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Unit of Study NRS71005 - Essentials of Nursing and Care (2020)

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Unit Snapshot

  • Enrolment information

    This unit includes professional experience practicum compliance requirements as part of assessment requirements. Failure to comply with these requirements may result in failure of the unit. Full details are available at www.scu.edu.au/clinicalplacements.

Unit description

Provides students with both the philosophical understanding and practice in the construction of thinking, knowledge, and ways of reasoning and concepts of care. Students examine ways in which nurses use knowledge, inquire, make assumptions and form values in nursing practice. With this knowledge the student is provided with the opportunity to acquire, practise and demonstrate foundational communication, observation, concepts of care and assessment skills that underpin nursing, care practice and therapeutic relationships.

Unit content

  • Reasoning, knowledge and logic
  • Thinking, knowing and reasoning (thinking processes)
  • Critical thought and reflection
  • Knowing self and understanding others
  • Cognition: ages and stages
  • Emotional intelligence
  • Building self-resilience
  • Stigma and marginalisation
  • Biases and racism
  • Concepts of Care
  • Development of nursing knowledge and theories
  • Communicating to care (empathy)
  • Communication techniques including verbal/non-verbal/documentation/transcultural communication
  • Communication in difficult situations – language difficulties
  • Health assessment – the interview, documentation techniques, principles and skills.
  • Manual handling, falls assessment and ambulation
  • Hand hygiene, personal protective equipment, universal precautions
  • Personal hygiene, sleep and rest, pressure care

Availabilities

Location Domestic International
Coffs Harbour
Session1
Session1
Gold Coast
Session1
Session1
Lismore
Session1
Session1

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 investigate the development of knowledge that informs and constructs conceptual-thinking in nursing care
2 demonstrate the principles and strategies of communication, developing therapeutic relationships and interview techniques related to nursing practice, cognisant of the need for cultural sensitivity and awareness
3 demonstrate beginning and safe competence in a range of nursing skills
4 reflect on individual cultural awareness about Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander members of Australian society

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

  1. investigate the development of knowledge that informs and constructs conceptual-thinking in nursing care
    • GA1:
  2. demonstrate the principles and strategies of communication, developing therapeutic relationships and interview techniques related to nursing practice, cognisant of the need for cultural sensitivity and awareness
    • GA6:
    • GA7:
  3. demonstrate beginning and safe competence in a range of nursing skills
    • GA7:
  4. reflect on individual cultural awareness about Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander members of Australian society
    • GA1:
    • GA7:

Prescribed learning resources

Prescribed Texts
  • No prescribed texts.

Prescribed Learning Resources may change in future Teaching Periods.