NURSING 1007 - Health Assessment and Clinical Nursing I

North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2024

Health Assessment and Clinical Nursing I provides the core skills for basic nursing practice. Attention to the Fundamentals of Care enables students to proceed on their first placement experience able to support patients in the activities of daily living, providing basic hygiene, apply principles of basic nutrition, employ safe manual handling practices and begin to measure vital signs. Students learn how to conduct an interview as part of a larger health assessment. Students will have the opportunity to begin to learn how to practice in accordance with the NMBA National Nursing Competency Standards for the Registered Nurse.

  • General Course Information
    Course Details
    Course Code NURSING 1007
    Course Health Assessment and Clinical Nursing I
    Coordinating Unit Adelaide Nursing School
    Term Semester 1
    Level Undergraduate
    Location/s North Terrace Campus
    Units 3
    Contact Up to 5 hours per week
    Available for Study Abroad and Exchange N
    Restrictions Bachelor of Nursing
    Course Description Health Assessment and Clinical Nursing I provides the core skills for basic nursing practice. Attention to the Fundamentals of Care enables students to proceed on their first placement experience able to support patients in the activities of daily living, providing basic hygiene, apply principles of basic nutrition, employ safe manual handling practices and begin to measure vital signs. Students learn how to conduct an interview as part of a larger health assessment. Students will have the opportunity to begin to learn how to practice in accordance with the NMBA National Nursing Competency Standards for the Registered Nurse.
    Course Staff

    Course Coordinator: Ms Janet Smith

    Jan Alderman

    Course Coordinator, Lecturer | Adelaide Nursing School | Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences

    Level 4, Adelaide Health & Medical Sciences Building

    Cnr North Terrace & George Street

    ADELAIDE SA 5005

    T: +61 8 8313 1168 | E: jan.alderman@adelaide.edu.au

    http://health.adelaide.edu.au/
    https://www.facebook.com/uoanursing

    School Office
    Phone: +61 8 8313 3595
    Email: nursing@adelaide.edu.au

    Course Timetable

    The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

  • Learning Outcomes
    Course Learning Outcomes
    1 Will obtain the foundation knowledge of physical, social, and behavioral sciences to provide nursing care based on theory, research, and evidence-based practice.
    2 Develop the skills to select goals and develop plans of care for individuals based on the analysis of available data using theoretical knowledge.
    3 Plan patient/client care goals and priorities with the involvement of other health professionals
    4 Identify opportunities to enhance the care of patients/clients through the involvement of other health professionals
    5 Demonstrate proficiency in the use of current technology in the provision of patient care.
    6 Assume responsibility and accountability for the quality improvement and delivery of safe and effective nursing care.
    7 Provide holistic nursing care to clients while respecting individual and cultural diversity.
    8 Demonstrate and recognise the importance of policies on plagiarism and collusion whilst adhering to the principles of ethical & professional behavior.
    University Graduate Attributes

    This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

    University Graduate Attribute Course Learning Outcome(s)

    Attribute 1: Deep discipline knowledge and intellectual breadth

    Graduates have comprehensive knowledge and understanding of their subject area, the ability to engage with different traditions of thought, and the ability to apply their knowledge in practice including in multi-disciplinary or multi-professional contexts.

    1

    Attribute 2: Creative and critical thinking, and problem solving

    Graduates are effective problems-solvers, able to apply critical, creative and evidence-based thinking to conceive innovative responses to future challenges.

    2, 3

    Attribute 3: Teamwork and communication skills

    Graduates convey ideas and information effectively to a range of audiences for a variety of purposes and contribute in a positive and collaborative manner to achieving common goals.

    4, 5,

    Attribute 4: Professionalism and leadership readiness

    Graduates engage in professional behaviour and have the potential to be entrepreneurial and take leadership roles in their chosen occupations or careers and communities.

    6, 7

    Attribute 5: Intercultural and ethical competency

    Graduates are responsible and effective global citizens whose personal values and practices are consistent with their roles as responsible members of society.

    8

    Attribute 6: Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural competency

    Graduates have an understanding of, and respect for, Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander values, culture and knowledge.

    7

    Attribute 7: Digital capabilities

    Graduates are well prepared for living, learning and working in a digital society.

    5

    Attribute 8: Self-awareness and emotional intelligence

    Graduates are self-aware and reflective; they are flexible and resilient and have the capacity to accept and give constructive feedback; they act with integrity and take responsibility for their actions.

    9
  • Learning Resources
    Required Resources
    PRESCRIBED TEXTS.

    Crisp, J, Taylor, C. Douglas, C. Rebeiro, G. 2020 Fundamentals of Nursing. 6th Edition, Elsevier, Chatswood, NSW.

