Reflection

Dear Future Students,

Throughout my journey to become a nurse educator I have learned a variety of things. One of the most prevalent themes is that of technology in healthcare. The field of healthcare is constantly changing as new evidence emerges on best practices of caring for patients. Recently, technology has blossomed and educators have had to change the way students are taught so they are prepared to enter the workforce successfully upon completion of the nursing program. As your educator, I will do my best to help you gain familiarity with these new technologies.

I had many preconceived notions of what it means to be an educator and had many thoughts on the type of educator I want to be. I used to think nursing education mainly consisted of lecture with occasional clinical time. I have learned this will not benefit you the most and in order to help you become a successful nurse, it is up to educators to guide you. I have learned there are a variety of ways I can teach to help facilitate learning and a variety of techniques I can use to help you stay engaged. After this learning experience, I feel confident to be able to help you gain comfort with technology in nursing. I am dedicated and invested in your obtainment of knowledge by whatever means necessary. The video below is just a small glimpse into what a nurse educator can do with technology.

I feel confident in my ability to educate future nurses through the incorporation of technology. Technology is a major part of the healthcare industry. The blog here provides a brief insight in the ability for technology to positively effect patient outcomes. I believe in technologies ability to help patients achieve better outcomes but it is up to nurses to be able to utilize and interpret what technology has to offer. It is ultimately up to nurses to be prepared to care for patients with the inclusion of technology and use it as a tool to help care for patients. I will do my best to ensure that you are prepared to utilize technology in nursing.  

Nursing Informatics Competence

After completion of the P.A.T.C.H. self assessment tool, I have discovered that my competence level is at the modifier level. This assessment shows that I am a nurse who currently demonstrates intermediate competence in nursing informatics. The world of informatics in healthcare is such a broad and complex concept and I hope with continued education and experience that I will be able to achieve competence at the innovator level. More information regarding the modifier level of nursing informatics can be found here.

I feel that due to the complexity of nursing informatics, I have only scratched the surface of learning. I thoroughly enjoy the concept of using technology to achieve optimal patient outcomes. I feel there are many benefits to the inclusion of computer science and nursing science in order to keep up with the ever-changing world of healthcare. Simulations for nursing competencies, electronic healthcare records, and data sets are some examples of the variety of technological advancements in healthcare.

At the beginning of this assessment, I understood that I could not possibly be at the innovator level. This course has been my first experience using nursing informatics with truly understanding what nursing informatics is. Through this assessment, I was able to learn the role nursing informatics has on the care of a patient. I learned that informatics is so much more than the electronic health record. It can be used for research, educational advancement and competence, and the development of policies. It is beneficial to nurses to obtain knowledge in tis field to gain comfort and competence with technology.

There are areas of improvement that I need to develop in order to improve my competence with nursing informatics. I should try to utilize the internet and other health materials to support the care that I provide. Through this type of research in the workplace, I will not simply do things because that is the way I have always done them or that is what I have been told to do. I will utilize research and evidence based findings to support  my care. If I question a policy or procedure, I will investigate using nursing informatics to provide a solution.

As an educator, I feel it necessary to prepare students to utilize nursing informatics in their care. If they are taught this concept in the classroom, they will be more likely to utilize it once they enter the workforce. Through implementation of this concept in the classroom, students will gain clarity about the correlation between technology and nursing care. If I am able to show students the benefits that nursing informatics can have on patient outcomes, the students will gain knowledge and understanding of the vital role nursing informatics has in healthcare. More information about nursing informatics in nursing education can be found here.

Authentic Assessment and Feed Forward

When I think of the type of educator that I would like to be when it comes to evaluating students work, I would like to be honest and thorough. As an educator, in order to facilitate effective learning, evaluations should be attempted to occur in real time. I find this to be most beneficial to students. If they see what areas need improvement, they will be able to practice more thoroughly and have a better chance of retaining information and completing authentic learning. I want to be the type of instructor that can contribute to student success through evaluation that is complete and make recommendations as needed in an appropriate timeframe.

