This unit of study will examine various biological processes to assist students in developing their comprehensive understanding of human cellular structure and function and the contribution this makes to healthy body function. The role of pharmacotherapy and specific pharmacological interventions aimed at restoring or replacing the function of specific cells, tissues or organs affected by these pathological changes will also be considered.

This unit of study provides an opportunity for students to develop an understanding of professional nursing; "what it is and what it is not" (Nightingale, 1859) and to observe and explore the roles and relationships among nurses, patients and other health professionals within the health care setting.
This unit will introduce students to the fundamentals of nursing care that include the physical, psychosocial and relational aspects of care across the lifespan and within diverse socio-cultural groups. To assist the student to develop an understanding of nursing practice they will be introduced to critical thinking and a clinical reasoning model focusing on assessment, planning, the implementation of comprehensive care interventions and how to evaluate person-centred care with patients as partners. In addition, students will develop a beginning level of competence and understanding of the essentials of communication, interprofessional education and digital health technologies.

This unit of study focuses on the ways in which individuals subjectively experience illness and care. The unit also introduces students to the qualitative research methodologies used to explore illness experience; a range of illness experiences are then examined. Attention is drawn to such factors as illness and the body, emotions arising in illness, issues of self-identity and social attitudes to illness and disability. With this knowledge about illness experience in mind, the nurse-patient relationship underpinned by the concept of patients as partners is then critically examined. Within a communication-based framework, students focus on ideas about therapeutic listening and use of self, as well as the concept of knowledge transfer as it is relevant to nurse-patient interactions. Students also engage with contemporary debates about the nature of nurse-patient interactions and relationships and explore the way these might vary in different health care settings, and with people from different social and cultural backgrounds, including indigenous people. These new skills are then applied during a professional experience placement with an emphasis on therapeutic and interprofessional communication.

This unit of study will further develop students’ understanding of normal physiology and pathophysiology in relation to various body systems. The impact of pathophysiological changes on normal biomedical values and their relation to nursing observation and monitoring will be further examined. This unit of study also aims to develop students’ understanding of what is required for the optimal management of common disease states through the appropriate use of pharmacotherapeutic agents. Learning about the appropriate use of pharmacotherapeutic agents will extend students’ understanding of the practice of evidence-based medicine and nursing practice.

This unit of study focuses on the social determinants of health through a critical analysis of the relationships between social factors (e. g, ethnicity, race, gender, socio-economic status, employment, climate change) and patterns of health and illness across the lifespan in contemporary Australia. The unit introduces students to epidemiology, the study of causes and patterns of disease within defined populations and research, which provides the basis for understanding social determinants of health. This unit also explores ideas and beliefs about health, illness and care that are relevant in the Australian context and introduces students to the study of primary health care, cultural safety and cultural competence as these relate to nursing and health care more broadly in contemporary Australia.

This unit of study complements NURS5081Introduction to Nursing Practice and further develops the understanding of clinical judgement in practice and the role of nurses in providing comprehensive care to those experiencing hospitalisation. This includes but is not limited to: maintenance of appropriate fluid status, preventing and controlling healthcare associated infection control, quality use of oral medications, effective levels of oxygenation and pain management. This knowledge will be extended to incorporate the experience of caring for patients when the body fails to function as expected, and particularly where surgery is required. Students undertaking this unit of study will further develop skills in physical assessment, communication, and documentation and will be introduced to safe medication administration. All learning experiences focus on providing effective and safe care to people from diverse cultural and social population groups. Unit content is underpinned by the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards (ACSQHC, 2011).

This unit of study complements NURS5085 Mental Health Nursing Practice and NURS5006 Illness Experience and Nursing Care, focusing on the responses of individuals and others to disruption to health. Here the emphasis is on the commonly occurring conditions which are often chronic but may exhibit acute phases. Such conditions may include asthma, cardiac disease, diabetes and renal failure. A lifespan approach will be in evidence throughout as these diseases manifest and are treated differently as they occur at different life stages. In this unit students will further develop comprehensive health assessment skills and their understanding of quality use of medicines.

