Self-Reflection as a Nurse
The self- mandala represents the values of truthfulness, respect and trust. As a nursing student I would be reflecting upon these three values, how they influence my perception and actions and how will they affect my professional career as a nurse.
The first value to be discussed is truthfulness. I gained this value through constant guidance of my mother, who believed that truthfulness is necessary if one wants to live a fair and successful life.
The value of truthfulness has influenced both my personal and professional life. An example shall be telling my mother the truth that I had accidently broken the expensive crystal vase she got from her late grandfather. This was hard but I could not lie to her.
As a nurse, truthfulness shall help me gain the patient’s trust and confidence (Tuckett, 2006). By informing them about their condition, I shall be able to help them cope with their anxiety and stress, and to tolerate the treatment and pain more effectively (Tuckett, 2006). Knowing that I am not hiding the truth from them, the patient and his/her family shall be able to depend and share their concerns with me, thus allowing me to provide even better care.
Strategies are used to effectively disclose information to patients. According to Tuckett (2006), the nurse has to make an assessment of the residents and relative’s cognition, mood and psychological status, based on which she/he decides what part of the truth is to be disclosed. Care is to be taken that the truth disclosed is enough to ease the patient, but is not to the extent that it distresses the patient (Tuckett, 2006). Nurses should not lie but instead practice partial- truth telling in order to serve all purpose of care (Tuckett, 2006).
My self-mandala represents truthfulness through a pictorial figure that depicts Pinocchio lying as his nose grows, and his partner Jimmy Cricket showing resentment to it. The picture reflect the notion that lying should be condemned...