Communcation.... Blarg. This is not my favorite class, I am sorry to say. It starts at 8 (instead of the usual 9:00 for the rest of the classes) and runs until 5 (instead of the usual 4:00). I know I shouldn't complain...
Anyways, we lectured on teaching -- different learning styles and how best to present information to each style, as well as developmental considerations (i.e. older adults require more time to process information; children do better with teaching through play).
Also, we learned about special needs--how to assess if someone has special needs and how best to teach someone with those needs.
Unfortunately, I missed a big chunk of this lecture, because I had to go to the VA hospital to begin the process of getting my badge. I spent an hour away from class total in order to spend 10 minutes with the person processing information. Needless to say, I was slightly frustrated about that. But, flexibility in nursing is what they teach us! So, flexibility I must have!
Following lunch, we changed gears a bit, talking about the standardized patient activity we're going to do. We have to record a conversation with a patient and determine our therapeutic techniques as well as our blocks, and what nonverbal communication was exchanged. Scary, because sometimes I can't remember what I talked about five minutes prior to when I'm thinking.... I can usually trace back but I am worried about having to remember every detail.
Then, we spent about 45 minutes focusing on how to interpret the nurse's thoughts and the nurse's feelings. The professor (who hasn't been teaching for many years) fixated on the word "THAT". After we do this conversation with a standardized patient, we are supposed to write down what was said, what techniques were used, and then interpret our feelings as well as the patient's. Her concern is that we distinguish feelings and thoughts.
Where she got flustered was trying to explain that if we say "I felt THAT", the "that" is an indication that it's not a feeling, it's a thought. If that doesn't make sense, don't worry--it really doesn't. What she was TRYING to get at is if someone says "I felt" followed by the word "that", it's probably a thought, versus saying "I felt" followed by an emotion (i.e. happy, sad, exasperated, etc.), which would be a feeling. She spent a good long time confusing the class about this; actually, if I'm honest, most people tuned her out after about 5 or 10 minutes (myself included).
So, her first lecture after not teaching for many years didn't go so well. I halfway wish my appointment time for the VA stuff would have been later in the day....
The last part of the day, though, was awesome. We got to simulate special needs and then do discharge teaching. So, I wore cataract goggles and earplugs to simulate visual and auditory deficits. I then had to repeat back how much medication I was to take, when my next appointment was, what my activity and diet restrictions are, and sign the discharge plan with those deficits. Wow... cataracts suck... I was dizzy after a few minutes of wearing those.
Then, I had to walk my partner through the same discharge plan and teaching while she was wearing hearing plugs and glaucoma goggles. Hehe, she could see more clearly than I could, but she had no peripheral vision. It was pretty fun and enlightening!
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