    Tollefson, J., Hillman, E, 2021 Clinical psychomotor skills: assessment tools for nursing 8th ed. Cengage Learning Australia

    Lewis, P & Foley, D 2020, Weber & Kelly's Health Assessment in Nursing, 3rd Edition  Australian edn, Wolters
    Kluwer Health | Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Broadway.

    Intelli+Learn, 2017. Medication Management for Health Professionals. Online resource, An interactive course to develop and assess skills in medication management. Australia.
    Recommended Resources
    Daly, J. Speedy, S. Jackson, D. 2020 Contexts of Nursing, 6th edn, Sydney, Churchill Livingstone.

    Stein-Parbury, J 2021, Patient and Person: Interpersonal Skills in Nursing, 7th edn, Elsevier, Sydney.

    McKenna, L & Mirkov, S 2021, Mckenna’s drug handbook for nursing and midwifery, L McKenna & S Mirkov (eds), 9th edition., Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Sydney.
    Online Learning
    All material will be presented online via MyUni in CANVAS.
  • Learning & Teaching Activities
    Learning & Teaching Modes
    Online lectures – Online lectures are made available each week to enable students to listen to the lecture in their own time. Lecture content is discussed in weekly tutorials and practised in the practical sessions. Students will learn the importance of nursing theories, research and evidence and how it underpins all nursing practice. The expectation is that students will have listened to the relevant lecture before attending their tutorial and practical session.

    Tutorial sessions –
     Students attend one tutorial each fortnight. These tutorials present content from the lectures in a case-based context. Utilising a patient case allows the students to learn how to apply the fundamentals of care in their nursing practice. Students in small groups explore relevant patient data and information, enabling them to develop their critical thinking and assessment skills. Amongst the topics discussed are vital signs, fluid balance documentation and interpretation, ISBAR handover, hospital routines and care of the older person.

    Simulated Learning Environments (SLE) –
    the simulated learning environment provides students with an opportunity to practice various communication and psychomotor skills before attending a clinical placement. Importantly the SLE also enables constructed, well-considered clinical scenarios that nurture and challenge student development. The new Adelaide Medical and Health School SIMM suite provides a state-of-the-art clinical training venue with dedicated nursing lecturers with expertise in low and high-fidelity simulation. Students will learn to take vital signs on each other and to practice a range of activities of daily living. Further enhancement of the lab facility will help high-fidelity simulation to ensure students' skills development occurs across the program's three years. The SLE is especially complimentary to the PBL style of content delivery used in the 3rd year of the program.

    Clinical placement (aka professional experience) - This course provides skills and knowledge that enable students to participate at a level commensurate with their progression. Students work closely with university Clinical Lecturer staff and clinicians to reinforce learning and ensure consistency of course objectives. The professional experience associated with this course aims to provide students with their first opportunity to care for people and provide fundamentals of nursing care, such as hygiene and nutrition. This course also offers an opportunity for students to consider their approach to communication and begin to perform a range of physical and psychosocial assessments.
    Workload

    The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

    The workload for this course requires attendance at:
    • 1 x 1 hour lecture / week
    • 1 x 2 hour lecture / week
    • 1 x 2-hour tutorial / fortnightly
    • 1 x 3 hour SLE / fortnightly
    Learning Activities Summary

    The tables below indicate the lecture, tutorial and simulared workshops for Health Assessment and Clinical Nursing 1. Please refer to the timetable above for details on class and time. Other tutorials may be provided as required.

    Health Assessment and Clinical Nursing 1
    Lecture Series
    1. Fundamentals of care (activities of daily living)

    2. ADL Care Showering, mouth/ear/hair care,

    3. ADL Care Bed making and Nutrition

    4. ADL care – Nutrition and Elimination

    5. Vital Signs 1 – assessing temperature and respiration

    6. Vital Signs 2 – assessing pulse and blood pressure

    7. Pressure injury prevention

    8. Feeding, Toileting, U/A, Other specimen testing

    9. Documentation
        
    10. Basic psychosocial interviewing

    11. Basic Psychosocial Assessment

    12. Skills of Inspection, Palpation, Percussion & Auscultation

    13. Nursing Role in Health Assessment

    14. Cultural Diversity and health assessment

    15. Lifespan and health assessment

    16. Gender Differences and health assessment
    Simulated Learning Environment
    1. Infection Control

    2. Aquium and Hand washing

    3. Gowns, gloves, masks, sharps safety

    4. ADL Care

    5. Showering, mouth/ear/hair care, Bed making

    6. Nutrition and Elimination

    7. Urinalysis, Other specimen testing

    8. Interviewing skills

    9. Vital Signs – TPR and BP - Practice

    10. Documentation – FBC and Vital Signs

    Specific Course Requirements
    Health Assessment and Clinical Nursing 1 requires that you attend all lectures and tutorials. A time table for these lectures will be available in the Study Guide and on MyUni in CANVAS.

    PLEASE NOTE: Some placement will continue for the duration of the Mid Semester Break 

    There are a number of Mandatory Checks that need to be completed prior to commencing placement.
    These will be made clear at ORIENTATION.
     

