Questions to a second year student nurse

Hello Fiona - Can you start by telling us about using PO in your classes at Nursing Studies at the University of Edinburgh?

Our year was introduced to patient opinion through our courses Evidence and research (avenues of inquiry) and professionalism 1.

We receive notifications about stories potentially relevant to these courses that we can read and reflect upon for theory and practice.

In professionalism PO is a significant tool as we are introduced to the NMC code of conduct and explore what it means to be a professional nurse – some stories were striking and initially we were a bit stunned, about the negative stories especially.

As we got more theory about communication, teamwork and leadership, we were able to pick up on areas that needed improvement and critically assess what was done well at the time and what was not. It began developing our reflective skills in terms of practice, at the time we were preparing for our first acute medical placement.

In Evidence and Research we looked at using patient opinion as an avenue of inquiry, we’re frequently told to be evidence-lead in practice and theory, and that the NHS will be service-user driven. PO helped us to appreciate what this meant in terms of person-centred care, that they’ll drive the research too, and we need to involve and empower everyone for evidence informed practice.

What are the feelings and thoughts when you read and reflect on the stories?

The positive stories evoked delight in our class, and reassurance, we feel that the positive aspects of care described by patients and their relatives restored the damage imposed on us as new students by negative mass media and gave us confidence.

The positive aspects taught us what mattered to people and encouraged us that our career could be extremely rewarding provided listen to what service users. We are able to consider the key skills highlighted in positive stories and reflect on why they were beneficial for care. This encourages us to drive to learn and adopt the qualities to become the most caring and compassionate nurses we can be.

The negative stories really did startle us, we found them moving, evoking frustration and anger, it was alarming that important things were missed big and small, impacting on the individual’s wellbeing. From the very start this encouraged us to reflect how situations could be improved, and what we can learn when things go wrong. We were upset by breakdowns of communication especially as it is such an essential skill that we are in the process of developing; it really reinforced impressed on us the importance of listening to everyone and being an effective advocate for your patient.

What has been your key learning using PO?

Good communication with the patient and the multi-disciplinary team is absolutely essential and can’t be overlooked, it is a fundamental of providing the best care possible, this was further reinforced by practice placement experiences I had.

The patient stories evoke emotion and feeling considerably more than a set of statistics does, and as a first year last year this was eye-opening, because the frustration at poor care and the delight at excellent care before even stepping onto a ward was motivating, I was eager make the effort to adopt identified fundamental skills into the care I would give in practice placement

Compassion and understanding are another crucial aspect, so vital to providing care that is person-centred, and asking what can I do to help you? And saying I’m here for you if you need me.

The future of nursing relies on an evidence base from service users, and feedback is so useful in directing research and improving practice, to build an efficient service and create an environment where patients feel at ease and happy as they can be.

What has been the impact on hearing and reflecting on PO stories on your nursing practice?

 I feel the impact of reflection on patient stories and my personal placement experiences has ultimately improved my practice. Reflection allows a real insight into the patient experience, and the views of service users are so valuable in improving health care service experiences. I felt that in class I was made aware of key issues that needed addressing in modern nursing before I even started placement, and this was so helpful because it provided insight to an area that we hadn’t a lot of experience in yet.

My experiences and patient opinion stories have really highlighted to me the benefits of communication in particular, and I always make the effort to have a smile on my face when I’m with anyone, and most importantly I will try to listen, patients can say a lot even in the briefest exchange of words. They teach us what to look out for, they teach us how to deliver care that is person centred.

Now that I’m in second year, I’m so glad to have had the opportunity to use patient opinion so far, and I hope to use it more in the future for learning; and improving and guiding my practice.