Dietetics:ProfessionalPractice/Building Your Professional Identity in Year 5 2019

Professional Identity in Year 5 and Beyond...

As we move into year five and our careers as dietitians, it's time to develop our sense of professional identity. A professional identity will help shape career choices and experiences.

Professional identity is based on one's beliefs about what it means to be professional, grounded in one's values and experiences.

Which differs from professionalism, which is the values and skills that society expects from a profession, specifically dietitians.

Summary of key principles

Building your identity as a student

Throughout our education we have been:
- building knowledge, gaining competence, performing skills, and in year five we will be acting on this foundation then throughout our career will be developing our identity as dietitians

Building your identity as a Year 5 practice education student

Being a learner can be an uncomfortable process, and many students in year five may experience self-doubt
- Imposter syndrome is "The persistent inability to believe that one’s success is deserved or has been legitimately achieved as a result of one’s own efforts or skills"
  - Ways to cope:
    1. Accept that uncertainty is inevitable
    2. Reflect regularly to set realistic expectations
    3. Be forgiving with yourself in the case of mistakes
    4. Reflect on successes & accept compliments
    5. Carry yourself with confidence
    6. Reframe your definition of self-confidence
    7. Surround yourself with a positive support network

Building your identity as a practitioner

Finding your ideal career first requires an personal awareness of your own strengths and passions, then a well developed toolkit to use in your career, then seeking focused activities and direction that will lead to your ideal career.
To develop personal awareness brainstorm the following, and consider which you value most
- Activities and skills you like/dislike
- Personal priorities
- Work environments
- Preferred locations
- Dreams
A well developed toolkit comes from:
- Life experience
- Education (Coursework, ICDEP Competencies)
- Work experience
- Volunteer experience
- Job shadowing
- Resources:
  - Dietitians of Canada
  - CDBC
  - PEN
  - ASPEN/ESPEN
Focused activities and direction might look like: CDBC’s Continuing Competence Program
- RD's are required to self-assess their knowledge and skills relative to the CDBC Standards of Practice every 3 years
- RD's must determine ≥3 learning plans based on this assessment to accomplish within the 3 year cycle

Professional Identity and Private Practice

If you're thinking about having your own private practice, Lisa Mina RD recommends the following:
- Take time to identify and understand your core capabilities
- Learn from people beyond nutrition and health
- Know that failures are okay
- Stay connected with people inside and outside of our profession
- Be prepared for a new balancing act
- Read and scan a wide range of topics and sources
- Reflect often
To build a strong brand for your private practice:
- Distinguish yourself from others
- Make others aware of your character, strengths, and personality
- Become the message that is conjured up when someone thinks of you
- Influence the decisions, attitudes, and actions of others
- Increase confidence, presence, and visibility
- Be authentic

REFERENCES:

Ametrano, I. M. (2014). Teaching ethical decision making: Helping students reconcile personal and professional values. Journal of Counseling & Development, 92(2), 154-161. doi:10.1002/j.1556-6676.2014.00143.x

Mina, L. (2016, October 13). Leverage your core strengths: 7 tips to consider when starting a business. Retrieved March 15, 2019, from https://www.dietitians.ca/Learn/Practice-Blog/October-2017/Leverage-your-core-strengths-7-tips.aspx

Professional Boundaries & Identity

Managing professional boundaries and professional identity in Year 5
- On the continuum of professional behaviour, there is the ideal 'zone of helpfulness' with 'over involved' and 'under involved' at each end.
  - Different careers in dietetics require different levels of involvement with patients, and this is something to consider when choosing a career path
- College of Dietitians identifies 4 factors to consider when managing professional boundaries

Power: power imbalances occur where the RD has more nutrition knowledge than the client
Trust: Clients assume that the RD has the knowledge and skills to provide quality care
Respect: RD’s responsibility to respect client regardless of race, religion, ethnic origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, social or health status
Personal closeness: RD needs to be aware of situations that could lead a client feeling vulnerable, I.e. physical closeness, varying degrees of undress, and disclosure of sensitive personal or emotional information

Below is a video link summarizing the College of Dietitians of BC's Code of Ethics and how these relate to professional boundaries.

https://youtu.be/HJwl1p9vtPE

REFERENCES:

Maintaining Professional Boundaries in Interpersonal Work [PDF]. (2008).

Understand the relationship dynamics between preceptor and student. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://preceptor.healthprofessions.dal.ca/?page_id=197

Code of Ethics Principles and Guidelines [PDF]. (2006). College of Dietitians.

SUMMARY INFOGRAPHIC

File:Infographic - Professional Identity in Year 5.pdf This infographic summarizes stories and experiences from current RD's on their experiences with Professional Identity.

Online resources for further learning

Finding work you love [TEDx]

https://www.ted.com/talks/scott_dinsmore_how_to_find_work_you_love#t-328262

Conflict: Use it don’t defuse it [TEDx]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o97fVGTjE4w

Finding confidence in conflict [TEDx]

PODCASTs

HBR Women at work: Lead with authenticity

Five Tips to Branding Yourself

https://www.aicpa.org/interestareas/youngcpanetwork/resources/career/fivetipstobrandingyourself.html

Student authors

Authors: Emma Louie, Gloria Sun, Kaylee Nelson, Nikki Lenzen, Sonella Ramanaden, Victoria Janzen

Produced on: March 31, 2019