My goal as an educator is to make all learning authentic. This is quite a task as not everyone has the same learning styles and preferences. I want to ensure that each and every student has the opportunity to learn effectively. I plan on achieving authentic learning through the use of real life learning. I feel that adding some real life experiences I have seen will help to facilitate learning. Also, allowing students the opportunity to participate in simulation experiences will help them gain some comfort to use during real life scenarios. I will make learning authentic by attempting to keep students engaged by incorporating their interests into learning. I would like to get students to think critically in order to instill rigor. If I put the effort into authentic learning, then my teaching will be more efficient, which is beneficial to students. The link here is a portal to a variety of information regarding authentic assessment and formative learning. There is also some useful information about the benefits to rubrics.

Feed forward means a variety of things to me. Mostly I feel that it is the ability for an educator to provide timely and specific recommendations to ensure thoughtful learning is taking place. I will use what I have learned during the feedback process in order to benefit students. I feel this will help avoid misconceptions and I will have a greater picture of what I expect and how I imagine my students fulfilling the necessary requirements. Feed forward is using backwards planning to anticipate the needs of students and help them to ensure success. I found a informative article regarding the use of feed forward in the classroom. It demonstrates some of the benefits of feeding forward and how beneficial it can be for students. The link can be found here.

Overall, I would like to be an educator that will do whatever planning necessary in order to facilitate authentic learning. I find this type of learning to be the most beneficial to students particularly because of its relevancy in real world scenarios. I enjoy keeping students engaged through examples of real life scenarios and sharing my previous experiences. I look forward to sharing these will my students.

Interdisciplinary learning and collaboration with technology

Interdisciplinary education is a necessity in healthcare today. In order to improve patient outcomes and provide optimal care for patients requires a team effort. Currently, many specialties still practice separately but in order to break down these barriers, collaboration between different specialties needs to begin before entering in the workforce. Reform can begin with universities and training programs to expand interdisciplinary educational opportunities and programs to help foster collaboration among students before they enter the health workforce.

Collaboration through a variety of disciplines can be seen more in hospitals today. Although there is still a long way to go before and a cultural shift is required before each discipline is seen as an equal contributor to patient outcomes, collaboration is becoming more prominent. One example of this collaboration including the use of technology is telemedicine. Telemedicine can be defined as the diagnosis and treatment of a patient through the use of telecommunication technology. A good resource for the use of telecommunication can be found in this blog. This blog discusses healthcare trends including the use of telemedicine.

As telemedicine is becoming more prominent in the healthcare industry, it only makes sense that this type of collaboration should start in the classroom. Some schools that offer educational programs are including collaboration early on in certain classes. This includes nursing, pharmacy and respiratory students all working together and becoming familiar with all disciplines contributions to patient outcomes. I feel this interdisciplinary collaboration to be beneficial to students as they are entering the field of nursing understanding all disciplines roles and contributions.

I can think of many examples of interdisciplinary collaboration in the workplace and many examples that could have benefitted from more collaboration. One example of interdisciplinary collaboration through the use of technology occurred when I was just entering nursing school. I was working as a pharmacy technician in a small, rural hospital and was delivering medications to the ICU. As I was entering the medication room, I noticed a computer on top of rolling workstation. There was a team of nurses and doctors in a patients room along with the portable workstation. I asked the nurse what was going on and she stated there was a teleconference going on with a patient that was too sick to travel. The patient was being diagnosed and assessed by an intensivist at a large metropolitan hospital. I found that to be fascinating that other physicians and healthcare workers could contribute to the patients care even though they were hours away, and that was 12 years ago. It is amazing to see the advancements that have occurred since then. I found a case study that shows the multiple benefits of telemedicine on patient outcomes and can be found here.  

