From staff nurse to nurse consultant Continuing professional development part 11: using reflection

The previous articles in this series have explored many of the very tangible aspects of continuing professional development (CPD), ranging from problem-solving and financing to mentoring and postgraduate degrees. This article focuses on a less tangible concept, but one that underpins and unites many of the key factors of CPD—that of reflection.

Many clinical staff whose daily workload is heavy and whose home life is demanding will view reflection as a time-consuming luxury. Although we may value the place of reflective practice in our patient care, we rarely give our own personal needs the same priority. We spend little time and energy reflecting on where we are and where we want to be in the next few years. Take some time for yourself and invest the next 10 minutes, as you read this article, to reflect on your own CPD needs and to think about how you can take control of your career and move forward positively.