Theoretical Foundations for Nursing Roles and Practice

Theoretical Foundations for Nursing Roles and Practice

Nurses interview guideline

It is imperative to have specific markers that will aid in executing an interview for an applicant wishing to be employed as a nurse. This will aid in getting the right person for the job, such that the individual will perform above and beyond the duties assigned to him/her. Education competency is the most vital marker, which should be supplemented by other sources that extend beyond the realm of academia (Gary, 2007). Through out this guide, an example is the interview conducted for a nurse fresh out of college. A point to note is that when hiring a primary care giver in the role of a nurse, experience is a necessity born out of the fear that handing responsibilities to someone fresh from school is seen as a liability than an asset (Foster, 2001).

Interviewee X attended her pre-graduate education from the University of Buffalo. She underwent the rigorous training regime and managed to graduate with excellent credits. She went a step further and specialized in FPN education programs, a prudent step since the advent of specialized advanced nursing roles. After her bachelor's degree, she sat for her national licensing examination (NCLEX-RN). To her credit she managed to answer 260 questions from the test and thus illustrating a sound knowledge on their field. Being a resident of Buffalo; the climate of the land is snowy and with that comes the cold season with reports of hypothermia and other cold related complications; with this fact the interviewee proved much effective in supplementing care given by the physicians. Experience included catering and administering medical care to children who suffered from asthmatic attacks, she also managed a child with acute pneumonia till the child achieves a 100% success rate in fighting the disease. Her experience though limited proved to be knowledgeable on what her scope of operations really is. She got a nursing position as a junior nurse in Erie Community college in the campus dispensary.

Personal tit bits that she intimated that was particular important is the fact that she has a mild case of OCD. This crucial in the fact that she gives meticulous care to her patients thus ensuring that, as a matter of nature, she would leave the patient(s) fully catered for as per the orders given. Her gentle and kind nature proves also effective as she had to bear with the busy life of college students.

At first she thought of applying for a diploma course so as to gain employment before sponsoring for herself to achieve a graduate degree, it became incumbent on her to actually forego the diploma option as with the job situation; she would be underplayed since the graduate nurses would gain first admission. And with that she enrolled in the University of Buffalo nurses training program. The first advantage of applying in this institution is the fact that the admission is competitive and is offered on the foundation of available slots.

There is also a very robust credit transfer program that actually compares the equivalency of the credit transfer. This, therefore, would mean that the students who gained admission, and had a bit of training may continue from where they left off. Admission into the school of nursing is also predicated on the candidates academic performance in several critical subjects like Anatomy and Physiology; this will be the inclusion of a minimum grade C. and; an overall 3.0 GPA. For students to be retained in this program, they must achieve a high academic threshold, which means they must at all times remain above the C+. A fact that the interviewee intimated was the rigorous practical program they were subjected with the nurses being exposed. She was subject to clinic fields as early as when she finished her first year. Extra credit programs were also availed of which she chose to be participating.

Currently the interviewee is a FNP at a local dispensary; she has given credence in caring for pediatric cases that require constant supervision from children with respiratory complications to those with ADD. This is because she lacked adequate experience specifically in the area of pediatrics, of which she found crucial in giving her an all round experience value in her role. The interviewee also presented a case of an autistic child who was very aggressive and withdrawn; above and beyond the norm for patients of autism. She managed to get the child first to start communicating with an I-pad, where the child would communicate through a sequence of pictures and words. She found that the child would be calm after a 20 minute session of listening to Beethoven, after which he drew pictures with less intense shading patterns.

After the rigorous question and answer section, it was her turn to share on her own volition her point-of-view towards the nursing profession. She began by sharing the fact that in her role; it was her submission that they had a close relationship to their patients in ways that physicians only dream. Day by day primary care and follow ups while giving the patients preventive care was a tool in terms of giving the health sector in Buffalo a supplementary relief. She was keen to point out that the nurses need to be given a chance to practice free from constant interruptions and un-needed supervisions that would lead to duplicity of roles, which would be essentially time wasting (Thatcher, 2002). Delegation of roles in the health sector needs to be allocated such that, in future, the scope of practice leads, not into conflicts; she reiterated that the ultimate aim of all the players is provision of quality health care. She gave insights to individuals who are seeking a graduate program to look for one that would challenge them to keep their grades up. The best approach in selecting the best graduate program would involve selection of key principles in balance with clinical practice and accumulated total graduating mark. It was not a matter of the prestige the school had, but relatively on the value of the programs offered.