Workplace Learning Experiences - Personal Statement Example

Running Head: LEARNING JOURNAL OF WORKPLACE LEARNING Learning Journal of Workplace Learning Name Institution Background and Setting Parramatta Nursing Home is a professionally established centre set up to care for the aged persons in the society and people suffering from a brain condition medically referred to as Dementia. Each of these two major sections is properly equipped to meet the escalating demand for the rendered services. The setting of the Nursing Home close to the centre of the town places it a in a strategic position to access the patients and aged people (Alber, 1996). Accessibility to the home has been simplified by an elaborate transport division. The Dementia and Age care sections are adequately spacious to cater for over three hundred and fifty patients. The Dementia section is further subdivided into different units based on gender and severity of the condition. Severe cases need more specialized attention and thus may stay longer at the unit compared to others. A striking relationship between ageing and Dementia is that a person stands a higher risk of the disease as age advances. A person suffering from Dementia is not only forgetful but also suffers impaired in brain coordination, disjointed reasoning and communication breakdown (Launer, 2005). These patients need close monitoring and assistance since their disorder may be disastrous if left unchecked. A lot of patience and understanding is needed in handling them since they are emotionally fragile and get irritated at the slightest provocation and take long to get over a depressing moment. On the other hand, the Age care section is set in such a manner as to address the needs of the elderly in full. The aged persons equally need a closer attention since they can not perform more involving tasks on their own and thus need help at various instances. The number of elderly women is slightly higher than their male counterparts but both male and female need cared for to have a comfortable life in old age. Work Experiences Working in Paramatta Nursing Home has greatly bolstered my experience in dealing with both the aged people and dementia patients with an understanding. It come to my notice that people suffering from this disorder are quite skeptical and tend to forget the care giver quite easily. This experience therefore meant that I spent a good amount of time with them to maintain a working relationship so as to effectively take care of them without appearing to be a stranger to them (Launer, 2005). Most patients in the home had a poor memory. They could not remember meal times and would likely skip the meal if left unattended. At times, some would demand to eat even an hour after having a meal. My experience with these patients revealed that they get emotional at the slightest provocation and are highly irritable especially if they are not understood (Lindsay, 1997). Having comprehended this fact, I endeavored empathize with them and try as much as I could to attend to their needs satisfactorily. Owing to the fact that patients suffering are mostly aged and peculiarly forgetful, close monitoring of all their activities was mandatory. I actively took part in their personal hygiene to ensure they bathe and groom appropriately. Ensuring that they enjoy their leisure time through appropriate entertainment was very critical to keep them out of a likely depression. We played together and watched television at times to keep their minds engaged. Administration of drugs and therapies was perhaps the most challenging task I engaged in at the Dementia section. The patients are quite adamant to taking medicine and offer a lot of resistance to drug therapies (Launer, 2005). Again, the drugs meant to improve cognitive abilities have their own side effects to the patients such as nausea and dizziness. Patience and understanding played a key role in caring for Dementia patients. Taking care of the aged was an equally telling experience. Unlike Dementia patients who suffer loss of memory and get easily irritated, the elderly persons are a little more stable in their cognitive abilities since they recall events and have a sound judgment. However, the elderly at times portray child-like behavioral characteristics and need tolerance from the care giver to take care of them (Alber, 1996). At times they are too nagging and also get affected emotionally when reprimanded or left unattended to. Given the unique features of the aged persons in the Nursing Home, it becomes clear to me about the kind of service to be rendered to them. Spending time with them at most times of need proved fruitful in caring for these elderly people. I tried as much as I could to have time to listen to them and be of assistance to them. Most old people in the home were very inquisitive and at times stubborn. Some of them shy away from responsibility and want literally everything done for them. It is imperative to note that advancing age come with its own complications. These complications ranged from a failing sight, hearing impairment, weakening bones and joints which seriously affect them both physically and emotionally (Alber, 1996). As a care giver therefore, I strived to stand with them during this tumultuous moment and be an encouragement to them not to give up. Further, these aged persons were prone to ailments requiring timely medical attention and I was keen to take note of such cases. In order to make them feel loved and comfortable, I spent a good time with them helping them to bath and dress up. We played together and helped each other as well as we could. For those who were on medication, I took it upon myself to ensure they take the right dose at the prescribed times. My Reflections on Experiences Being posted at Paramatta Nursing home has immensely contributed to my understanding of social healthcare concerns especially among the aged and people suffering from Dementia. The posting has offered me a unique learning experience and gone a long way in strengthening my resolve of advancing a care in health and social