Self Reflection
Amandeep Singh
1193137
Skills and Competencies I Feel Comfortable With
Communication- I was very comfortable with communicating with resident ,
staff and it helped me a lot as well. For example while doing the care I talked
to the resident and told them what I was going to do. Which helped the
resident feel comfortable and respected. And it was also helpful for me as
they can move a little accordingly and help me do the care. Moreover, by
asking questions to the mentor (CCA) I was able to understand better how to
take care of the resident properly. Furthermore, communication helped me
connect to the residents, which helped me take care of them more
respectfully and not just see taking care of them as a job.
Respect and compassion – I treated every resident with respect and
compassion. There was one resident who was very anxious. She was worried
that someone stole her very precious watch and it was a special gift from her
daughter. I stayed calm and I listened carefully. I reassured the resident and
helped her by looking for her watch which I found in the washroom because
she had a shower that morning and CCA removed it for a while. After finding
it she was very grateful.
Personal care assistance- I became confident with helping the client with
their activities of daily living. From doing care on the mannequins in the lab
to a real person it was really different but doing the care and learning new
things and how to do care properly regularly helped me gain a lot of
confidence. I always encourage residents to do as much as they can
independently while providing support when necessary.
Infection Prevention and Safety- I followed proper hand hygiene during
my placement as well as infection control procedure. For example- I always
washed my hands before and after giving care to the resident. By doing it
every time it became a habit. And I also used personal protective equipment
(PPE) when necessary.
Teamwork- I worked well with CCA,Nurses and other healthcare staff. The
staff have the rotation shift at my placement so I was able to work with
different CCA and Nurses. Which helped me gain confidence in working with
different people. Communication helped a lot whenever I was unsure about
something. I asked questions and accepted feedback. Working as a team
helped me provide safe and quality care to the residents.
Areas I Need to Further Develop
Time Management
Why I need to improve: Some of the time I spend my time completing
tasks one by one because I want to make sure everything is done correctly.
So that made it difficult to stay on schedule some of the time.
How I will improve: I will plan my work at the beginning of the shift.
Organize all the tasks according to priority. And learn how to do this
effectively from the experienced CCA. For example, during my last week I
had a resident with a shower. I started giving her bed bath early which took
time and because of that I was late for all the other residents that I have in
my list and it was time for breakfast. The residents were waiting for their
care. So my CCA mentor told me we can do the shower for a resident at last
because it is time consuming.
Confidence with Mechanical Lifts
Why I need to improve: during our placement, we were not allowed to use
the mechanical lift by ourselves. We have to be with one of the CCA to use
this. Even though we did operate it under their care I still need more
confidence using them independently while ensuring the client’s safety.
How I will improve: I will ask for more supervised practice during my
second placement and review the facility safe lifting procedures.
Documentation
Why I need to improve: I understand the importance of documenting the
care of the resident but I would like to become faster and more confident
with this by recording the information accurately.
How will I improve: I will continuously practice documentation of the
scenarios and practice again the documenting I did in placement. I will watch
proper videos on this, ask my teacher to give me their feedback, and I will
review the example of proper charting.
Dementia Care
Why I need to improve: some of the people who, as dementia, showed
behavior that were new to me. I want to better understand how to respond
calmly and effectively. For example repeating the same thing on repeat and
and when you answer them they still repeat the same thing.
How will I improve this: I will continue learning dementia care, observe
the experienced staff like how they do the care and how they deal with this.
Practice communication techniques that help in reducing confusion and
anxiety while keeping in my mind they are suffering through this.
Building confidence in new situations
Why I need to improve: At the beginning of this placement, I sometimes
felt nervous when I had to do the new tasks because I wanted to make sure I
was providing safe care to them.
How I will improve: I will continuously ask questions, practice my skills
regularly, and accept feedback. And reflect on my experiences after each
shift.
Overall reflection
My practicum really helped me a lot by providing me knowledge and by
helping me with becoming more confident as a CCA. I learned that becoming
a CCA is more than just doing the work. It requires compassion,
communication, patience, and teamwork. I am proud of the knowledge I
gained and how I was helpful to the residents and also aware that I need to
improve in some areas. Improving my time management, documentation,
mechanical lift skills, dementia care, and confidence will help me become a
more competent CCA. I will continue to practise these skills and work on this
by getting better at it by asking the right questions and seeking feedback. I
will use every opportunity to improve.