The ability to undertake a focused and comprehensive patient assessment is fundamental to nursing practice. Conducting patient assessment allows nurses to gather the requisite information to make sound clinical judgements. With an emphasis on the systematic collection of reliable and valid assessment data, this unit of study examines the knowledge, capabilities and clinical skills required to undertake comprehensive health assessment, inclusive of physical, mental health, social, ethnic and cultural dimensions in complex clinical situations. Underpinning any patient assessment is a detailed understanding of normal physiological processes and the ways in which illness and injury alters these processes.

With the ongoing changes in health care, particularly associated with increase patient acuity, technological development and consumer expectations, nurses are expected to ensure they provide patient care based on the best available evidence. This requires a sound understanding of alterations to normal physiological processes which assists nurses to make decisions about patient assessment and management. Within this unit of study an emphasis will be placed on exploring alterations to key physiological concepts and the associated patient assessment and management. Within in the context of these altered physiological states the acquisition of clinical assessment data, such as that obtained from laboratory and diagnostic testing, will be interpreted and applied to specific patient clinical presentations. Strategies to support evidence-based practice and to maintain physiological function will be examined with students undertaking critical appraisal of treatment guidelines. As part of specialty nursing practice, clinicians are required to have a comprehensive clinical skills repertoire and the requisite knowledge and skills to effectively use research and other information as the basis of their practice thinking. In the context of your area of practice, you will explore the complexity of and uncertainty in practice, while developing discipline-specific knowledge and skills that enable you to build the capacity for clinical judgement and practice.

Critical illness is associated with rapidly changing clinical presentations consequently nurses providing care for the critically ill must integrate complex physiological knowledge with advanced assessment skills in order to make sound clinical decisions. In this unit of study students will explore a variety of clinical presentations including those associated with single and multiple organ failure; traumatic injury; and chronic and complex illness. Management of these clinical conditions will be explored, specifically focusing on the evidence-base of interventions and their influence on patient outcome. Critical illness is also associated with short and longer term consequences for psychosocial wellbeing of both the patient and their family. As such, an emphasis will be placed on the experience of critical illness, psychosocial recovery and the influence of critical illness on the family unit.

Patients who experience severe traumatic injury or episodes of critical illness require advanced assessment and management in the pre-hospital phase, during transport to and stabilisation in the emergency department, and ongoing care in the intensive care unit. The critical illness/injury trajectory is complex and interdependent and effective care at each stage requires an appreciation of the care which has been provided as well as an understanding of potential ongoing management of the patient. In this unit of study we will examine the critical illness/injury trajectory from physiological and psychosocial perspectives. An evidence-based approach to patient management will focus on collaborative decision-making and the ways in which synthesised evidence informs patient care. This unit of study allows students to consolidate theoretical underpinnings of their practice and demonstrate the requisite knowledge, skills and attributes required to care for critically ill or injured patients through the completion of clinical assessments.

The ability to undertake a focused and comprehensive patient assessment is fundamental to nursing practice. Conducting patient assessment allows nurses to gather the requisite information to make sound clinical judgements. With an emphasis on the systematic collection of reliable and valid assessment data, this unit of study examines the knowledge, capabilities and clinical skills required to undertake comprehensive health assessment, inclusive of physical, mental health, social, ethnic and cultural dimensions in complex clinical situations. Underpinning any patient assessment is a detailed understanding of normal physiological processes and the ways in which illness and injury alters these processes.

With the ongoing changes in health care, particularly associated with increase patient acuity, technological development and consumer expectations, nurses are expected to ensure they provide patient care based on the best available evidence. This requires a sound understanding of alterations to normal physiological processes which assists nurses to make decisions about patient assessment and management. Within this unit of study an emphasis will be placed on exploring alterations to key physiological concepts and the associated patient assessment and management. Within in the context of these altered physiological states the acquisition of clinical assessment data, such as that obtained from laboratory and diagnostic testing, will be interpreted and applied to specific patient clinical presentations. Strategies to support evidence-based practice and to maintain physiological function will be examined with students undertaking critical appraisal of treatment guidelines. As part of specialty nursing practice, clinicians are required to have a comprehensive clinical skills repertoire and the requisite knowledge and skills to effectively use research and other information as the basis of their practice thinking. In the context of your area of practice, you will explore the complexity of and uncertainty in practice, while developing discipline-specific knowledge and skills that enable you to build the capacity for clinical judgement and practice.

