Course summary
Turn your passion for mental health nursing into a career specialisation with this contemporary online course, the first in Australia to be directly constructed from the Australian College of Mental Health Nursing’s National Framework for Postgraduate Studies in Mental Health Nursing.
This new course responds to contemporary mental health nursing research and policy and has been designed with the input of leading clinical and academic mental health nurses as well as consumers. It reflects the growing understanding that mental health nurses can provide specialist intervention in mental health teams across diverse settings.
Undertaking this course will enhance your clinical capabilities and theoretical knowledge of both current and future mental health nursing practice, for the benefit of mental health consumers, your professional discipline and yourself.
Each unit runs for seven weeks with six study periods per year and the course is offered exclusively online.
Please note: this course can be completed in two years of accelerated part-time study.
Turn your passion for mental health nursing into a career specialisation with this contemporary online course, the first in Australia to be directly constructed from the Australian College of Mental Health Nursing’s National Framework for Postgraduate Studies in Mental Health Nursing.
This new course responds to contemporary mental health nursing research and policy and has been designed with the input of leading clinical and academic mental health nurses as well as consumers. It reflects the growing understanding that mental health nurses can provide specialist intervention in mental health teams across diverse settings.
Undertaking this course will enhance your clinical capabilities and theoretical knowledge of both current and future mental health nursing practice, for the benefit of mental health consumers, your professional discipline and yourself.
Each unit runs for seven weeks with six study periods per year and the course is offered exclusively online.
Please note: this course can be completed in two years of accelerated part-time study.
Core units focus on contemporary mental health theory and practice, physical healthcare needs, evidence-based case formulation and common interventions within acute care contexts, in primary mental health as well contemporary applications of developmental psychology and psychological therapies.
You will also choose an elective from a diverse range of subjects that include leadership, management, human resources and organisational issues in mental health settings.
Graduate Attribute | Course Learning Outcome |
---|---|
Intellectual rigour | Critically evaluates and integrates models of treatment relevant to the care continuum, to inform co-constructed personalized care strategies which meet the consumer’s life needs as well as health needs. Generates/translates novel information or theories, making a substantial contribution to the mental health nursing discipline through scholarly activities. |
Creativity | Engages creatively in therapeutic relationships with mental health consumers their families and significant others, which are characterized by co-construction of care and collaborative engagement. Critically appraises the nature and extent of influences (social, political, economic and organizational) to overcome constraints in negotiation of options for clinical interventions. |
Ethical practice | Advocates for mental health consumers, challenging discrimination and public discourse, minimising stigma through the use of positive portrayal and working toward social inclusion and independence. Interrogates and challenges the concepts of risk and safety from the basis of consumer centred care considering social protection, legal, moral and ethical principles to balance risk in recovery. |
Knowledge of a discipline | Exercises expert/enhanced clinical judgement and decision-making and insight in novel situations in specialist mental health nursing in the pursuit of optimal consumer outcomes. Negotiates and executes the role of the mental health nursing discipline in a multidisciplinary and multi-professional approach. |
Lifelong learning | Consistently demonstrates a high level of autonomy, accountability, adaptability and responsibility in self-directed work and learning. Engages in and leads others in collaborative critical reflection on clinical practice and achievement of lifelong learning outcomes. |
Communication and social skills | Develops and maintains partnerships in care (individually and with groups) with mental health consumers and their families which focuses on the recipient of care, the person’s right to choice and self-determination, and the person’s inherent capacity for recovery. Consistently and judiciously uses information technology, compelling and authoritative written and verbal communications. |
Cultural competence | Respects individual worldviews and enhances their own critical thinking to lead others in challenging assumptions underpinning worldviews. Adjusts clinical practices to incorporate consumer’s cultural perspectives into mental health planning and interventions. |
This course has received provisional accreditation from the Australian College of Mental Health Nurses pending the first graduate of the course.
Course overview
Course code
1209132
Course abbreviation
MMHN
Credit points
144
Equivalent units
12
Duration
2 years part-time
Duration
1.5 years full-time
Availability details
Domestic
Location | Teaching period | UAC code | QTAC code |
---|---|---|---|
SCU Online | Study Period 1 | N/A | N/A |
Fee information
Course requirements
See the University’s Rules Relating to Awards, in conjunction with the Specific Award Rules listed below.
To be eligible to receive the Master of Mental Health Nursing, students must complete 144 credit points, comprising:
- all 11 core units, and
- 1 elective unit.
Exit Awards
Students may be eligible to exit with the Graduate Certificate in Mental Health after completing 48 credit points, comprising the first 4 core units.
Students may be eligible to exit with the Graduate Diploma in Mental Health Nursing after completing 96 credit points, comprising the first 8 core units.