An important part of being a health professional is self-assessment. Nurses regularly reflect on their practice and ask themselves what they're doing well and what they'd like to improve.
This reflection can be as simple as analyzing a situation with a challenging client earlier in the day or thinking about how to apply a new communication strategy they learned at a lunch-and-learn session.
A formal approach
There is also value in approaching self-assessment in a structured way. To support this strategy, nurses registered with BCCNM complete an annual self-assessment questionnaire as part of registration renewal.
The questionnaire is based on the professional standards relevant to their designation and is an opportunity to complete a thorough assessment of their practice.
The questionnaire
The self-assessment questionnaire encourages nurses to think about how effectively they are meeting their professional standards. This questionnaire also forms the basis of the colleague questionnaire, which is completed by nurses' colleagues when they participate in multisource feedback. Nurses who work more than 50% of their time in clinical areas should select the clinical questionnaire; those who don't should choose the non-clinical.
Continuous professional development
Nurses continue this reflection throughout the year by focusing on the standards that have specific relevance to their practice. For instance, a nurse working on a new unit with an unfamiliar charting system may review the Documentation practice standard to ensure they are familiar with the principles. Another might refer to the professional standards relevant to their designation to confirm the standards of ethical behaviour expected of nurses.