In this unit of study you will critically analyse approaches to research through examination of the philosophical and theoretical origins of the research traditions and knowledge generation in nursing and other health research. Conceptualisation of research questions, selection of research designs, governance of research and research evidence and knowledge translation in the clinical setting will be explored. Opportunities will be provided to engage in research design and translation with reference to clinical nursing situations.

This unit of study explores ways of expanding nursingpractice.Nursespractising at an advanced practice level incorporate professional leadership, education, research and support of systems into their practice. Their practice includes relevant expertise, critical thinking, complex decision-making, autonomous practice and is effective and safe. They work within a generalist or specialist context and they are responsible and accountable in managing people who have complex healthcare requirements. The characteristics for expanded nursing practice are shaped by the contexts in which nurses practice including organisational needs.Nursing practice isinformedbytheory, evidence, experiential learning,legislationand by relevant nursing professional bodies and associations. In order to expand practice, nurses need to have comprehensive knowledge, skillsand clinicalcompetence relevanttothe context of theirpractice, with the primary motivation to meet the healthcareneeds of people. Therefore, this unit will assist students to envisage possibilities for expanding nursing practice within existing professional, organisationaland legislative frameworks. As part of expanding the individual nurse’s repertoire, students will have the opportunity to further develop specialistknowledge and practice related to a specific practice topic.

Critical illness is associated with rapidly changing clinical presentations consequently nurses providing care for the critically ill must integrate complex physiological knowledge with advanced assessment skills in order to make sound clinical decisions. In this unit of study students will explore a variety of clinical presentations including those associated with single and multiple organ failure; traumatic injury; and chronic and complex illness. Management of these clinical conditions will be explored, specifically focusing on the evidence-base of interventions and their influence on patient outcome. Critical illness is also associated with short and longer term consequences for psychosocial wellbeing of both the patient and their family. As such, an emphasis will be placed on the experience of critical illness, psychosocial recovery and the influence of critical illness on the family unit.

Patients who experience severe traumatic injury or episodes of critical illness require advanced assessment and management in the pre-hospital phase, during transport to and stabilisation in the emergency department, and ongoing care in the intensive care unit. The critical illness/injury trajectory is complex and interdependent and effective care at each stage requires an appreciation of the care which has been provided as well as an understanding of potential ongoing management of the patient. In this unit of study we will examine the critical illness/injury trajectory from physiological and psychosocial perspectives. An evidence-based approach to patient management will focus on collaborative decision-making and the ways in which synthesised evidence informs patient care. This unit of study allows students to consolidate theoretical underpinnings of their practice and demonstrate the requisite knowledge, skills and attributes required to care for critically ill or injured patients through the completion of clinical assessments.

This unit of study pursues a critical analysis of the theoretical constructs and practical applications underpinning nursing professional standards, regulation, clinical governance and accreditation in health care organisations and nursing practice. Many factors influence a culture of safety and quality in the clinical environment across domains of organisational safety, teamwork, management accountability and consumer involvement. These factors and how they can impact patient care and quality improvement initiatives will be examined in this unit of study utilising a better practice (quality/continuity of care/health outcomes/governance) framework.

The Australian healthcare system is dynamic and continues to experience significant clinical, structural and socio-political transformations. The need for strong and effective leadership has never been more evident, particularly at the clinical interface. While the concept of leadership is not new, the provision of leadership in the clinical arena is now a central component of clinical practice for all health professionals and particularly nurses who, as a profession, comprise much of the health workforce. This unit is structured to enhance the students understanding of what it means to be a nurse leader. It provides a framework for exploring nursing leadership at a personal, clinical and organisational level. It aims to encourage students to take initiative and create supportive and compassionate clinical environments that deliver high quality, safe care to patients. This unit of study pursues a critical analysis of leadership and the context in which nursing leadership occurs. It covers a broad range of topics and is designed to provide students with a detailed understanding of the multiple and often conflicting contexts in which nursing leadership is situated.