care with an aim coming up with a related establishment to care for the needy in society. Concerning Dementia, I had a personal interaction with the patients and appreciated that they are neither a burden to society or a social misfit but an integral part that put our concern for others into practice (Launer, 2005). Despite the fact that they have a dysfunctional cognitive ability leading to their peculiar forgetfulness, Dementia patients are easy to get along with provided you show care, demonstrate patience and handle them with an understanding. On the other hand, the aged persons are too a group to be celebrated and not tolerated. Whereas most young people view them as too demanding and burdensome, the aged persons posses an invaluable package of wisdom and counsel only if they are well taken care of and given a chance to express themselves (Hacker, 2002). Working with the aged has been truly beneficial to my learning placement in Paramatta. Key lessons were also drawn from the setting of the entire home. Given its centrality in the region, the setting of the home provides the favorable environment to effectively handle the aged person and patients suffering from Dementia. The arrangement of the sections and equipment sets the right mood to accommodate the groups in question. The rooms are set in such a way that makes the inhabitants to easily identify with. Staff quarters have been built in such a way that they can be accessed and health care givers can closely monitor the patients and aged persons without inconveniencies (Boyd & Jenny, 2003). The people working in the Nursing Home are truly suited for their tasks. They exercise their chores in a manner that leaves all patients satisfied, wanted and appreciated in the society. A working combination of practitioners, health care givers, matrons and specialized care givers form the recipe for running Paramatta Nursing home. The staffs of the Nursing home demonstrate a high degree of experience in handling Dementia patients and the aged persons in a way that I gladly emulated (Campbell, 2003). In my own analysis, placement at Paramatta Nursing home was a timely initiative that has indeed proved worthy in assimilating theoretical knowledge into their practical aspects (Dietz, 1998). My professional skills and capabilities have been appropriately put to test and I must appreciate the progress made at the home pertaining my career and interests in social health care. My stay at Paramatta Nursing home has indeed provided a perfect link between my knowledge and skills with their practical applications. Reflective comments Following such an elaborate learning session while on placement in Paramatta Nursing Home, there are a few issues worth consideration by the Health care body. The key issues to be considered include laying emphasis on practical aspects of a health course; organizing specialized training to handle the various cases in society; encouraging research in diverse health issues and carrying out evaluation at satisfactory periods (Boud, 1993). Having had a very enriching placement, I have learnt the importance of practical engagement in the health care profession and would strongly recommend a pragmatic approach whereby students spend more time in the field to directly encounter the issues taught theoretically. It is imperative to consider extending the time spent on placement so as to put the acquired class knowledge to use. Further I have come to an understanding that specialized training on the various health care needs in the society would be very instrumental in quality service delivery to the clients. the field of social healthcare is quite large and thus a single trained health care giver may not efficiently take of all the health care needs of the clients. Specialized training will thus equip the care giver to effectively handle the clients (Cammisa, 1995). Other key aspects necessary for development in the health care include research and evaluation of accomplishment. Research in the various health fields is quite fundamental in coming up with a policy to help improve service delivery. Another important consideration is evaluation which provides the checks for the work done and highlights areas that need some reinforcement for better services (Boud, 1993). Future Plans Based upon my learning, I purpose to advance a career in Health and Social Care and further venture into research on a specific aspect especially on Dementia. These outcomes emphasize my understanding of the course and interest in the same. Since not so many people are keen on social care as a career option, I will endeavor to spread the ideas to like minded people and perhaps stir up the urge for the same. Reflective thinking has been an important aspect during my placement and I recommend its adoption in curriculum (Dietz, 1998). References Alber, Jens. (1996). The debate about long-term care reform in Germany. In Patrick Hennessy (Ed.), Caring for frail elderly people: Policies in evolution (pp. 261-278). Paris: Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Launer, L.J. (2005). The epidemiologic study of dementia: a life-long quest, Neurobiol Aging 26,335-40. Dietz, M.E. (1998). Responses as Frameworks for Change. Victoria: Australia. Hawker Brownlow Education Boud, D. (Ed.). (1993). Using experience for learning. Bristol, PA: Open Univeristy Press. Boyd, Donald J., & Jenny, NicholasW. (2003). State fiscal crisis far worse than economy would Suggest. Rockefeller Institute State Fiscal News, 3(4), 1-5 Cammisa, A. (1995). Governments as interest groups: Intergovernmental lobbying and the federal system. Westport, CT: Praeger. Campbell, A. (2003). How policies make citizens: Senior political activism and the American welfare state. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Hacker, Jacob S. (2002). The divided welfare state: The battle over public and private social benefits in the United States. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. Lindsay, J. (1997). The Canadian Study of Health and Aging: Risk factors for vascular dementia. Stroke, 28,526-30. Read More