N 479 Professional Development Grid/Plan

Name: Tiffany Garcia

Date: 11/25/2015

In 3-5 years I see myself

working at the VA on a Medical/Surgical unit and going back to school to become a nurse practitioner

Area

Strengths

Direct
Patient Care
Leadership

-Effective communication
skills
-Effective teaching skills
-Patient advocacy
-Collaboration skills

Unit Related
Leadership

-Ability to be flexible
-Fast learner
-Some experience
shadowing leaders
-Some leadership qualities

Weakness/ Opportunity for

Improvement
-Lack in confidence based on
limited clinical experience
-Time management (checking
orders)

-Lack of leadership experience

-Lack of confidence in
leadership role

Strategy: Make an
organizational sheet and
update based on needs. Use
this sheet to establish a
routine.
Goal: Gain leadership
experience
Strategy: Shadow the charge
nurse and other leaders on the
unit

Professional
Nursing
Development
:
Organization
s,
Journals/
Certifications

N 479
Book
Selection

Short term goals/ strategies

Present-2years
Goal: Improve in my time
management skills

Goal: Get Advanced

Cardiovascular Life Support
(ACLS) training
Goal: Get electrocardiogram
(EKG) certification
Strategies: Take the classes
required to get the
certifications
The book that I chose
was: The Gifts of
Imperfection: Let Go of

-Self doubt about

imperfections
I sometimes have issues with
needing to be perfect. This

Long term goals/ strategies

3-5 years
Goal: Become confident in
my ability to provide
competent nursing care to my
patients
Strategy: Gain as much
exposure in the clinical
setting and use this to gain
experience and knowledge to
become competent
Goal: Become a charge
nurse and work toward
becoming a nurse manager
Strategy: Practice and
improve in leadership skills.
Use clinical experience and
evidence based research to
guide decision-making.
Goals: Obtain
Gerontological Nursing
Certification
Strategy: Work to obtain
clinical requirements needed
for the certification

(based on
strengths and
weaknesses)
The book that
I chose was:
The Gifts of
Imperfection:
Let Go of
Who You
Think Youre
Supposed to
Be and
Embrace Who
you Are by
Brene Brown.

Who You Think Youre

Supposed to Be and
Embrace Who you Are by
Brene Brown.
-Resiliency
I believe that I have a
purpose in life and that I
can get through obstacles.
This allows me to live my
life in a positive way. The
book discusses the
importance of living
wholehearted and loving
ones imperfections
(Brown, 2010). Resiliency
is a part of this.
-Understanding my
limits
I understand that I cannot
accomplish everything in
one sitting. I take breaks
often and then come back
when I have recharged.
The book discusses the
importance of not pushing
through stuff because no
one can do everything
(Brown, 2010). This is a
strength that I have
because I accomplish
things more effectively
without getting burned
out.

Leadership
Shadowing
Experience

-Shadowing a person in a
leadership role
-Gained exposure to
qualities that a leader

book has taught me that

perfection is not real and that it
leads to anxiety, depression,
and guilt when one does not
live up to expectations (Brown,
2010). This is something that I
need to work on because it will
allow me to accept who I am
and live a positive life.
-Having a need to fit in
I always worry about fitting in
and wonder if I am good
enough. This causes me to act
differently when I am around
others. The book talks about
authentic living and how one
needs to accept themselves
(Brown, 2010). Each person is
good enough and others will
accept you for that. I will
incorporate this into my life.

-Charge nurse was in ratio,

which made it difficult to only
see the leadership role
-8 hour shift made it difficult

should have
Professional
Activity/
Community
Service

Education:
Cont. Nrsg.
Educ. and/or
plans for
Higher Educ.
(helping to
get
education)

-Exposure to two different

activities
-Educational opportunity.
The emergency
preparedness course has
allowed me to feel more
prepared in case of an
emergency. The
alternative symptom
management course has
allowed me to incorporate
non-pharmacological
techniques to provide
better symptom control.
- Education driven
-Goal of pursing higher
education

to get a clear picture of the full

role that the charge nurse has
-Did not count as continuing
education
-Limited time frame, 4 hours
for each event did not allow
for a full understanding of the
topics.

- Financial constraints
-Family barriers
-School burnout
-Possible work constraints

Goals: Pass the NCLEX,

obtain a nursing position, gain
experience, learn about
continuing education
opportunities, and find
balance outside of the
hospital.
Strategy: Learn about stress
reduction techniques, stay
focused on goals, and
complete the KAPLAN
review course.

Goals: Go back to school to

become a Nurse Practitioner
(NP)
Strategy: Meet all the
requirements, gain exposure,
apply to a program, and
explore hospital programs
that aid in obtaining NP.