Nursing (NURS) 530
NP: Practice Consolidation
Introduction
This is the final course in a program of study leading to the Post Master's Diploma: Advanced Nursing Practice or the Master of Nursing degree (concentration in Advanced Nursing Practice).
Students review the characteristics and competencies of advanced nursing practice and examine issues related to the development of the role of an advanced practice nurse. Students build on their understanding of the competencies of advanced nursing practice to develop a vision of a future role in advanced nursing practice. Students will select and analyze a key health issue in their specific community/health district/province and make recommendations to address the issue. The work will then evolve to the development of a funding proposal for a community health development project based on the experiences of the community health development practicum.
During NURS 530, students write a comprehensive examination that includes content from NURS 518 through NURS 530.
Clinical Practicum
Students complete a minimum of 180 hours in a comprehensive clinical practicum in order to achieve an overall amount of 740 program clinical hours including 100 populations specific hours with pediatrics, women, adults, and older adults.
Course Goals
After completing this course, students should be able to:
- discuss the characteristics and competencies of nurse practitioner practice;
- evaluate application of the competencies of nurse practitioner practice in their own practice;
- discuss issues related to implementation of nurse practitioner practice roles, in particular the role of the nurse practitioner;
- develop awareness of how nurse practitioner practice (particularly the role of the nurse practitioner) is regulated in his/her province/territory;
- develop awareness of how nurse practitioner practice incorporates various approaches to research in the clinical environment and create strategies for the future implementation of this core competency into practice;
- analyze current issues influencing nurse practitioner practice, with particular reference to the role of the nurse practitioner and particularly in relation to continuing competence, safety in practice and life-long learning;
- explore various future scenarios for nurse practitioner practice;
- provide evidence-based clinical services to well clients of all ages and to those presenting with acute and chronic health concerns, at a level appropriate to a beginning nurse practitioner, including:
- health history and physical examination
- clinical decision-making
- ordering of laboratory and diagnostic tests
- prescription of medications
- administering treatments or procedures
- therapeutic communication
- collaborative relationships;
- documentation of clinical data, diagnoses, collaborations, communications and treatments, monitoring and follow-up.
- anticipate and identify emergent, urgent and life-threatening situations, in clients in all life stages: adult, pediatric, geriatric and in pregnancy, and initiate appropriate care in the primary care setting;
- discuss the approach to the client when conferring a diagnosis with sensitivity to the patient experience and within the philosophy of client-centered care;
- refer older adults with health concerns that exceed the scope of practice of a beginning practitioner to other health professionals or appropriate resources;
- demonstrate integration of medical and nursing management of health concerns of clients including appropriate referral;
- synthesize community assessment data to develop a proposal for a project in community health development.
Course Materials
NURS 530 comprises both online and print-based course materials.
Online Materials
Introduction: Provides essential information about the course materials, the design of the course, and the procedures you should follow to complete the course successfully.
- Introduction: Provides essential information about the course materials, the design of the course, and the procedures you should follow to complete the course successfully.
- Schedule: Outlines the timing of course activities.
- Units: There are 7 units in this course.
- Assessment: Outlines the assignments/evaluation procedures of the course.
- Reference: Listing of required readings, websites, and citations included in the units.
- Clinical Practicum: Explains how to complete the clinical practicum requirements of the course.
Print Materials
The textbooks listed below are used in this course.
Coley, S., & Scheinberg, C. (2017). Proposal writing (5th.). Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.
Hamric, A., Hanson, C., Tracy, M. & O’Grady, E. (2014). Advanced nursing practice: An integrative approach (5th ed.). St. Louis: Elsevier Saunders..
Other Textbooks
Textbooks and readings from other Advanced Nursing Practice courses will be used as appropriate.
Course Structure
In this course, you will access health-related websites worldwide. You will also participate in email and computer conferencing with other students. Students are expected to connect to an Internet Service Provider at their own expense.
Technical Requirements
Computer System
In order to successfully complete this course, you must own or have ready access to certain computer hardware and software programs. For complete and up-to-date information on the minimum computer requirements required to complete the graduate nursing courses, visit the Centre for Nursing and Health Studies technical site.
