92460 Nursing Care of the Older Person
Warning: The information on this page is indicative. The subject outline for a
particular session, location and mode of offering is the authoritative source
of all information about the subject for that offering. Required texts, recommended texts and references in particular are likely to change. Students will be provided with a subject outline once they enrol in the subject.
Subject handbook information prior to 2025 is available in the Archives.
Credit points: 6 cp
Subject level:
Undergraduate
Result type: Grade and marksRequisite(s): (92455 Family and Children's Nursing AND 92454 Medical Surgical Nursing) OR ((92439 Family and Children's Nursing OR 92438 Medical Surgical Nursing))
There are course requisites for this subject. See access conditions.
Description
In this subject students explore the foundation principles and practice of person-centred nursing care of the older person in a variety of health care contexts. Students have the opportunity to explore the normal ageing process and the diseases and dysfunctions that can occur in older age. The provision of quality care to the older person with multiple physical, social and psychological co-morbidities is emphasised. Students gain skills in undertaking comprehensive physical and psychological health assessments of older persons and interprofessional approaches to care. Students continue to develop nursing skills specifically in relation to wound care, continence and bowel management, enteral supports, and end-of-life care. Through the provision of interactive online modules, collaborative tutorials and lectures provided by industry experts, this subject encourages students to engage with this important area of healthcare.
Subject learning objectives (SLOs)
| A. | Determine the processes of and supports for healthy ageing in contemporary Australian society using a health promotion framework (RN Standards for Practice 1, 2, 4, 6 & 7). |
|---|---|
| B. | Perform comprehensive person centred assessments, care planning and interventions for the older person based on foundational gerontological knowledge and skills (RN Standards for Practice 3, 4, 5 & 7). |
| C. | Identify the implications of chronic and/or life limiting illness for the older person and their family, the impact of multiple co-morbidities and the role of the nurse in enabling optimal care (RN Standards for Practice 1, 2, 4, 5, 6 & 7). |
| D. | Examine the nature and scope of an interprofessional and intraprofessional approach to the continuity of care of the older person, across varied healthcare contexts (RN Standards for Practice 2, 5 & 7). |
| E. | Develop and demonstrate nursing knowledge through reading, questioning and synthesising relevant professional and scholarly evidence, including government legislation and policies and apply such evidence to nursing practice, writing in a style appropriate to purpose and context (RN Standards for Practice 1, 3 & 6). |
| F. | Develop therapeutic communication skills in the assessment of older people with complex mental health needs (RN Standards for Practice 2, 3 & 7). |
Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)
This subject also contributes specifically to the following graduate attributes:
- Engage in person-centred care that is appropriately sensitive to the needs of individuals, families and communities (2.0)
- Communicate and collaborate effectively and respectfully with diverse groups (3.0)
- Inquire critically to assess a body of evidence to inform practice (4.0)
Teaching and learning strategies
In this subject, you will participate in a range of teaching and learning strategies that are designed to encourage you to engage with nursing care of older persons.Each 6-unit subject requires at least 140 hours of work (including face-to-face and self-directed learning activities) to successfully complete academic requirements.
Case scenarios
In laboratories, you will be introduced to a range of case scenarios based on older people with different conditions in a range of contexts for care or healthy ageing. Cases are used to help students explore health related scenarios for older people. Cases depict older persons and their families in clinical or community situations. Students use these scenarios to learn concepts, interpret information, form clinical judgements and develop creative solutions. Critical thinking is developed through analysis, interpretation of and reflection on issues or situations relevant to older people.
Information Technologies
Information technologies will be used by students to access relevant evidence based guidelines related to health assessment and health promotion in addition to resources suitable for encouraging patient participation in health management.
Lectures and online learning materials
In this subject this benefits from both the real time delivery of content and access to online resources including podcasts, videos and learning modules. Face to face and online lectures enable students to quickly clarify complex descriptions and terminology, and engage with sensitive and confronting topics such as advance care planning and end of life care. Using scenario-based learning software, problem-based progressive case studies unfold at the student's pace and instant feedback is provided to develop students' judgement.
