes early, giving me time to check if the projector was working fine and to see my presentation on projection. I was a bit nervous, but as I had practiced well it calmed me down to a certain extent. I was able to deliver as i had planned and practiced. My classmates were helpful and did not interrupt unnecessarily, which helped me to finish my presentation within the time limit given to me. My assessor was happy with my presentation and gave me feedback on areas to improve. FEELING My initial fear was presenting within the time frame given to me, as there was so much to talk about and less time. But as i started preparing my rough draft I was able to pick essential points and areas to speak on. My mentor guided me in consising my presentation. Repeated practice helped me to deliver my presentation within the time limit. I was still anxious on the day of my presentation. I came 15minutes before to check the projector and the internet as I had to play a video from the website. Once I had everything checked and i was prepared, my anxious reduced by half. I normally do not have stage fear, by on that day i was a bit nervous as i was going to present on a topic that was new and unknown to everyone. I wanted to deliver the topic to the best of my knowledge. It was a new care approach to me as well, which made me fear the questioning part. But at the end of my presentation i was able to answer all the questions put across. I had an eager and helpful audience which gave me confidence and excitement to carry on . It helped me present and answer to their questions. At the end of presentation I felt relaxed and happy as i was able to deliver as i had planned. EVALUATION This experience gave me confidence to face a group and talk. It taught me time management. My teaching skills were improved giving me a wonderful learning experience. My Knowledge and skills on Namaste care improved and I was able to relate and apply it in my care for dementia patients. Namaste care has different programs for different patient needs, I was able to explain only a part of it as the topic is to vast. This disappointed me; as I wanted make people aware of all the aspects of Namaste Care. ANALYSIS Once I finished my presentation my assessor gave me feedback on the areas that need to be improved. I realised that though I referred many research studies, I failed to include them in slides which was mentioned by assessor as one point to improve. He commented that the introduction was good and the slides were clear and interesting. He also suggested improving the interaction with group. CONCLUSION The presentation was a good experience for me, it improved my teaching skills in a professional manner. My confidence in talking about medical conditions increased; bring out the mentorship and leadership qualities in me. Feedback from my assessor and group was a reward for my hard work and I was extremely delighted to hear positive response from them. ACTION PLAN In future I would like to improve more on my presentation skills. I am confident do any teachings that I need to do as a part of my job role once registered. I will research more on teaching and presentation skills and I will try to make use of every chance that get. I will work on my drawbacks and bring more group interaction next time. REFERENCE 1. Dlugan, A (2008) ‘Speech preparation; selecting a speech topic’, Six minutes Speaking and presentation skills(online) available at http://sixminutes. dlugan. com/speech-preparation-2-select-topic-idea/ [accessed on 05-02-2012] 2. Nouri, H and Shahid, A (2005) ‘The effect of power point presentations on student learning and attitudes’ Global perspective on accounting education’ (online) available at ttp://gpae. bryant. edu/~gpae/vol2 [accessed on 07-02-2012] 3. Oxford brooks university, ‘Using Gibbs: Example of feflective writing in healthcare assignment’ (online) available at http://www. brookes. ac. uk/services/upgrade/a-z/reflective_using_gibbs. html [accessed on 02-02-2012] 4. Simard, J (2007) The End of Life Namaste Care Programme for People w ith Dementia, Health professions press, New York. 5. Singh, S ‘Designing effective powerpoint presentations’ (onlie) available at http://www. slideshare. net/satyajeet_02/how-to-make-effective-presentation [accessed on 07-02-2012] 6. Torok G (2004) Presentation Skills (online) available at http://www. presentation-skills-success. com/ [accessed on 06-02-2012]. 7. Watton, P. ,Collings, J and Moon, J(2001) Reflective writing: Guidence notes for students (online) available at www. learnhighercetl. plymouth. ac. uk [accessed on 05-02-2012] 8. Woods DL, Craven RF and Whitney J, (2005) The effect of therapeutic touch on behavioral symptoms of persons with dementia. (online) available at http://www. ncbi. nlm. nih. gov/pubmed/15712768 [accessed on 05-02-2012] ?