My Main Goal
It is important to establish a time frame in which I am working: within the next five years, my main goal is to become an Adult Nurse Practitioner (ANP), preferably in the field of geriatric care. Within that role, I would like to see myself becoming more acutely involved with the diagnosis of common illnesses, as well as immunizations, physical examinations and also the management of long-term conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes.
Personal Improvement Objectives
- I need to become more aware of the symptoms of conditions and to become more confident when recognising, diagnosing and treating specific illnesses. Equally, I need to learn about the required medication for each respective illness and to be aware of the potential allergies and other issues that a patient may have.
- I must develop my people skills to allow me to interact with patients’ families more ably and with sensitivity as this will aid my patient’s recovery and will provide comfort to their loved ones.
- I need to learn how best to deal with patient mortality on a professional yet sensitive level; working in geriatric care means that the mortality rate is significantly higher and it will be a part of my day-to-day professional life.
- Equally, I must learn how to support a patient in their personal life in situations where they are not supported by their family. The emotional implications of being an ANP means that I must learn how to deal with the good and bad sides of people in a calm, professional and caring manner.
- I also hope to overcome my own fears and anxieties of launching into a highly responsible, lifelong career with regard to the various challenges and bureaucracies that I will face.
Measurable Action Plans and Time Frames
- Short-Term Goals (within 6 months)
- Learning how to manage the stress that comes with the job; every day will be difficult and stressful and learning to deal with this quickly will help me to focus on learning the rest of my role.
- Form supportive relationships with co-workers and develop a support network within the workplace.
- Present myself as being consistently enthusiastic, helpful and pro-active within my role which will help to get me recognised by senior members of staff.
- Medium-Term Goals (within 1-2 years)
- Become well-versed in the understanding of common ailments and illnesses. Learn how to treat these effectively, quickly and as non-invasively as possible.
- Learn the common allergies to medication that patients may have and be able to quickly remedy this by knowing the correct alternative treatment route.
- Long-Term Goals (with 5 years)
- Become an Adult Practitioner Nurse through consistent hard work and goal-keeping.
- Become a strong, competent leader to provides their team with a strong role model in terms of the correct values and behaviors (Hamric, Spross & Hudson, 2009).
Measurable Strategies for Achieving my Objectives
- I intend to improve upon my relations with co-workers and patients alike by listening carefully (Bradshaw 1996), and providing the apt support. This could be helping the patient with their specific needs or providing the correct medical information so that the patient’s care can continue unabated.
- Regularly revise my medical knowledge and keep up to date by reading medical journals. This will help me to be readily able to provide advice, alternative treatments and to also recognise and diagnose symptoms more efficiently.
- Develop my leadership skills by seizing team-leading opportunities whenever they come along.
- Become involved with the social side of the nursing team and get to know my co-workers: this will help us to work better together and will allow us to lean on one another for support when it’s needed.