Course Outline
NURS 530 consists of the following 7 units:
Unit 1: Clinical Practicum and Community Assessment: Processes and Requirements
This unit reviews the requirements of the clinical practicum and community assessment of NURS 530. The focus of the clinical practicum and community assessment of this course is "closure." Students end their student relationship with their preceptors and with members of the community with whom they have developed relationships during their community assessment.
Unit 2:Advanced Nursing Practice Comprehensive Examination
During NURS 530 students are required to complete a comprehensive examination. The examination evaluates knowledge in both the clinical services and community health development components of advanced nursing practice. Students must pass the comprehensive examination in order to graduate from the Advanced Nursing Practice program. This unit provides information about the examination and suggestions to assist students in preparing for the examination.
Unit 3: Competencies of Advanced Nursing Practice
In this unit students review the characteristics of advanced nursing practice as identified by the Canadian Nurses Association and consider the extent to which they are able to evidence these. Students then study the competencies of advanced nursing practice, reflecting on how the Advanced Nursing Practice program has prepared them in these areas.
Unit 4: Advanced Nursing Practice Role Implementation
In this unit students study issues related to implementation of advanced nursing practice, including phases of role development, administrative support for advanced nursing practice, and evaluation of advanced nursing practice. Issues related to entrepreneurial opportunities and regulation of practice are explored. The unit closes with a look at issues that may influence the future of advanced nursing practice.
Unit 5: Project Development in Advanced Nursing Practice
In this unit students learn how to develop project proposals.
Unit 6: Research in Advanced Nursing Practice
Research skills are an integral competency of advanced nursing practice and advanced practice nurses will be expected to critically review research and utilize research findings. As well, it is likely that advanced practice nurses will be expected to identify the need for and facilitate the development of research-based projects in their work settings.
Unit 7: Preparation for Advanced Nursing Practice
In this final unit of NURS 530 students consider possible futures of advanced nursing practice, including both components of extended health services and community health development.
Assessment Structure
Students must achieve a composite course grade of 60% in order to pass the course. Note that the composite course grade is calculated using the mark attained on the first writing of the comprehensive examination, regardless of the mark attained on a rewrite of the examination.
The weighting of the composite grade is as follows:
| Conference Participation: | 10% |
| Assignment 1 Overview of the Project Proposal | 20% |
| Assignment 2 Project Funding Proposal | 35% |
| Comprehensive Examination | 35% |
| Total | 100% |
| ALSO: Clinical Practicum | Pass/Fail |
| ALSO: Audit of Program Practicum Requirements | Pass/Fail |
In order to be eligible to receive a passing grade for NURS 530, students must achieve a minimum mark of 65% on conference participation, a minimum combined mark of 65% on the two written assignments, and a minimum mark of 70% (70/100 or 17.5/25) on the comprehensive examination.
Conference Participation (10%)
Feedback regarding conference participation will be ongoing. Quality of input (not quantity) is the goal. Feedback will focus on the student's ability to provide organized and original contributions that reflect analysis and synthesis of the material presented.
Participation CriteriaParticipation will be measured against the following criteria:
- Complete online contributions during the unit conference timeframe.
- Respond to online discussions at least twice each week.
- Contribute original thoughts or ideas to online discussions.
- Cite relevant resources to validate points made.
- Demonstrate openness to divergent points of view.
- Be respectful of the perceptions of others.
- Integrate material from previous units to formulate ideas and generate dialogue.
- Present responses that follow the rules of grammar and spelling in the online contributions.
Assignment 1: Overview of Project Proposal (20%)
The first assignment of NURS 530 provides students the opportunity to select a key health issue in their own community/health district/province and analyze this issue in terms of its influence on practices, health services and/or healthy public policy.
Assignment 2: Project Funding Proposal (35%)
Involves development of a funding proposal for a community health development project.
Comprehensive Examination (35%)
The examination evaluates students' knowledge in both the clinical and community health components of advanced nursing practice. Students must pass the comprehensive examination (passing grade is 70%) in order to graduate from the Advanced Nursing Practice program.
Athabasca University reserves the right to amend course outlines occasionally and without notice. Courses offered by other delivery methods may vary from their individualized-study counterparts.
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