Post graduate CNA521 Contemporary Neonatal Intensive Care Nursing Practice: journal entry—clinical practice episode
Developed by Patricia Bromley and Moira Cordiner
The criteria were developed to reflect the learning outcomes and the requirements of the task. The learning outcomes (see table below) will need a few small changes
to align more explicitly with these criteria, for example, they need to include personal and professional growth as these are part of one of the criteria.
Synopsis of the task and its context
This second task, weighted 30%, is for a fully online unit for practising nurses in neonatal intensive care. It comprises three separate, equally-weighted reflective
journal entries. For each entry of two to three pages (up to 500 words), students write in the first person about a challenging clinical episode from their own practice
in caring for neonates and their families. These entries must at all times maintain confidentiality of the ‘players’ in the episodes. The purpose of the task is twofold.
The first is to emphasise the importance of the Australian College of Neonatal Nurses Competency Standards (2007) which are set out in four domains that are
further split into elements and performance indicators. Students are assessed on the first three of the ACNN Competency Domains. Students are required to select
episodes so that each focuses predominantly on the elements of one domain only: the first episode is to be in the domain of Family Centred Care; the second in
Clinical Practice; and the third in Leadership and Teamwork. The second purpose of the task requires students to reflect on these episodes in terms of their personal
and professional growth, and to ‘research’* further information from different sources to improve their developing clinical knowledge and skills. Students are
provided with a practical model (from the literature) for how to undertake a structured reflection, together with an example by Patricia of a real episode she
experienced.
Match between learning outcomes and criteria for the task
Learning outcomes
Task-specific criteria
On completion of this unit, you should be able to:
To do this task, you:
1. demonstrate and apply theoretical and practical knowledge of anatomy, physiology
and pathophysiology through advanced clinical assessment and problem solving skills.
2. evaluate contemporary neonatal nursing practices through analysis and synthesis of
evidence-based literature.
3. demonstrate the qualities of a reflective practitioner by critically reflecting on the
assumptions that underpin professional practice through the lenses of self, peers and
literature
reflect on a clinical practice episode:
 background (description & significance)
 reflection (personal growth)
 outcomes (professional growth)
4. communicate orally with peers and in a team (including colleagues from other
professions), and independently in writing
communicate in academic writing:
 expression and English conventions (spelling, punctuation, grammar)
 ‘research’ information
 referencing
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Student name
Student number
Journal entry about a clinical practice episode
criteria
HD
DN
In your journal entry you:
Reflect on a clinical
practice episode:
 background
(description &
significance)
 reflection (personal
growth)
 outcomes
(professional
growth)
 provided a background of the
episode with:
 a description that:
 correctly related your actions to
the relevant Domain Elements
 was a detailed and thorough
recollection that gave the reader
a holistic view
 a perceptive explanation of what
had the most significance for the
baby and/or the family and why
 objectively (mentally ‘stood back’)
and insightfully reflected on your
personal growth from the episode,
through ‘sensemaking’:
 thoroughly analysing it by
identifying and explaining your
thoughts and feelings generated
during and/or after the episode
 making an evaluation of how
much significance the episode
had for you personally, by:
 judging the extent to which your
knowledge, values,
assumptions, and/or beliefs
were affected
briefly outlined an action plan for your
professional growth by:
 identifying your immediate
learning needs from your
reflection, to ‘research’* specific
and contemporary information,
focussing on the key aspects of
the episode
CR
In your journal entry you:
PP
In your journal entry you:
 provided a background of the
episode with:
 a description that:
 correctly related your actions to
the relevant Domain Elements
 was a detailed and thorough
recollection
 provided a background of the
episode with:
a description that:
 correctly related your actions to
the relevant Domain Elements
 was a partly detailed
recollection
 an explanation of what had the
most significance for the baby
and/or the family and why
 an explanation of what had
significance for the baby and/or
the family and why
 objectively (mentally ‘stood back’)
reflected on your personal growth
from the episode, through
‘sensemaking’ by:
 you subjectively reflected on your
personal growth from the episode,
through preliminary ‘sensemaking’:
 thoroughly analysing it by
identifying and explaining your
thoughts and feelings generated
during and/or after the episode
 making an evaluation of how
much significance the episode
had for you personally, by:
 exploring how your knowledge,
values, assumptions, and/or
beliefs were affected
briefly outlined an action plan for your
professional growth by:
 identifying your immediate
learning needs from your
reflection, to ‘research’* specific
and mostly contemporary
information about the episode
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analysing it by identifying and
explaining your thoughts and
feelings generated during and/or
after the episode
 making an evaluation of how
much significance the episode
had for you personally by:
 stating whether your
knowledge, values,
assumptions, and/or beliefs
were affected
briefly outlined an action plan for your
professional growth by:
 identifying some learning needs
from your reflection, to ‘research’*
contemporary and relevant and
information about the episode
In your journal entry you:
 provided a background of the
episode with:
an outline that:
 correctly identified the relevant
Domain Standard/s
 was a simple list of events
 a statement that there was
significance for the baby and/or
the family
 you partially reflected on your
personal growth from the episode
through:
 identifying your thoughts and
feelings generated during and/or
after the episode
 making a broad evaluation of how
much significance the episode
had for you personally
briefly outlined an action plan for your
professional growth by:
 identifying some general learning
needs from your reflection, to
‘research’* contemporary and
relevant information about the
episode
Student name
Student number
Journal entry about a clinical practice episode
criteria
Communicate in
academic writing:
 expression and
English
conventions
(spelling,
punctuation,
grammar)
 ‘research’
information
 referencing
Comments
HD
DN
CR
 explaining how you would
successfully use this new
knowledge and/or skills to guide
your clinical practice
 consistently communicated:
 explaining how you would
successfully use this new
knowledge and/or skills to guide
your clinical practice
 predominantly communicated
PP
 explaining how you would use
this new knowledge and/or skills
in your clinical practice
 communicated
 stating that this new knowledge
and/or skills would be used in
clinical practice
 communicated
 by maintaining confidentiality of families in your care, hospital, ward, clinicians, colleagues etc
 in fluent academic writing by:
 in fluent academic writing by:
 using coherent, concise and cohesive expression by adhering to English
conventions
 in fluent academic writing by:
 in academic writing by:
 using coherent and partly cohesive expression by adhering to English
conventions
 accurately referencing all ‘research’ sources using the specified UTAS School of Nursing & Midwifery 2011 version
of the Harvard referencing guide
 accurately referencing most
sources using the specified
UTAS School of Nursing &
Midwifery 2011 version of the
Harvard referencing guide
Grade
For the purposes of this task ‘researching’ includes, e.g. reading some relevant literature, seeking expert clinician opinions, advice from professional organisations, comments and/or opinions
from parents, searching the internet.
Grades are awarded according to the following algorithm:
HD – High Distinction standard in criterion 1 and no less than a DN in criterion 2
DN – Distinction standard in criterion 1 with at least a CR in the criterion 2
CR – Credit standard in criterion 1 with at least a PP in the criterion 2
PP – Pass standard in both criteria
NN – Fail standard in at least one criterion
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