It is important to evaluate ourselves as nurses from time to time. A nurse evaluation will help us learn if we are growing in our career and in our relationships with our coworkers.
Evaluating oneself is not always easy because it requires you to be honest with yourself. We need to ask ourselves some basic questions and be truthful with the answers.
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1. Do you lack some nursing skills?
No nurse can be proficient in everything. There will always be some weak areas. Your weakness may be in a complicated task like running a code or a simple task like calculating a medication dose. It does not mean that you are a bad nurse. It simply means you are human. The good thing about gaining some nursing skills is that once you have identified a weak area, you can work on improving on it.
2. Do you manage your time well?
There is always too much to do and not enough time. One way to evaluate yourself as a nurse is to ask yourself if you are good at prioritizing. Do you spend too much time on tasks that could be done later and ignore more urgent tasks? Time management is important for nurses.
If this is an area that needs attention it can be achieved by trying to focus on more urgent tasks and learning to communicate more with other nurses about what you need to do first. When your colleagues know that you have too much on your plate they may be willing to assist and will be more patient with you. Never feel shy to ask for help. Remember it is all for the good of the patient.
3. Are you a good team player?
Sometimes it can be confusing as to what a good team player really is. Basically, it is someone who is available to assist others when they need help. In return, others will assist you. Some nurses tend to only focus on their own assignment. Always look out for your colleagues. Considering other nurses perspectives on an issue makes one a team player and not always believing that your idea is the best.
4. Are you always motivated?
There are days that you will not really feel motivated. However a positive attitude will always give you more energy. When you are energized, those around you will soon start to feel the same. Positivity can be very infectious.
Evaluating ourselves as nurses will make us see our need to make improvements and start to work on them. The point of nurse evaluation is to take action and change for the better. Five years down the road, when you look at yourself, you will see how far you have come and how much you have grown.