Communication is a Personal Attribute and a Learned Skill
Personal communication style reflects an individual’s character and level of professional education. In general, I try to communicate with people respectfully and expect the same attitude from myself. My communication style may often vary depending on my confidence, which fluctuates depending on my accomplishments. If I am entirely sure about my knowledge in the discussion area, I communicate all my thoughts clearly. However, if I do not feel confident, my communication becomes reserved. Lack of confidence can significantly affect the way a person communicates with others. A person can acquire confidence in interpersonal communication through continuous practice. Therefore, I try to gain knowledge and skills to become competent in my field, and my daily routines include learning and practicing confident communication.
Competence and Continuing Competence in Nursing.
Clinical practice requires nurses to have the competence to work with different patients under various circumstances. Nursing competence is a combined concept that can be defined as someone’s ability to apply knowledge and skills to deliver appropriate professional patient-centered care (Fukada, 2018). Nurses need to communicate effectively with patients and colleagues because good collaboration is the key to providing proper care to patients. However, competence among nurses may vary with years of clinical experience. Continuing competence is gained with more extended nursing practice experience, but there is a difference between competence and continuous competence, which does not only depend on years of practice. Additional attributes of continuous nursing practice are making quick clinical decisions addressing patients’ needs under any difficult circumstances (Fukada, 2018). In continuous competence, nurses do not only have substantial knowledge and skills to provide quality care to patients, but they also have enough experience to make ethical decisions in a patient’s best interests. Nursing competence itself is an essential attribute of delivering high-quality patient care. Continuous nursing competence, built upon years of clinical experience and constant training, became the natural outcome of years of clinical practice.
Reference
Fukada, M. (2018). Nursing competency: Definition, structure and development. Yonago Acta Medica, 61(1), 1–7. Web.