Nursing as Practice

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2009:

Approximately 256 hours
Students are expected to devote approximately 12 hours a week to this subject and a further 24 hours per week for seven weeks during clinical practicum.

This is a capstone subject in which students will further consolidate and apply the knowledge they have acquired from Nursing Science 1, 2 & 3, Nursing Assessment and Care, Clients With Acute and Chronic Illness, Clients with Complex Health States and case-based learning scenarios which feature complex patient health problems.

In the clinical skills laboratory students will refine and consolidate their procedural skills utilising a self-directed learning approach. Emphasis will also be placed on performing such skills in a time-efficient manner.

In the clinical practicum, under the guidance of clinical educators and preceptors, students focus on the transition from nursing student to registered nurse with the goal of achieving readiness to practice as a beginning registered nurse.

The major focus for the clinical practicum component of this subject is to further build the student’s knowledge and skills of the assessment and management of patients experiencing specific health problems and to develop an understanding of the accountability requirements of the registered nurse. On completion of the subject it is expected that students is able to carry the expected load of a new graduate by caring for 4 patients independently with minimal supervision.

At the completion of this subject students should be able to:

• understand the dimensions of the nursing role in the context of providing complex nursing care in a variety of settings;
• understand key concepts in the assessment and care of complex patients;
• further develop physical, psychosocial, contextual and learning needs and assessment skills;
• further develop clinical reasoning, problem framing and solving skills;
• contribute to planning care for patients incorporating the principles of cultural sensitivity and understanding and an evidence based approach;
• communicate effectively with patients/families, peers and members of the health care team;
• accurately and professionally document assessment findings and therapeutic interventions;
• understand legal requirements for nursing interventions;
• demonstrate competency in the calculation, preparation and administration of drugs;
• further develop knowledge of pharmacological management pertinent to patient care;
• apply the skills of information seeking, retrieval, evaluation critical thinking and problem solving to selected case scenarios.

Theoretical component 60%
a) 4 case based learning scenarios (due throughout the semester)

Clinical component (week 13) 40%
b) Clinical Practicum is equivalent to approximately 3,000 words inclusive of:
• performance appraisal assessment ,
• 4 x 250-word clinical event analyses
• 4 x 250-word medication logs

Hurdle Requirement
d) 15-minute drug calculation test

Students must pass the theoretical, clinical and hurdle components to achieve a pass the subject

• Bullock, S., Manias, E., & Galbraith, A. (2007). Fundamentals of pharmacology (5th ed.). Australia: Frenchs Forest: Pearson Education.
• McCance, K., & Huether, S. (2006). Pathophysiology: The biological basis for disease in adults and children (5th ed.). St. Louis: Mosby.
• Stedman’s medical dictionary for the health professions and nursing. Australian and New Zealand Edition (5th ed.). (2005). Philadelphia: Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins.
• Thibodeau, G., & Patton, K. (2006). Anatomy and Physiology (6th ed.). St. Louis: Mosby.

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

At the completion of this subject, students should be able to demonstrate:

• the capacity for information seeking, retrieval and evaluation;
• critical thinking and analytical skills;
• an openness to new ideas;
• cultural sensitivity;
• planning and time management skills;
• the ability to work effectively in a team;
• the ability to communicate knowledge through classroom and web-based discussions and written material.