Clinical skills, communication and simulation
Students participate in clinical laboratory sessions that focus on integration of key concepts and skills. In these sessions, students are introduced to a range of nursing skills, including assessment and interventions and simulation activities. Simulation activities are practical learning experiences designed to give students exposure to a comprehensive range of scenarios that may be encountered in practice. Students learn and practice clinical and inter-personal skills with older person case scenarios in nursing laboratories, designed to replicate the clinical environment. Simulation activities include the use of audio-visual aids, interactive-computer programs and clinical equipment set-ups with mannequins, teaching staff or students as pretend patients/consumers. These activities are designed to support student preparation for assessment items, scaffolding learning across the domains of nursing assessment and intervention, and by giving group formative feedback from peers and teaching staff on planning of nursing care. Teaching and learning strategies incorporate the development of professional communication skills including professional and therapeutic communication required for nursing practice. The needs of students for whom English is an additional language will be taken into account.
Structured Decision Making Activities
Working in small teams students engage in real-time, shared decision-making activities. This assists students to engage with policies and utilise knowledge to formulate responses to patient and family situations, under time pressure, as would be expected within a clinical practice setting. Together, students learn to quickly achieve consensus for decisions. Feedback for decision outcomes is also provided in real-time allowing students to assess and reflect on their decision making choices and indeed the impact of these on older patients and their families.
Academic Writing
Demonstrating information literacy and technology skills, students search and synthesise the professional literature to answer an questions. Students comply with academic writing practices and use information ethically, legally and respectfully.
Content (topics)
Healthy ageing in a range of contexts within Australian society including: transition through health, illness and death; achieving quality of life; poly-pharmacy in health maintenance; carer support; mental health issues.
Healthy ageing and ill health including: normal ageing processes; alteration to functional health patterns; cognitive dysfunction; dementia, delirium, anxiety and depression; substance abuse; long term use of psychotropic medications; co-morbidity and chronicity; disease and disability.
Comprehensive, person centred, social and health assessment using strengths based approach for care planning including: comprehensive history taking; therapeutic communication in the assessment of individuals who have complex physical and/or mental health needs; person centred care planning, nursing intervention and care delivery.
Interprofessional approaches to the continuity of care within varied health care contexts including: collaborative care across the health professions, community care, transitional care, acute care, rehabilitation, differing levels of residential aged care, accommodating different ethnic and socioeconomic groups and cultural expectations in residential aged care.
Assessment
Assessment task 1: Quizzes
| Intent: | The intent of the assessment is for students to make decisions for some key clinical scenarios utilising knowledge and information sources they would access in clinical practice (policies and guidelines). |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s): A, B, C, D and E This assessment task contributes to the development of graduate attribute(s): 2.0 |
| Type: | Quiz/test |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 10% |
| Length: | Two short online quizzes on case scenarios for urinary Incontinence/constipation and aged care ethics. Students will need to have completed learning activities and are provided with policy and evidence documents to complete these quizzes. Each quiz is worth five marks. |
Assessment task 2: Person-centred care planning study
| Intent: | The intent of this assignment is for students to demonstrate their ability to identify and describe issues of concern for an older person, access and critically analyse the literature, select appropriate articles and prepare a critical analysis of the topic area. This will enable students to adopt and incorporate evidence based interventions in future practice. In addition, students will be able to demonstrate their ability to write clearly and succinctly to reflect their understanding of the topic. Students will receive feedback as per the marking criteria and within the paper |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s): B and F This assessment task contributes to the development of graduate attribute(s): 2.0 and 3.0 |
| Type: | Case study |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 45% |
| Length: | 1200 words, plus Appendix 1 (Interview summary) |
Assessment task 3: Exam
| Intent: | The intent of this assessment is for students to utilise the knowledge gained in this subject to answer questions for a number of case scenarios for each domain of nursing care of an older person-health ageing, chronic disease, care of a deteriorating older person and palliation. |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s): F This assessment task contributes to the development of graduate attribute(s): 4.0 |
