Experiences and process of journaling
Journaling refers to the process of creating entries about a personal experience, ideas, feelings, and reflections of a certain reading or story in a journal (Smith, Carpenter & Fitzpatrick, 2015). The ideas are stored in a book or a computer file for future reference. Journaling experience plays a critical role in the life of the reader by helping them develop a good picture of the understanding of the topic, developing a learning process, and help to keep a record of thoughts and ideas presented by the book or article. The process occurs every time I read an article, especially when trying to understand a concept assessable at the end of the reading. The process is a bit easier but sometimes a person experience difficulties especially when dealing with big volumes of work. However, the process assists in developing a good understanding of the issue discussed in the journal and is good for future references. I do not need to study the article again while revising for an exam.
Themes and reflections from the journal
Koloroutis & Trout’s journal on creating therapeutic relationships with patients and their families help the reader understand the importance of relationship-based care. The article provides the reader with principles and practical skills on how clinicians form authentic relationships during the delivery of care to improve patient safety and improve the experience of care (Koloroutis & Trout, 2012). The article demonstrates the theory of therapeutic communication. The theory of therapeutic communication is highly expressed in the reading because it describes the importance of encouraging effective nurse-patent communication to promote healthcare outcome (Sherko, Sotiri, and Lika, 2013). Authors explain how clinicians struggle to connect with patients and their families despite the presence of the constrained and chaotic environment.
On the other hand, the journal discusses the theme of entrenched behavioral patterns. The theme sees human beings as creatures of habits directed towards a particular pattern that sometimes become harder to modify. However, frequent training and practice help the person overcome those habits. The article relates the theme to the behavior of clinicians. Continuous training and practical experiences help clinicians develop a good therapeutic relationship with patients irrespective of social, cultural, or psychological differences.
The journal assists in reflecting on the importance of maintaining safety and quality of care in the healthcare sector. The journal asks clinicians to face patients and families as fellow human beings and try to create a connection that helps yield an acceptable patient outcome. Patients and loved ones experience difficulties when coping with stresses from diseases. The journal assists in understanding elements of communication between the nurse and the patient as described from the theory of therapeutic communication. These are active listening, sharing observations, share hope, share empathy, share feelings, share humor, using touch and using silence (Sherko, Sotiri, and Lika, 2013).
Lessons from the journal experience
The journaling experience creates many significant changes in my life regarding attitudes, thinking, values and behaviors. First, the journaling experience has changed my attitude towards studying journals with many changes. In the past, I used to get tired of the way and ended up studying half of the reading. However, the journaling experience makes it possible to study the whole book bit by bit creating notes and using symbols, physical features, and personal experiences to understand different aspects. Second, the experience influences my thinking by improving my working memory because I can easily study a journal and select the most important elements to assist in my studies and the future as a profession. Finally, journaling experience improves my health status. The process helps get rid of stresses that may cause depression. I can clarify my thoughts and feelings and understand myself better. Additionally, I can solve other people's problems, especially in the health care setting when there is a disagreement between the nurse and the patient. I use the skills gained from therapeutic communication to help get a solution to the issue.
References
Koloroutis, M., & Trout, M. D. (2012). See me as a person: Creating therapeutic relationships
with patients and their families. Minneapolis, Minn: Creating Health Care Management
Sherko, E., Sotiri, E., and Lika, E. (2013). Therapeutic communication. JAHR, 4(7), 457-466.
Smith, M. J., Carpenter, R., & Fitzpatrick, J. J. (2015). Encyclopedia of nursing education.
New York: Springer Publishing Company
