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Unit of Study NRS10731 - The Discipline of Nursing (2019)

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Unit Snapshot

  • Enrolment information

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Unit description

Introduces students to the principles that underpin the nursing profession and the forces that shape the individual and collective identity of nursing. Critically examines the historical evolution of nursing, contemporary practice issues, standards for practice, legislation and policy frameworks in the context of what it means to nurse and be a nurse.

Unit content

  • Analysing health care systems
  • Historical context of health and approaches to health care
  • Health of Australians and international comparisons
  • Structure and functions of the Australian health care system
    • Key features of the Australian health care system
    • Comparisons of health systems around the world
    • Governments, governance, policy and health care in Australia 
    • Funding health care in Australia
  • Health care workforce in Australia
  • Contemporary issues and trends in the Australian health care system and health workforce
  • An historical overview of nursing
  • Historical and contemporary images of nursing
  • The scope of nursing practice
  • The concept of professionalism
  • Statutory and professional regulation of nursing practice
  • Conducting a library search to locate nursing literature
  • Reviewing literature and developing an annotated bibliography
  • Sources of policy and clinical guidelines
  • Developing an annotated bibliography
  • Accountability, responsibility and duty of care
  • Introduction to common law 
  • Nursing and the law 
  • Confidentiality, consent and disclosure
  • Technologies and their use within nursing, specifically to patient safety, confidentiality and social media polices as directed by the Australian Nursing & Midwifery Accreditation Council [ANMAC], Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency [APHRA] and the Australian College of Nursing [ACN]

Availabilities

Location Domestic International
Coffs Harbour Session 1 Session 1
Gold Coast Session 1 Session 1
Lismore Session 1 Session 1

Learning outcomes and graduate attributes

Unit Learning Outcomes express learning achievement in terms of what a student should know, understand and be able to do on completion of a unit. These outcomes are aligned with the graduate attributes. The unit learning outcomes and graduate attributes are also the basis of evaluating prior learning.

On completion of this unit, students should be able to:

GA1: Intellectual rigour, GA2: Creativity, GA3: Ethical practice, GA4: Knowledge of a discipline, GA5: Lifelong learning, GA6: Communication and social skills, GA7: Cultural competence
Learning outcome count Learning outcome description GA1 GA2 GA3 GA4 GA5 GA6 GA7
1 discuss the evolution of the discipline of nursing from a historical and contemporary context
2 discuss the statutory and professional governance requirements that regulate nursing practice
3 describe nursing's scope of practice in relation to multidisciplinary health teams
4 discuss the legal and ethical obligations for nursing practice
5 examine and use a range of information technologies to inform nursing practices and the delivery of health care.
6 compare and contrast the health of Australians and major elements of the health care system with those of other OECD nations
7 discuss the impact of health care policy, funding and governance on the Australian health care system.

On completion of this unit, students should be able to:

  1. discuss the evolution of the discipline of nursing from a historical and contemporary context
    • GA3:
    • GA4:
  2. discuss the statutory and professional governance requirements that regulate nursing practice
    • GA3:
    • GA4:
  3. describe nursing's scope of practice in relation to multidisciplinary health teams
    • GA1:
    • GA3:
    • GA4:
  4. discuss the legal and ethical obligations for nursing practice
    • GA1:
    • GA3:
    • GA4:
  5. examine and use a range of information technologies to inform nursing practices and the delivery of health care.
    • GA1:
    • GA3:
    • GA4:
  6. compare and contrast the health of Australians and major elements of the health care system with those of other OECD nations
    • GA1:
    • GA4:
  7. discuss the impact of health care policy, funding and governance on the Australian health care system.
    • GA3:

Prescribed learning resources

Prescribed Texts
  • No prescribed texts.

Prescribed Texts
  • No prescribed texts.

Prescribed Learning Resources may change in future Teaching Periods.