Social network map analysis and structure

Social network mapping is one of the important aspects of an individual’s professional development in his/her career. Creating a social network map is important for professionals in clinical practice because clinical practitioners are increasingly realizing the significance of informal social support in their practice (Tracy & Whittaker, 1990). In essence, analysis of social support resources is necessary in identifying routine practices and assessment that are clinically beneficial. Consequently, several social network mapping techniques have been developed to help an individual assess his/her social and environmental resources (Tracy & Abell, 1994). Social network maps gather information regarding an individual’s social network in terms of size and composition, relationships, and frequency of contacts with others. This paper provides my social network map in relation to my clinical practice. It is divided into three major segments i.e. field work, map creation, and a portfolio.

Field Work

I am currently working as a registered nurse in a trauma hospital, which comprises different healthcare practitioners. As a registered nurse in this facility, my daily role involves dealing with trauma patients who visit the hospital’s emergency room or intensive care unit for a variety of reasons. In essence, my clinical practice in the trauma hospital revolves around dealing with critically ill patients who suffer from traumatic injuries. The traumatic injuries emanate from a wide range of factors including falls, car accidents or assaults. Therefore, these patients have different kinds of injuries including brain injury, internal bleeding, and fractures in different parts of the body. Given the nature of healthcare needs of trauma patients, a multidisciplinary team works toward meeting these needs by providing timely, high-quality healthcare services to patients depending on their condition.

As part of a multidisciplinary team, my role at the trauma hospital entails working with different kinds of healthcare practitioners. During this process I communicate with different members of the multidisciplinary team to provide care services to patients. For this assignment, I used a three-day sample of my contacts in the trauma hospital to create a social map. The three-day data collection period reflected my typical periods of work as a registered nurse in the hospital. I worked and communicated with a small group of 10 people or members of the multidisciplinary team. I communicated and worked with trauma doctor, respiratory therapist, cardiologist, lab technicians, the charge nurse, and other clinicians (nurses) in each of the three-day data collection period.

My work at the trauma hospital is a typical 8-hour shift that begins by ensuring that trauma rooms have the required medical equipment and supplies. Upon the arrival of the patient in the trauma room, I work with the other members of the multidisciplinary team to stabilize him/her as quickly as possible. Once the patient has stabilized and required additional medical attention, I work with the team to facilitate his/her transfer to the intensive care unit. I also work with the team to document every aspect of patient care depending on his/her healthcare needs and condition. While my work sometimes differs depending on the patient’s condition and needs, my typical day still entails working with the different members of the multidisciplinary team.

Map Creation

As previously mentioned, the creation of my social network map involved data collection for a three-day period. The three-day data collection period enabled me to determine how my typical day as a registered nurse at the trauma hospital looks like. I defined contact or communication with the 10 members of the multidisciplinary team as phone conversations and text messages as well as face-to-face communication. I did not include email messages since I rarely use emails to communicate with my colleagues during patient care delivery. My job requires more face-to-face communication with the other members of the multidisciplinary team. Additionally, we tend to engage in phone conversations and text messages as we carry out our work, which implies that emails are not commonly used. Therefore, contact with members of the multidisciplinary team during patient care delivery does not include emails and other forms of communication.

The social network map, which is provided in the next segment of this paper, involves the use of titles for the different nodes. In this case, I avoided using the real names of these individuals, but titles for the nodes. I also used different lines to demonstrate the different kinds of relationships or contacts I have with these people. First, the solid lines reflect individuals I have direct contact with on a daily basis as I carry out my work. Secondly, I used dotted lines, which signifies individuals I have indirect contact with, but provide the context for my direct contacts and relationships with the others. Additionally, I used dotted lines to show individuals who have direct contact with each other and play a critical role in my work as a registered nurse in the trauma hospital. Finally, the type of contacts with these individuals were two-way conversations that focused on delivery of quality patient care.

Portfolio

The Sociogram

The social network map that reflects my daily communication and contacts with others as we provide care services to trauma patients is in the form of a sociogram. According to Jones (2006), a sociogram is a graphic illustration of an individual’s social network. Social network analysis has traditionally entailed the creation of visual representations of the relations between individuals (Hogan, Carrasco & Wellman, 2007). The sociogram in Figure 1 is a visual representation of a social network in my work as a registered nurse at a trauma hospital.


