Reflective journaling is a way of recording ideas, perceptions and experiences, as well as beliefs and understandings that you have in the learning process over a period of time. The benefits of the reflective learning process usually accrue over a period of time, where there will be sequences of progressive changes, personal growth and changes in perspectives during the learning process. Reflective journaling helps in vigorous learning and also improves critical thinking and creativity. It helps to freely express one's perception and judge oneself. John Dewy said that "we do not learn from experience... we learn by reflecting our experiences. Say no to plagiarism." Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay This assignment consists of about three clinical questions that helped me update my knowledge and skills in the clinical area. To process my clinical problems, I use the Gibbs reflective cycle. I chose it because it encouraged me to think systematically about the phases of my experience and the evaluation phase made me think about the positive side of my improvement. Professor Graham Gibbs published his reflective cycle in 1988, known as the Gibbs Reflective Cycle. Gibbs stated that “the process of a reflective cycle is a 5-step cycle.” The first phase is the 'description phase', where we analyze the situation, when and where does it happen and what happened to me? What did I do and who else was there and what did other people do? The second phase is that of "feelings". At this stage we talk about what we thought and felt during the experience. At this stage avoid commenting on emotions. We should remember the incident, how I feel during that situation and what I felt after the situation, and what is my perception of the situation now? Consider how other people feel about the same situation now. The third is the 'Evaluation' phase, here we are examining what the positive and negative aspects of the incident were. What went well and what didn't? What did I and other people do to contribute positively or negatively to the situation? In the “conclusion” phase we need to look back on the incident with the same information in mind. How could this have been a positive experience for everyone involved? The last step is the "action phase". Here, we come up with a plan so that we can overcome the problems next time. This tool is designed as a loop, replicating an ongoing process. The clinical goals are: Aids in critical thinking and tracks the skills we are learning and the knowledge we acquire. It also helps to find connections between topics and theories. It especially helps to make sense of our thoughts and feelings. There are some pretty bitter and sweet experiences in the field of nursing. I had come across some bitter experiences and later realized the mistake I had made. In 2016 I worked as a professional nurse in the cardiovascular department, in a fast-paced environment. Cases for CAG, PTCA or CABG will be posted every day. There are many transfers in and out of departments as we move the patient to the cath lab or operating theatre. On a busy day, an admission for CDO as a same-day procedure came to our department in the morning. It is quite difficult to manage as the procedure is overloaded with pre-procedural investigations. Somehow I managed to finish the workouts. In our hospital there is a protocol according to which we must contact the Cath-Lab staff and inform them about the planned procedure. I did not inform the staff what the case wasposted for the same day and even kept the patient NIL FOR ORAL. Then, towards the end of the procedures in the cath lab, around 5pm, I received a call from the respective doctor that I had not informed the cath lab about the procedure. Then I realized I hadn't been informed about it. And that case was canceled due to my mistake and with the request and condonation the Doctor posted the case for the next day. Here I realized my mistake and became discouraged. The doctors, cath lab staff, and nursing supervisor scolded me harshly for the incident. I wasn't disappointed by the reprimand, but by the cancellation of the procedure precisely because of my negligence. I took the incident in a positive way. What I learned from this incident is to prioritize the patient's needs. I had lacked communication with the doctors and the rest of the nursing staff. When the same incident occurred, I overcame it by prioritizing needs and holding that incident as an example. Here I learned through practice. Communication plays an important role in healthcare sectors, it improves patient care outcomes with better communication between nurses and doctors. There are many challenges that persist for effective communication among healthcare professionals. Members of the healthcare community must examine these challenges and must exclude solutions that fit particular situations. Communication is a vital component in which all healthcare professionals have a responsibility to improve it in professional practice. When I was a student nurse, I was assigned to a medical-surgical department during my internship period. There were many patients and only a few staff for the morning shift. The morning medicines were handed out and signed off by the senior nursing staff and I was asked to administer the nebulization which is in the middle. I administered nebulizations to the required patients and this was also witnessed by one of the senior staff members. Suddenly the drug nurse came to make rounds and checked the drug record and found that the signatures in the spray areas are missing. The Nurse came to the conclusion that I had not done the nebulization and went to inform the patient. The patient said that I administered the nebulization at the right time. Here what happened is documentation error. Even though I gave the right medication at the right time, I couldn't put my signature on the medication chart. The pharmacy nurse scolded me in front of the patient and reported it to our clinical instructor and made me write the incident report. I was heartbroken and thought about dropping out because of this incident. Have I remembered the incident and considered who made this mistake? Was it me or my senior staff who asked me to do the nebulization? I have come to the conclusion that it was my mistake. After administering the nebulization I could have signed it or I could have told the senior nurse. I couldn't do both. This painful incident taught me proper documentation at that time. Subsequently, during my working period, I paid a lot of attention to my documentation and developed error-free situations. I was a fresher when I joined Madras Medical Mission Hospital in 2015. Initially, I was not assigned to take care of patients. I was assigned some things like managing biomedical waste, checking emergency carts and checking oxygen cylinders. Even though I was assigned to biomedical waste management, I failed, 81-88.