Professionals from varied backgrounds routinely encounter families of clients/students/patients. Engagement with families may be crucial to improving our understanding and for optimising outcomes; however, this process can also be challenging and complex. This unit of study explores ideas and practices for working with families and other systems drawing on systemic, dialogical and reflective practice approaches. Students are invited to consider the relevance of the unit of study content to their own professional practice and draw on their professional and personal contexts to learn with and from each other. Due to Course structure, NURS5100 may only be taken as a Semester 2 elective, unless academic advice and permission is sought from the Director, Postgraduate Advanced Studies.

This unit of study will provide foundational knowledge about primary health care with an emphasis on the application of the principles to practice. The World Health Organization (WHO) framework of primary health care as a philosophy, a set of activities and a strategy for organizing health services will be critiqued and how it relates to individuals, families and communities will be explored. The importance of (i) holistic understanding and recognition of social determinants of health, (ii) equality, affordability, availability, appropriateness, accessibility and acceptability in health care service provision, (iii) the application of primary health care to different health care settings.

This unit of study will evaluate the burden and impact of chronic illness on Australian society and the local and international chronic illness models and programs that have been developed. Students will explore the principles of chronic illness management, including relevant evidence-based decision-making processes and practices, the concepts of self-management, continuity of care and coordinated quality care. The National Health Priority Areas will be examined from both population and personal illness experience perspectives. Unit content will be informed by person-centred, interdisciplinary, integrated continuity of care approaches to care and service delivery as these relate to the management of chronic illness by nurses.

The unit will address characteristics of the registered nurse role and how specialty-focused nursing practice impacts on patient care. Students will undertake an exploration of the accuracy of data and information used to formulate evidence-based practice. In particular, students will explore the research evidence that supports contemporary clinical nursing practice and examine how this evidence can be used to deliver clinical nursing practice to different patient groups. To investigate the evidence base for nursing practice, students will examine in detail an area of current relevant practice. This topic will be related to their own contemporary practices and students will investigate the evidence base and how this supports or changes current practice.

This unit of study will assist students (as potential senior clinicians) to extend their development of a critically informed personal/professional position on the many issues impacting clinical nursing practice and to further develop the skills required to argue that position effectively within current clinical contexts and climates. The unit will provide a framework within which students will explore current professionally relevant clinical and professionally related situations from several perspectives such as those of tertiary and professional education, local, state and federal government policy development and implementation, health services management, workforce and regulatory perspectives. Students will also conceptualise and develop a personal portfolio incorporating the work undertaken during their degree and including guided reflections on their observation and analysis of senior/advanced practice roles in nursing and assess their current state of readiness to undertake the role of a senior clinician within a personally relevant workplace.

This unit of study will provide an opportunity for students with an interest in research to conduct an in depth exploration of a topic that you have identified as being of personal or professional relevance and/or research interest. To complete this unit you will be expected to work independently selecting, locating and analysing the relevant literature to prepare a scholarly piece of work reviewing current knowledge on your identified topic. While you will be expected to pursue your investigation as an independent scholar you will be assisted in your work by regular meetings with the unit coordinator and student colleagues. Your work may be presented in either minor thesis or journal manuscript formats and will be assessed in a manner appropriate for determining suitability for further research higher degree work. Students are advised to indicate their interest in undertaking the research capstone to the NURS5080 unit of study coordinator as they complete the unit of study NURS5069 Research in Nursing and Health Care, so that specific academic advice can be provided. NURS5080 Capstone (Research) is also an important component of the Sydney Nursing School pathway to research higher degree enrolment and students interested in pursuing this pathway should also seek academic advice from the Director Postgraduate Advanced Studies Coordinator (Research Education) before enrolling in the second semester of their course.