    PLEASE NOTE: Any student who has not completed all these requirements prior to placement will not be able to attend and will place their course completion at risk.
  • Assessment

    The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

    1. Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
    2. Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
    3. Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
    4. Assessment must maintain academic standards.

    Assessment Summary
    Assessment Task Assessment Type Weighting Learning Outcome(s) being addressed
    Intellilearn practice tests X 5 Formative NGP 1-9
    Drug calculation test Summative 10% 1-9
    Quizzes X 2 Summative 40% 1-9
    Care plan assignment Summative 50% 1-9
    OSCE Summative Pass/Fail 1, 5, 9

    NCAS/ Clinical Summative Assessment & EC. Summative NGP 1-9
    Assessment Related Requirements
    Details of assessment items will be found in the Study Guide and will be further discussed in class.
    Assessment Detail
    Assessment 1: Intellilearn practice tests - these tests familiarise students with the types of drug calculations they might encounter when on clinical placement. The tests also help to familiarise them with the Intellilearn website, which presents medication orders as they would be in practice in an Australian context.

    Assessment 2:
    Quizzes X 2 1) PPE and Aseptic Technique 2) Vital signs quiz

    Assessment 3:
    Final drug calculation test

    Assessment 4: 
    FOC Care Plan

    Case 1 /
    Case study of a female inpatient who presents with a chest infection requiring medical management. Students will choose two fundamentals of care and develop a care plan describing the specific intervention required to meet these fundamental needs.
    Case 2 / A refugee woman who presents to a Migrant health centre with abdominal pain. Students are to explain how they would use the Fundamentals of care framework to engage with this woman and to understand why she is feeling anxious. Students will consider the importance of cultural safety and describe the strategies and or interventions they would implement to assist this woman in feeling safe.
    Case 3 / An elderly man is in hospital after having suffered a right-sided CVA. He asks a student nurse for assistance to get back into bed, but when they assist him he slips and falls on the floor. Students are to consider the assessment that should be performed prior to attending to any patient who they do not know well. Utilising the FOC framework they will discuss how they will engage with the patient and identify and address the potential safety issues for the patient and themselves.

    Assessment 4: Oral Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE)
    The OSCE is a formal conclusion to the semester to allow students to demonstrate the skills and knowledge they have acquired. The oral and practical exam is 30 minutes long and uses a structured approach to assessing clinical skills.
    This assessment is a hurdle requirement- this exam must be passed in order to enrol into CNP II
    Submission
    Unless otherwise indicated all assignments are to be submitted through MyUni. TurnItin will be used to check student assignments. TurnItin will be used to check student assignments. Students MUST keep an electronic copy of all assignments submitted.

    To apply for an Assessment Extension, a student must submit an application for extension form prior to the assessment deadline.

    See the Modified Arrangements for Coursework Assessment Policy http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/3303/
    Course Grading

    Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

    M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
    Grade Mark Description
    FNS   Fail No Submission
    F 1-49 Fail
    P 50-64 Pass
    C 65-74 Credit
    D 75-84 Distinction
    HD 85-100 High Distinction
    CN   Continuing
    NFE   No Formal Examination
    RP   Result Pending

    Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

    Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

    Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

    UNIVERSITY OF ADELAIDE, EXAMINATIONS POLICY

    The examinations policy for this course is guided by the University of Adelaide, Examinations.
    https://www.adelaide.edu.au/student/exams/rules_policies.html
  • Student Feedback

    The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

    SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.


    2021 SELT feedback - 
    • This course has allowed me to have practical exposure along with theoretical learning. It helped me develop clinical skills ability to think critically and interact with people from the Health Care sector.
    • I enjoy the practical side of the course when we get to learn how to take vital signs and CPR. I also enjoy the lecturers sharing their personal experiences when teaching, as it puts what we're learning into real-life situations.
    • Interactive practical skills sessions
    • I enjoy the content.
    • The lectures were well–organized and presented using PowerPoint slide shows.
    • The content
    • assignments were enjoyable.
    • I find hands-on learning an excellent way of putting the theory into practice before any clinical experiences
    • The clinical labs and the 'types' of assignments.
    • Clinal experience
    • The course delivery was at a good pace and adequately prepared me for my clinical placement with the tasks I was able to undertake.
    2022 -  in response to student feedback:
    More clinical skill time is allocated to students with smaller groups. This has now been changed so that all students attend clinical skills sessions for 3 hours per fortnight. Students are organised into groups of five-seven students to one lecturer. This has met with a favourable response from students in 2022 and will continue in 2023.

    2022 - in response to student feedback:
    Students asked for more tutorials to discuss content not understood in the lecture. Students attend tutorials every fortnight for 2 hours. The response and attendance have been overwhelming so it is proposed that these sessions will continue in 2023.



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