Posted: March 23rd, 2023

Nursing Reflection

Introduction

Studies have shown that one of the issues that have led to higher mortality and morbidity rates in our contemporary health care systems is medical errors. Indeed, the aspect alludes that there is a dire need for governments to ensure that nurses within their localities are equipped with vital skills that will help in reversing this menace. As such, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) developed some recommendations that were aimed at advancing the future of nursing and healthcare in general in the year 2010 (IOM., 2010). The report indicated that the American health sector, including the personnel needed to cater for the patients suffering from chronic illnesses, should be transformed to meet the demands and prerequisites for the sick people.

According to this report, nurses specifically were viewed as healthcare personnel who are in a unique position to undertake the major part of helping the American nation in meeting these objectives. The justification of this paper is to reflect on the manner in which I can fit in recommendations 4, 5, and 6 of the IOM future of nursing report. It also includes my reflection on how increasing my educational attainments will affect my competence in nursing and my future role as a nurse.

IOM Recommendations

Recommendation 4 indicates that by the year 2020, the proportion of the nurses with baccalaureate degree should be increased by eighty percent from the current fifty percent, which will ensure that the United States will have a nursing workforce that is skilled and equipped to meet the demands of the diverse health care needs. Recommendation 5 is also similar to the fourth one in that it is aimed at doubling the rates of nurses possessing doctorate degrees by the next three years, who will conduct research among other roles in nursing. Additionally, Recommendation 6 relates to the fourth and fifth recommendations in that it advices the nurses to engage in continued learning in order to develop competencies required in the ever-changing healthcare arena (IOM, 2010).

Reflections

Nurses have been termed as the least educated members of the health care provision sector for a long time. Although there are other healthcare providers who may require minimal education as compared to nurses such as those who conduct speech therapies, physical, and occupational therapies, it is astonishing that many still consider the nursing career as a blue-collar job as opposed to a profession. I am optimistic that graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing will increase my competency in the nursing profession.

Indeed, it will ensure that I will be able to engage in critical thinking when I am faced with situations and patients with critical conditions (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2015). Moreover, this level of education will enhance my development of healthcare plans and evidence-based practice, which will be vital for care delivery. Moreover, I will have increased job opportunities as compared to those who graduated with diplomas. Essentially, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing will play a significant role in the future of nursing. In this case, it will lower the rates of medical errors to a certain degree while improving the care delivery (DeNisco & Barker, 2016).

Conclusion

Indeed, the more the educated the nurses are, the better they become in making decisions that pertain to the health and safety of their patients. Not only does achieving higher educational attainment give nurses a sense of belonging with regard to the healthcare systems, but it also equips them with vital skills that lower the rates and medical errors and save lives through optimal care.