Technological Enhancement in the Classroom

The integration of technology is a beneficial way for students to engage in active learning. I plan to use a variety of technological enhancements throughout the classroom in order to help students achieve higher learning. I feel in order to achieve higher learning it takes more than technology but the combination of a variety of teaching and learning strategies. Technology can not be the only way to teach but a great way to enhance learning. One example of technology I would like to implement would be the use of simulations. However, students need more than simply participate in the simulation for higher learning to be achieved. There needs to be more teaching included in order for this type of activity to be successful.  A simulation library is an informative resource that encompasses a variety of scenarios. It might be beneficial for students to review simulations so that they may feel more comfortable when participating in them. A link to the library can be found here.

There are four ways in which students are able to gain knowledge and apply it in an immediate and relevant setting: authentic learning, active learning, applied learning, and experiential learning. Through simulations, students are able to gain information and apply it in a realistic way. This is considered authentic learning as the students are participating in the simulation. This is beneficial to the student but it does not achieve the higher learning necessary for nursing students today. This can not be the only activity or the simulation will not be effective. In order to achieve higher learning and a successful simulation, other factors must be present. Prior to the simulation, students should complete pre-work. This can include reading or an activity to prepare students for the simulation. This is seen as active learning as the students are completing a task and applying what was learned in the task to the scenario. A debriefing should occur after the simulation to help students gain applied knowledge. Through this, students and instructors will review what occurred during the simulation and discuss how students performed well and discuss improvements that can be made. Applied learning will occur as a result. More information regarding the importance of debriefing during simulations can be found here. Students are able to gain knowledge from the simulation and through the debriefing, will be able to apply it to the clinical setting. The last part of the simulation would be an evaluation. This provides the students the opportunity to reflect and evaluate the simulation. Students will share what they will take away from this experience and through this, experiential learning will occur. This type of learning occurs in direct participation in an activity where students can reflect and gain meaning.

Simulations are just one technological enhancement that I would like to include in my teaching. Simulations are a great activity for nursing students as they help to prepare nurses for real life scenarios and when provided a safe environment, students are able to explore and gain new knowledge. I feel it is important to remember that the goal is for students to achieve higher learning and gain the ability to apply in a real way. This technology is just one example that is able to encompass a variety of learning in just one activity. The simulation below is just one type of simulation that can occur. Through this simulation, providers can gain experience and will use the knowledge gained to apply to their practice.   

Bonnel, Wanda E. & Smith, Katharine V. (2010). Teaching Technologies in Nursing & the Health Professions: Beyond Simulation and Online Courses. New York, Springer Publishing Company.

An Emerging Nurse Educator

Nurse educators have a unique opportunity to incorporate technology into their teaching strategies to promote effective learning. It is an exciting time in the world of academia where a shift from previous strategies are now enhanced through technology. Through this innovation, nurse educators are granted the position to combine teaching strategies to accommodate a variety of learning styles. I feel very excited and grateful to be able to participate as an educator throughout this transition. Lecture has become a teaching strategy of the past and has been enhanced through the use of simulation and online/collaborative learning, just to name a few. Technology is now interwoven throughout nursing curricula as a way to keep up with the constant changes occurring in healthcare today. The article here displays the Institute of Medicine’s (IOM’s) landmark study, “The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Care,”  and its recommendations for the nursing profession. I would be a disservice to not include technology in nursing curriculum as it would not effectively prepare nurses to enter the field upon completion of their degree.

My role will be that of a facilitator and I will guide students through the evolving science of nursing. With a student-centered pedagogy, students and educators can collaborate to create a supportive and successful atmosphere to promote learning. The site here provides insight to the benefits of a student centered pedagogy. Educators are facilitators and students are responsible for their success. When I imagine myself as an educator, I think of someone who must be creative and flexible. I will attempt to be as accommodating to a variety of learning styles and be creative to implement new teaching strategies to engage students. For higher learning to occur, students must remain engaged. It is my role as an educator to modify my teaching strategies to help students become successful in class.

With all of these technological advancements, I see a changing idea of the concept of a classroom. Through the use of technology, education can occur anywhere. It is no longer limited to certain times and meeting places. Technology has provided a unique opportunity to bring together students despite their physical locations. I feel that technology will be beneficial to students and contribute to their preparation towards becoming competent nurses. I am looking forward to collaborating with students and allowing them to flourish in the field of nursing.