Mental health issues and psychosocial distress are ongoing global concerns due to their substantial impact at personal, social and economic levels. One in five Australians aged 16–85 years has experienced a common mental health condition, and most of the population will experience variations in mental health and wellbeing during their life. This unit of study is the foundational mental health unit of study and is based on the principle that mental health is an integral aspect of overall health and wellbeing. Understanding mental health and mental health issues, and appropriate knowledge and skills to promote psychosocial wellbeing and effectively respond to psychosocial distress, are essential for all nurses. This unit is underpinned by a whole-person approach; it explores the issue of co-associated physical and mental health conditions, and privileges unique subjective experiences and perspectives of people encountering mental health issues.
Students will be introduced to the spectrum of mental health and wellbeing and psychosocial distress and mental health conditions, and their conceptual premises. They will explore how these are experienced across the life span (early childhood to older age), and by different sociocultural groups (e.g. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples; CALD; LGBTQI). Students will develop their understanding of the lived experiences of mental health issues and conditions, including the challenges of stigma and discrimination, and the impacts of personal and clinical recovery. Mental health issues will be examined using the biopsychosocial framework to increase understanding of the influence of risk and protective factors, variations in experiences and changes, and the evidence for diverse psychotherapeutic approaches and treatments.
The role of the nurse will be explored in relation to: promoting mental health and supporting recovery; preventing mental health issues from developing or exacerbating; and working with in partnership with people and their family/support networks to effectively respond to psychosocial distress and manage the impacts of mental health conditions. Poor physical health can increase the complexity and burden of the experience of mental health conditions, therefore comorbid physical health concerns and their implications for nursing practice are also examined. Students will acquire knowledge and skills that will prepare them to work safely and effectively with people of diverse ages and sociocultural backgrounds. They will develop and demonstrate foundation interpersonal communication and documentation skills and biopsychosocial nursing assessment and interventions that encompass cultural safety, recovery and strengths-oriented language, and professional and legal responsibilities.

This unit of study addresses nursing practices designed to meet the needs of individuals and families who are either living with a chronic condition or caring for a person with a chronic condition. Chronic conditions may impact diverse aspects of a person’s physical, psychological, emotional, social, economic and spiritual health. The complexities of chronic health will be investigated using examples of common chronic health conditions that people experience across the lifespan. An emphasis is placed on a holistic approach to nursing care, irrespective of the health setting. Continuity of care provision between hospital and community is emphasised. Non modifiable and modifiable risk factors that contribute to the development of chronic conditions are identified. Social determinant factors and how these facilitate and inhibit a person from self-managing their chronic condition are explored. The dynamics of self-management and how nurses collaborate with persons, as partners in care to encourage autonomous decisions, is investigated. The importance of community engagement in addressing issues associated with chronic conditions as well as persons who identify as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander will be studied. Nursing skills and knowledge relevant to palliative care will be addressed, including symptom management and psychosocial care required to facilitate a peaceful and dignified death.

This unit of study addresses nursing practices and interventions that are designed to meet the needs of seriously or critically ill patients being nursed in high acuity hospital settings. It builds on the knowledge, skills and experiences gained in NURS5084 Nursing the Acutely Ill Person and NURS5043 Understanding Health and Managing Disease. The majority of the unit content is devoted to the general field of medical/surgical nursing of seriously or critically ill patients in a high acuity setting. Historically many of these patients would have been located in the emergency or critical care areas of acute hospitals. This unit, however, recognises that changes within the health care system mean that a majority of ‘general’ wards in acute hospital settings have a significantly high acuity population. It also recognises that many patients being nursed in these settings are elderly. The unit explores (through the use of case studies) acute life-threatening health problems such as; interruptions to circulation, neurological functioning and respiratory function. An important component of this unit of study is the understanding of the nursing assessment and management required when caring for deteriorating patients and those with patients with rapidly changing clinical conditions.

