- Reflecting back on my SMART goals, I took the semester and broke it down by each exam and focused on one exam and content at a time. I feel that this method worked well and helped me to feel less overwhelmed. I used my individual performance profiles to improve my outcomes by looking at what my weaknesses were in, I also started breaking down each test into 10 questions at a time. After completing 10 test questions I would take a couple deep breaths and start again, it just seemed more manageable to do 10 questions at a time than 60/70 or more all at once. I would say that the biggest difference throughout the semester is that I approached exams in a calmer manner because of this system.
- I used a variety of methods to prepare for safe practice when identifying my content gaps such as the ATI remediation worksheets, reviewing class power points or looking up a nursing video of the specific content. Another thing that I did was continue to take more ATI exams to determine if I was improving on those content gaps. There were not any differences in this instance.
- A self-care strategy that I implemented to better prepare for licensure and practice was better time management and preparation skills. I found that by taking some time to prepare for class, help me get a better learning experience during class. I plan to take that into the nursing profession simply by taking a little bit of time at the start of my day to assess and go through patient charts to establish my priorities and timeline for the day. I was very good at accomplishing this throughout the entire semester.
- I will continue the above things in professional practice one day and I think that it is important to recognize all of the other skills that I will learn in order to practice in a smoother manner. There are a lot of things that are learned and brought on from nursing school, but I also look forward to learning on the job as well.
