As a nurse educator, I picked Benner’s theory because it focuses on how a novice nurse’s learning process could lead to the care provider becoming more experienced. Innovative ways of knowledge sharing are built on the basis of expert interventions founded on clinical competencies (Smith et al., 2021). Therefore, Benner’s theory can be utilized to resolve clinical issues of varying complexity.
The concern that I would like to cover within the framework of this paper is the need to address the differences between novice and experienced nurses in the times of caring for patients with COVID-19. The unprecedented spread of the pandemic made it central for clinical care teams around the globe to be able to systematize and share knowledge quickly (Dowling et al., 2022). Today, expert opinions can be perceived as a high-demand service that might be helpful when aiding patients in overcoming the effects of the pandemic. The growing amount of emerging clinical evidence generates anxiety among both novice and experienced nurses, so there have to be new strategies to disseminate knowledge and provide quality care.
In order to resolve the issue, care providers should implement Benner’s theory in a way that would address patients’ urgent needs and prioritize them on the basis of evidence collected by providers. In other words, interprofessional teams should set up communication networks to share new insights immediately and turn novice providers into experts much quicker than before the pandemic (Smith et al., 2021). Patients should also be educated on the subject in order to prevent negative health outcomes that can be associated with self-care.
My philosophy of nursing is based on the idea that knowledge and experience have to be shared among care providers and patients in order to facilitate the treatment process. I am sure that Benner’s theory is in line with my philosophy of nursing because the need to build connections drives both of them. There have to be more healthcare professionals willing to share evidence-based knowledge and ensure that scenarios similar to the COVID-19 pandemic will be curbed more rapidly in the future.
References
Dowling, L., Wilson, J., Echols, J. D., Burke, S., & Hills, J. (2022). Nursing theory and burn competency training practices to address gaps in post-COVID trained graduate nurses. Journal of Burn Care & Research, 43(Supplement_1), S69-S69. Web.
Smith, S. M., Buckner, M., Jessee, M. A., Robbins, V., Horst, T., & Ivory, C. H. (2021). Impact of COVID-19 on new graduate nurses’ transition to practice: Loss or gain? Nurse Educator, 46(4), 209-214. Web.