Advanced knowledge of clinical leadership is inherent in the role of a registered nurse in a range of contexts to fulfil the mandate for patient safety and quality in health care. The high proportion of nurses within the health care workforce compared to any other health care profession, points to nurses as having the potential for the greatest influence on patient safety and person-centred quality care. The unit of study aims to equip students to develop their understanding of leadership in nursing and the specific contribution of nursing clinical leadership to the safety and quality of patient care.
The unit also aims to increase students’ teamwork; followership and collaborative skills; and their understanding of how these contribute to effective communication in professional healthcare settings. Through their engagement with the unit, students will build upon their capabilities to become a reflective clinician. Students will advance their knowledge and application of the regulatory, legal, and ethical frameworks that safeguard the public and by which they will be accountable. This unit of study also equips students with the skills to effectively transition to a graduate registered nurse.

This unit of study explores contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health and the ways in which historical circumstances have had, and continue to have, an impact on the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Students will explore the most significant social determinants of health as these relate to the health of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations. The subject includes introduction to key terminology, concepts and skills that can enable students to engage in respectful and culturally safe health care with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. While the unit will focus primarily on the health of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, it will also provide opportunity for comparison with the health of the Indigenous populations in other nations. The subject will provide an overview of and opportunity for critical discussion in relation to strategic planning in Indigenous health contexts. Students will have opportunity to focus specifically on Indigenous health programs, and to examine issues and control, planning, delivery and evaluation processes.

This unit of study examines the major concepts and principles of community health nursing based on primary health care principles. It draws on public health concepts to focus on health promotion/illness prevention, community assessment and management of public health problems using epidemiological concepts integral to community health nursing. The nurse’s role in infectious disease outbreak investigation and screening is also explored. The primary health care principles also inform community nursing practice to focus on individual, family and home assessment and case management. Increasingly complex and chronic health conditions are being managed in the community and concepts of self-management, partnering with consumers are integrated into the unit. Approaches to the provision of nursing care for people of across the lifespan with acute, chronic, or life-threatening illness in settings where they live will be critiqued. Particular attention is given to the home visit process: its therapeutic nature, communication skills, ethical and safety issues.
Students undertake a community assessment using a 'community profile' approach. This approach will be extended to explore and plan for the health needs of communities who experience health disparities including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, people living with physical, intellectual or psychiatric disabilities, minority cultural groups, and the homeless. Professional experience placements in the community provide students with the opportunity to consolidate and integrate theoretical knowledge and community nursing practice.

This unit of study critically analyses the Australian health-care system, with an emphasis on its structure, funding arrangements, and the ways in which it is influenced by contemporary political issues and debates. The unit focuses on issues of access and equity, resource allocation, multidisciplinary teamwork, human rights, health care ethics, and issues associated with care of particular population groups including older people, Indigenous Australians, refugees and other immigrants. The Australian health care system is compared with other national health care systems to help students to critically evaluate the effectiveness of the Australian system in global terms. The unit explores the role of nurses as global citizens and the role of the profession in its global context. The unit also develops student understanding of contemporary ways of working and nursing models of care.

This unit of study builds on foundational research methods introduced within the pre-requisite units. It aims to prepare students to recognise the quality and appropriateness of research for translation into nursing knowledge and practice. The unit introduces students to the process of inquiry: to Ask, Acquire, Appraise, Apply and Evaluate. This involves the translation of uncertainty to an answerable question, systematic retrieval of the best available evidence, critically appraising studies for quality and appropriateness, summarising the evidence, and implementing findings where appropriate. The unit introduces students to the application of ethical principles to research. Students will apply frameworks that guide the implementation of findings into practice. They will learn to apply research evidence in the context of patient and family values and the organisational, ethical and policy environment.

This unit of study extends students’ knowledge and skills in a clinical environment of their choice. It provides students the opportunity to consolidate prior learning and expands their knowledge and clinical reasoning skills across a variety of health care settings. Students will select one of five streams: Paediatrics, Clinical Practice, Mental Health, Aged Care and High Acuity Nursing.
Nursing practice will be critically explored from an interprofessional perspective and the importance of documentation and communication including digital health technologies will be highlighted.