BLOG N23 | Exit Interview Prep

(1) What is your essential question, and what are your answers?  What is your best answer and why?

My essential question is "what are the most vital components to delivering effective patient care?" Out of the three answers that I have come up with, the answer "centering health care upon the patient themselves" is the most vital component to delivering effective patient care. 

(2) What process did you take to arrive at this answer?

When coming up with my three answers as a whole, I needed to weigh out which was the absolute best answer of the three. My first answer was communication, which all in all, was one of the most important parts of health care. However, it was proved to be too vague of an answer and generally just too broad. When presenting for my first presentation with this answer, I found myself talking about communication in all different aspects. From language barriers to teamwork, although it is an important aspect of the health care field, it was too imprecise and not specific enough.

My second answer is "keeping up with modern medical innovations and technology." Though this was very important, after interviewing my mentor Tiffany Ramirez, she stated that though it was very important, it didn't come close to the most vital component in health care. Yes, health care has become miles more convenient and accessible because of modern technology. However, when asking my mentor in her experience what was the most vital component to delivering effective patient care, she stated the centering health care on the patient themselves.

This resulted in my third and overall answer to my essential question. From speaking to multiple health care officials from my team at both the clinic and the hospital to my own experiences with my mentorship in the field of patient care, my whole senior year worked towards solving the answer to my essential question, which is the patient themselves.

(3) What problems did you face?  How did you resolve them?

Gathering interviews from health care officials at my mentorship was very difficult because everybody is very busy during mentorship in general, and many of them don't have the time out of work to sit down with me and answer questions. I also especially wanted to interview somebody who wasn't a registered nurse and have some variety with who I interviewed, though again, it was difficult to aqcuire and at times, people I was meant to interview would flake out on me.

(4) What are the two most significant sources you used to answer your essential question and why

Definitely interviewing adults who have worked in this field for decades and my own experiences at mentorship. Though reading journals and listening to podcasts from experts who dedicated their lives into researching this topic is extremely useful, experiencing the field itself and hearing personal stories really made an impact to what my research has become. 

BLOG N˚20 | Interview N˚3 Prep

1.  Who do you plan to interview?  What is this person's area of expertise?

I am planning to interview Isabella Ramirez, who is a Registered Nurse at Queen Of The Valley hospital and has been a registered nurse for more than five years now. Their area of expertise is from going to school studying in nursing and being out in the field for more than 5 years.

2.  Post 20 open-ended questions you want to ask an expert in the field concerning your senior project. Your focus should be finding answers to your EQ.

1) What is the most important thing you've learned as a nurse when it comes to delivering patient care?

2) What are some of the ways a nursing student can do to be involved in the health care field?

3) What did you do as a college student to get involved in the health care field?

4) Did you originally wanted to be a nurse?

5) If not, why did you decide to become one?

6) What about the health care profession do you love the most?

7) What do you dislike the most?

8) What patient story effected you the most as a nurse?

9) What in general made the biggest impact to you as a nurse?

10) To you, what is the most vital component towards delivering effective patient care?

11) What are some tips you can give towards dealing with a difficult patient?

12) In times under pressure being a nurse, what is your biggest tip?

13) In college, what was the best way to prepare for things such as the NCLEX?

14) Any tips for student volunteers and how they can help better?

15) How can I maximize the opportunity I have in the hospital as much as possible?

16) What do you wish to tell yourself as a nursing student?

17) What are the best ways to not get so easily tired in such a job that requires so much physical (and mental!) work?

18) Before going out to the work force, what are some ways I can build up a resume and experience to help prepare myself getting into the field of health care?

19) What are some ways I can better care for a patient?

20) Any last things you would like to say about caring for patients?

BLOG N˚19 | Third Answer

EQ: What are the most vital components to delivering effective patient care?

For my answer number three, the most vital component to delivering effective patient care is getting the patient involved in patient care. The healing process really goes on beyond of the patient's stay at the hospital. Patient care is really centered upon, well, the patient themselves. The health care team doesn't know what the patient goes through or what their particular lifestyle is, so delivering effective patient care has everything to do with the patient.

Source 1

Source 2

Source 3

To sum it up, one of the most vital components to delivering effective patient care is for the health care team to center their practices of health care one each individual patient. Because patients aren't just a number. Patients are all individual people with individual needs and individual lifestyles that affect their health care in all aspects possible.

BLOG N˚18 | Answer N˚2

1.  What is your EQ?

What is the most vital component in delivering effective patient care?

2.  What is your first answer? (In complete thesis statement format)

One of the most vital components in delivering effective patient care is constant communication between the health care team and the patient.

3.  What is your second answer? (In complete thesis statement format)

Another vital component in delivering effective patient care is for the health care team to be provided by the most recent and innovative medical inventions and discoveries.

