Reflection
Reflective practice is a tool used by the College of Nurses of Ontario (2024) to assist nurses in fulfilling Quality Assurance standards. Reflective practice for me is continuous and is a practice I regularly engage in. I typically reflect, before, during and after my shifts, although this isn’t always writing a paper about it. For example, I realistically spend around five minutes critically analyzing the event or shift, what took place, my practice and what I can do moving forward to improve my practice. Reflection is crucial as it allows me to understand where I may require improvement in practice and education.
This reflective practice will focus on my transition from a Practical Nursing student to a Registered Practical Nurse to a Bachelor of Science in Nursing student. Furthermore, I will provide insight into my journey to become a nurse.
Growing up, I was uncertain of what I wanted to pursue as a career. I was indecisive and frequently switched between a variety of careers including policing, firefighting, paramedics, military, and nursing. Despite being uncertain of the career path I’d end up on, I always was certain that I would pursue a career in a helping profession. My inspiration to enter this type of profession strongly stems from my parents, both Registered Nurses, as well as my innate desire to care for others.
My educational journey started in Pre-health Sciences, which then led me to Practical Nursing. When I started my education in the Practical Nursing program, I was confident that I chose the right profession. For me, nursing offered the best of both worlds, art and science, both of which align with my core values.
Prior to starting Practical Nursing, I had already reflected on the idea of continuing my education in the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program and becoming a Registered Nurse. While in Practical Nursing, I faced a lot of uncertainty about whether I would be able to maintain the grades to be accepted into Trent University’s nursing program. However, I applied knowing this is the direction I wanted to take.
When I received my letter of acceptance to Trent University’s compressed BScN program, I, of course, was extremely excited but in the back of my mind, I was aware that the transition could prove to be challenging and stressful (Graf et al., 2020). I was approximately five months away from school after completing my practical nursing consolidation to the time I started at Trent University so this gave me an ample amount of time to consider what my transition would look like, how I could succeed in the program, and how I would incorporate working as a registered practical nurse as well as how I could succeed in the program.
However, every shift as a new graduate registered practical nurse has helped me acknowledge why I started this journey in the first place and that is to fundamentally help and provide care for others when they need it most. To provide the highest standard of care as a nurse, I must pursue continued education to remain competent in practice (College of Nurses of Ontario, 2024).
Presently, I have almost finished my first semester at Trent University and can confidently say that I have adapted to my current reality. Reflecting on all the decisions I have made to get me to this point in time, I would not have changed a thing as I am where I am meant to be.