Trauma Physician
Lab Technician
Perioperative Nurse
Clinical Nurse Specialist
Charge Nurse
Cardiologist
Clinical Nurse Leader
Advanced Practice Nurse
Trauma Center Staff

Explanation

The node at the center in Figure 1 above that is labeled “ME” reflects my central position in this social network. As previously indicated, I have utilized different colors, shapes, and lines to represent the different kinds of individuals in the social network and the kind of contacts between them. The solid lines from the central node labeled “ME” indicates that I have direct contacts with these healthcare practitioners more than others. For instance, in my clinical practice, I have direct communication/contact with trauma physician, acute care nurse, perioperative (surgical) nurse, cardiologist, and lab technician. My direct contact with these professionals is attributable to the direct role they play in providing care services to trauma patients who visit the hospital. While the other members of the team play a crucial role in patient care delivery, their role revolves around collaboration with the five team members (i.e. trauma physician, acute care nurse, cardiologist, lab technician, and perioperative nurse) who are more directly involved with patients.

The outer quadrant in Figure 1 represents members of the multidisciplinary team who are not necessarily directly involved with patients, but play vital roles in patient care delivery at the hospital. These individuals have indirect link with each other that is independent of my contact with them. The dotted red lines represent the indirect link or contact between these healthcare practitioners, independent of my contact with them. However, these practitioners (i.e. clinical nurse specialist, clinical nurse leader, advanced practice nurse, charge nurse, and trauma center staff) have two way exchanges with the other practitioners. As shown in the arrows, these individuals have two-way communication with some of the other members of this multidisciplinary team. For example, the clinical nurse leader and clinical nurse specialist have two way exchanges with trauma physician. The two-way communication provides the context for indirect link between these healthcare practitioners and their involvement in the patient care delivery processes.

Discussion

The opportunity to create my social network has helped to realize the value and significance of social network analysis in the nursing field. This task has enabled me to learn how to and the importance of creative a visual and quantitative analysis of work relationships as part of enhancing my professional growth and development (Benton, 2015). Through this process, I have learned how I can use the social network analysis of my work relationships to evaluate and strengthen my role as a nurse in delivery of patient care services.

Prior to creating this social network map, I did not realize the extent of my contacts and relationships with the other members of the multidisciplinary team. The task has helped me realize that my work as a trauma nurse is characterized by relatively complex relationships with members of the multidisciplinary team. I have realized that I am closely connected to some members of this team and loosely connected with others that I initially thought. For instance, I have realized that I am closely connected to the trauma physician than the charge nurse. I initially thought that I had close connections and contact with every member of the multidisciplinary team until I completed this task.

After analyzing the social network map, I have realized that my professional network has relatively minimal direct relationships/contact and a lot of interconnected relationships. The type of contact between individuals in this team is influenced and dependent on their extent with which they are directly involved in patient care delivery. For example, my direct contact with trauma physician is attributable to the direct role he/she plays in providing care to trauma patients as compared to the charge nurse. Therefore, I could use this network to enhance my efficiency and effectiveness in decision making during care delivery (Chambers et al., 2012). I could enhance my role in the team through establishing direct contact and relationships with professionals in the outer quadrant of my social network.

In conclusion, social network mapping is an important process that helps in promoting professional growth and development through providing insights regarding relationships and contacts in the workplace. Social network mapping involves the creation of a sociogram, which is a visual representation of relations or contacts between individuals. By completing this task, I have realized that my social network comprises minimal direct contact with some members of the multidisciplinary care team and more interconnected relationships.

References

Benton, D.C. (2015, March). Mapping and Changing Informal Nurse Leadership Communication Pathways in a Health System. Asian Nursing Research, 9(1), 28-34.

Chambers, D., Wilson, P., Thompson, C. & Harden, M. (2012, August 3). Social Network Analysis in Healthcare Settings: A Systematic Scoping Review. PLOS One, 7(8). Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3411695/

Hogan, B., Carrasco, J.A. & Wellman, B. (2007, May). Visualizing Personal Networks: Working with Participant-aided Sociograms. Field Methods, 19(2), 116-144.

Jones, D. (2006, December). Sociometry and Social Network Analysis: Applications and Implications. ANZPA Journal, 15, 77-85.

Tracy, E.M. & Anell, N. (1994, March). Social Network Map: Some Further Refinements on Administration. Social Work Research, 18(1), 56-60.

Tracy, E.M. & Whittaker, J.K. (1990). The Social Network Map: Assessing Social Support in Clinical Practice. Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Human Services, 71(8), 461-470.