4.  List three reasons your answer is true with a real-world application for each.

One reason would be that the world of medicine is constantly evolving and new discoveries are made everyday. Treatments and medicine that are up to date are crucial to those especially with conditions such as cancer, diabetes, asthma, etc. At my mentorship, we made sure to always update the technology to help our patients. My patients are mostly cancer patients, so we make sure to use whatever treatment would serve them best.

5.  What printed source best supports your answer?

This article.

6.  What other source supports your answer?

Article 1 and article 2

7.  Tie this together with a  concluding thought.

Up to date innovations and medical treatments are crucial in order to give out the most effective health care experience possible.

Lesson N˚2 Reflection

1) What are you most proud of in your Lesson 2 Presentation and why?

I am most proud of how exciting my hook activity was to the class and my activity, which was an interactive C-Section surgery. There was a lot of expression from the audience and many people after my presentation went up to me to tell me how much they either enjoyed my hook or the activity I made the class do.

2a)     What assessment would you give yourself on your Lesson 2 Presentation (self-assessment)?

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2b)     Explain why you deserve that grade using evidence from the Lesson 2 component contract.

My hook was very attention grabbing and showcased very well what sorts of things I do at my mentorship. The information provided in the slideshow itself answered my essential question and was clear. I also made sure to provide many real life experiences from my mentorship itself and referenced my interviews with my mentors as well. I also provided the sources I had used my presentation. And finally, my activity was definitely the funnest part of the presentation as it made the class give a taste of what happens in my mentorship.

3. What worked for you in your Lesson 2?

Having an attention-grabbing and fun hook and activity. It definitely made my presentation stand out as a whole.

4. What didn't work? If you had a time machine, what would you have done differently to improve your Lesson 2?

I definitely rushed my presentation. I didn't speak very clearly myself as my nervousness got to me. My thoughts were very messy during the presentation so even though I answered my essential question, there were many stumbles and it was very clear I was uncomfortable in front of the class. For lesson two, I plan to really rehearse extensively so I feel less nervous and more comfortable in the topic I am talking about. This would also help me organize my thoughts throughout the presentation and help me to have a more clear presentation for my answer.

5. What do you think your answer #2 is going to be?
My answer #2 would probably be innovations and modern technology in health care really does make an impact in overall patient care.

BLOG N˚14 | Interview N˚3 Preparation

1.  Who do you plan to interview?  What is this person's area of expertise?

I plan to interview my grandmother, Cecilia Zafra, as she worked as a Registered Nurse for a couple decades after moving to the United States and spending years being an English professor in Asia. 

2.  Verify that you have called your interviewee to schedule an interview.  What is the date and time of the interview? 

I plan to meet Cecilia on Monday, January 18 at noon to interview her about my senior project.

3.  Phrase an open-ended question that will help you find research resources that would help to answer the EQ.

What personal aspects does effective communication bring to a health-care team?

4.  Phrase an open-ended question that will help you think about other useful activities you might do to help you answer the EQ (IC2, possible experts to talk to, etc).

Who is a possible expert I should ask about this topic of mine?
Healthcare has changed in the last few decades and will be constantly evolving as the times go on. Back then, was the aim of healthcare less patient-centered?

5.  Phrase two open-ended questions that help you to understand your interviewee's perspective on an aspect of your EQ. 

In your experience, how has teamwork really impacted the effectiveness of the quality of patient care?What do you think is the most vital component in delivering effective patient care?

BLOG N˚12 | Holiday Project Update

1. It is important to consistently work on your senior project, whether it is break or we are at school. What did you do over the break with your senior project?

For almost the whole break, I was out of town so I wasn't able to attend mentorship at all this break! So while I was on the airplane, I listened to a podcast relating to my topic. The podcasts are by different medical teams around the nation who talk about various innovations in the field of patient care.

2. What was the most important thing you learned from what you did and why? What was the source of what you learned?

I've gathered a lot more information about modern technology in the medical field and how to effectively deliver patient-centered care. It was much like doing research checks at school, except in the form of a podcast. One consistent thing that is prevalent in every research article I've read or every podcast I listened to was that in order to deliver effective patient care and establish a physician-patient relationship, there has to be constant and effective communication between the medical team and the patient.

3. Your third interview will be a ten question interview related to possible answers for your EQ. What do you plan to talk to and why?

I am hoping to interview ANY of the nurses at my station. Although it would be ideal to interview the physicians who frequent at the labor and delivery department, they are all incredibly busy. Also, I work closer with the nurses than the physicians themselves, and these nurses vary from different educational backgrounds and ages and experiences. Although, I will have to find out which nurse won't be busy to interview!