Baillière s Study Skills for Nurses and Midwives

Baillière s Study Skills for Nurses and Midwives

Senior Commissioning Editor: Ninette Premdas Development Editor: Sally Davies Project Manager: Frances Affleck Designer: Kirsteen Wright Illustration Manager: Gillian Richards Illustrator: Oxford Illustrators; David Banks

Baillière s Study Skills for Nurses and Midwives FOURTH EDITION EDITED BY Sian Maslin-Prothero RN RM DIPN(LOND) CERT ED Dean of the Graduate School and Professor of Nursing, Keele University, Keele, UK Edinburgh London New York Oxford Philadelphia St Louis Sydney Toronto 2010

First edition Bailli è re Tindall 1997 Second edition Harcourt Publishers Limited 2001, Elsevier Science Limited 2002 Third edition Elsevier Science Limited 2005 Fourth edition 2010, Elsevier Limited. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Permissions may be sought directly from Elsevier s Rights Department: phone: ( 1) 215 239 3804 (US) or ( 44) 1865 843830 (UK); fax: ( 44) 1865 853333; e-mail: healthpermissions@elsevier.com. You may also complete your request online via the Elsevier website at http://www.elsevier.com/permissions. ISBN 978-0-7020-3142-7 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress Notice Neither the Publisher nor the Editor assume any responsibility for any loss or injury and/or damage to persons or property arising out of or related to any use of the material contained in this book. It is the responsibility of the treating practitioner, relying on independent expertise and knowledge of the patient, to determine the best treatment and method of application for the patient. The Publisher Printed in China

CONTENTS Contributors Introduction How to use this book Acknowledgements vii ix ix x Section 1 Developing your study skills 1 1 Getting ready to study 3 Lisa Common and Sian Maslin-Prothero 2 Learning skills and styles 23 Lisa Common and Sian Maslin-Prothero 3 Using the library 45 Sue Brain 4 Using information technology 77 Denis Anthony 5 Getting the most from reading and lectures 109 Kym Martindale 6 Writing skills and developing an argument 121 Netta Lloyd-Jones and Abigail Masterson 7 Examinations and revision 141 Heather Wharrad 8 Information-seeking for assignments 161 Abigail Masterson and Netta Lloyd-Jones 9 Presentation of written material 178 Sian Maslin-Prothero Section 2 Learning from practice 195 10 Clinical skills 197 Andrew Finney 11 Learning in practice settings 219 Jenny Spouse 12 Reflective skills 250 Elizabeth A. Rosser and Rebecca Hoskins v

Contents 13 Group work 281 Sian Maslin-Prothero 14 Advanced writing skills and accreditation of experiential learning 296 Elizabeth A. Rosser and Rebecca Hoskins 15 Developing a portfolio 316 Neil Gopee Index 339 vi

CONTRIBUTORS Denis Anthony BA(Hons) MSc PhD RMN SRN RN(Canada) Professor of Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, De Montfort University, Leicester, UK Sue Brain BA(Hons) PGCE DipLib MCLIP Library Manager, NHS Direct, Southampton, UK Lisa Common BA(Hons) RM Community Midwife, CitiHealth Nottingham City, Nottingham, UK Andrew Finney BSc(Hons) RN PGCHE Clinical Skills Lecturer, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Keele University, Staffordshire, UK Elizabeth A Rosser (n é e Girot) DPhil MN DipNEd DipRM RN RM Professor/Associate Dean (Nursing), Bournemouth University, School of Health and Social Care, Bournemouth, UK Neil Gopee BA(Hons) MEd PhD RN CertEd Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Coventry University, Coventry, UK Rebecca Hoskins BSc(Hons) MA FFEN RGN RN Consultant Nurse and Senior Lecturer in Emergency Care, School of Health and Social Care, University of the West of England, Bristol, UK Netta Lloyd-Jones MN DipN CMS RGN CertEd Head of Practice Education, School of Health and Social Care, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, UK Kym Martindale BA(Hons) MA PhD Senior Lecturer in English with Media Studies, University College Falmouth, Penryn, Cornwall, UK Sian Maslin-Prothero RN RM DipN(Lond) CertEd Dean of the Graduate School and Professor of Nursing, Keele University, Keele, Staffordshire, UK vii

Contributors Abigail Masterson BSc MPA MN RN PGCEA FRSA Director, Abi Masterson Consulting Ltd, London, UK Jenny Spouse MSc PhD RGN SCM RCNT DipN RNT Formerly Associate Dean for Practice Education, St Bartholomew School of Nursing and Midwifery, City University London, UK; Consultant in practice education Heather J Wharrad BSc PhD Reader and Associate Professor in Education and Health Informatics, School of Nursing, Midwifery and Physiotherapy, University of Nottingham Medical School, Nottingham, UK viii

INTRODUCTION From personal experience I know how important it is to have strategies that can help you to be a successful learner even if you have been a successful learner in the past. We work in a climate of rapid change in which, as health professionals, we are expected to be creative, critical thinkers who can respond to the dynamic health and social-care environment in order to meet the needs and requirements of our clients and their carers. In the UK, we are required by our regulatory body the Nursing and Midwifery Council to demonstrate our competency to practise. Regardless of where you are an Access course college student, a pre-qualifying midwifery or nursing student, or an experienced postqualifying student this book aims to develop skills for life-long learning; all the skills essential for you to become an independent learner. How to use this book I have listened to the feedback from reviewers of the previous edition, and made changes in light of this. The book is divided into two sections; Section 1 focuses on developing initial study skills, and Section 2 explores skills needed to learn from practice. The aim of the book is to be interactive, and the structure of the chapters is devised so that at a glance you see what the key issues are, followed by an introduction. Within each chapter there are: tips and hints, reflection points, activities, case studies, references, websites and further reading. You can decide whether the chapter has what you need the order in which you access the chapters is up to you. Reflection points? These will raise issues that allow you a few moments to reflect on what?????? you are learning and how you might learn from your experiences. Activities Tips/Hints These invite you as the reader to consider issues which require you to move beyond reflection. They may require you to note down some of your ideas or to carry out some more research into a given topic. You may wish to come back to these after you finish reading the chapter. Useful tips have been indicated and highlighted for quick reference. These are often based on the writer s own experiences and we hope they will help you avoid some of the common pitfalls. ix

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the current and previous contributors to the book, who have made this a different study skills text that continues to be of value to learners. This book is dedicated to Jack, Charlotte and Paul. x