Running head: STD conference

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STD Conference Reflection Paper

Hana Scully
Nursing 320
Kapiolani Community college

February 4, 2016

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I had a great opportunity to attend the STD Update for Clinicians conference last
week. This was a great learning experience in a variety of ways, I gained a lot of
knowledge about a variety of sexually transmitted infections, I was able to listen in on
the questions and concerns asked by physicians and professors, and I learned about
different support groups and clinics in my community! The speakers at this conference
were very intelligent and presented their research and topics in ways that were very
intriguing and interesting. I was able to relate this conference to a few of my student
learning outcomes such as, apply the ANA Code of Ethics to care of families including
client rights and ID identification of choices and possible consequences. Reflect on
nursing practice in managing care for groups of patients. Also demonstrate therapeutic
communication skills in interactions and relationships with families, individuals, and
other members of the health care team with attention to the identification and
correction of non-therapeutic communication techniques.
A few code of the ANA ethics I heard being brought up a lot throughout the
conference were the nurse advocates and strives to protect the health, safety, and rights
for the patient. This ethic was incorporated through out the conference because in
multiple presentations the speaker talked about advocating for their patient. For
example, Dr. Ina Park spoke a lot about her experiences and she used an example of a
patient that needed a certain medication to cure her severe case of and STI, she called
around to multiple places to try and get this order and instead of giving up after several
tries she kept persisting and was finally able to find the right medication and pharmacy
for her patient. Her patient has been suffering from heavy discharge for over 9 months

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and thanks to Dr. Ina Parks after several weeks of being on this medication the patients
symptoms were almost gone. Another ethic I heard being discussed during this
conference was protecting the patients rights and health. I learned a lot of people can
be unconformable or nervous about going to STD clinics for a variety of reasons
therefore it is very important for the staff to make sure the patient feels safe and knows
everything they say is confidential. Patient confidentiality is a very important part of
nursing, you want to protect the patients rights and safety by not allowing there
information to be known by people not involved in their care. Also when the patient
knows what they tell the doctor or staff will be confidential and they will be supported
and not judged they are more likely to open up and really express how they are feeling
and symptoms that are occurring. The ANA ethics are highly valued in nursing, it its
important to advocate, promote safety and health, and protect the rights and
confidentiality of your patient.
Another student learning outcome I was able to relate to this conference was
reflect on nursing practice in managing care for groups of patients. I noticed the
presenters spoke about a variety of different groups and locations which was were very
interesting because I was able to hear what STD are more common in different states.
A lot of the speakers were from the mainland so it was a good learning experience to
hear what health issues are occurring outside the state of Hawaii and how they are
being handled. When I think of using the nursing practice in managing care for groups
of patients the speakers Peter Silva and Cathy Kapua presentation really sticks out.
They work at a clinic that supports lesbians, gay, bisexual, and transgender. I really

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enjoyed their presentation because it was very obvious they are passionate about what
they do and supporting the people that come into their clinic. They used the nursing
process by keeping there patients information confidential, referring them to resources
and support groups, supporting their patients and offering to be there for support at
appointments, and they used a variety of therapeutic communication skills when
talking to their patient. For example, Peter went over ways to ask questions in a way
where the patient does not feel judged or ridiculed. Therapeutic communication is very
important in the nursing process because you want the patient to feel comfortable and
safe. I also liked they talked about what was going on in Hawaii, since I live here it
was very interesting to hear what is going on in our community and also resources that
are available for people seeking help and support!
The final student learning outcome I will discuss is demonstrate therapeutic
communication skills in interaction with individuals, and other members of the health
care team with attention to the identification and correction of non-therapeutic
communication techniques. I learned a lot from this conference but the big take home
messages was how to asses and talk to your patient in a way that is not making them
feel judged, uncomfortable, or guilty. Throughout the presentation we learned a lot of
ways to ask open-ended questions and gain information about our patient. I learned
different ways to ask questions or refer to people such as instead of saying wife say
main partner, or instead of saying mistress say multiple partners. Patients coming to
talk about STDs can feel very uncomfortable but they want help and as a nurse that is
what I hope to do, so it was very helpful to learn ways to speak to patients and create

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an open and safe environment. I also learned when talking to the patient it is important
to use words they understand and can relate to because sometimes if you use medical
words they may not know what you are referring to or feel you think you are superior.
This conference really helped me gain a new perspective on how important therapeutic
communication is when talking to your patients.
I am very thankful I had the opportunity to attend this conference. It was a great
leaning experience and inspiring to be in a room filled with physicians, clinic, staff,
professors, students, etc. that are so motivated and passionate about helping and
supporting their patients. I was a great reminder how valuable the code of ethics,
managing care for groups of patients, and therapeutic communication is in the nursing
process.