| Type: | Examination |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 45% |
| Length: | 100 MCQ in 2 hours |
| Criteria: | The intent of this assessment is for students to utilise the knowledge gained in this subject to answer questions for a number of case scenarios for each domain of nursing care of an older person-health ageing, chronic disease, care of a deteriorating older person and palliation. |
References
Aged Care Workforce Strategy Taskforce. (2018). A Matter of Care Australia’s Aged Care Workforce Strategy. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia. https://www.health.gov.au/resources/publications/a-matter-of-care-australias-aged-care-workforce-strategy
Australian Health Ministers Advisory Council. (2017). National Strategic Framework for Chronic Conditions. Government Canberra. https://www.health.gov.au/resources/publications/national-strategic-framework-for-chronic-conditions
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2012). Dementia in Australia. Cat No AGE70, AIHW, Canberra.https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/dementia/dementia-in-australia/contents/table-of-contents
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2013). National health priority areas. http://www.aihw.gov.au/national-health-priority-areas/ https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/health-care-quality-performance/national-health-priority-areas-first-report/related-material
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2015). Use of aged care services before death. Data linkage series no. 19. Cat. no. CSI 21. Canberra: AIHW. https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/aged-care/use-of-aged-care-services-before-death/contents/table-of-contents
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2018). Australia’s Health 2018. Canberra, Cat. No. AUS 221.https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/australias-health/australias-health-2018/contents/table-of-contents
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2018). Causes of death patterns and peoples use of aged care: a Pathways in Aged Care analysis of 2012-2014 death statistics. Canberra: AIHW. https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/aged-care/cause-of-death-patterns-peoples-use-of-aged-care/contents/table-of-contents
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2018). Older Australia at a Glance 4th Edn, Cat. No. AGE87, AIHW, Canberra.http://DOI: 10.25816/5ec5bda5ed178
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2019). Australia’s Welfare 2019: data insights Canberra, Cat. No. AUS 226. http://doi.org/10.25816/5d5e14e6778df
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2019). Consumers experience of residential aged care Australia 2017-2019. Cat No AGE101, AIHW Canberra. https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/aged-care/consumers-experience-of-residential-aged-care/contents/summary
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2019). Older people. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia Retrieved from https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports-data/population-groups/older-people/about
Brown, D., Edwards, H., Buckley, T., & Atiken, R. (2019). Lewis’ medical-surgical nursing: Assessment and management of clinical problems, 5th edn, Elsevier/Mosby, Sydney.
Cohen, J., & Deliens. L. (2012). A Public Health Perspective on End of Life Care. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Crisp, J., Douglas, C., Reberio, G., & Waters D. (2016). Potter and Perry’s fundamentals of nursing, 5th edn, Mosby/Elsevier, Sydney.
Forsgren, S., Christensen, T., & Hedemalm, A. (2014). Evaluation of the case method in nursing education. Nurse Education in Practice, 14(2), 164-169. http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.lib.uts.edu.au/10.1016/j.nepr.2013.08.003
Garner, K.K., Goodwin, J.A., McSweeney, J.C, & Kirchner, J.E. (2013). Nurse executives' perceptions of end-of-life care provided in hospitals. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2013;45(2):235-243. http://doi:10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2012.02.021
Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia. (2016). Registered Nurse Standards for Pratice, https://www.nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au/Codes-Guidelines-Statements/Professional-standards/registered-nurse-standards-for-practice.aspx
Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety. (2019). Interim Report: Neglect Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia. https://agedcare.royalcommission.gov.au/publications/interim-report
Other resources
UTS Student Centre
Building 10
Monday to Friday: 9am - 5pm
Tel: 1300 ASK UTS (1300 275 887)
Details for student centres: www.uts.edu.au/current-students/contacts/general-contacts
For other resources/information refer to the Faculty of Health website (www.uts.edu.au/about/faculty-health) and Canvas at: https://canvas.uts.edu.au/.
UTS Library
The Library has a wide range of resources, facilities and services to support you including textbooks, subject readings, health literature databases, workshops and bookable study rooms. There is also a team of librarians to help you with your questions available via online chat, phone and in person. W: lib.uts.edu.au, Facebook: utslibrary, Twitter: @utslibrary Tel: (02) 9514 3666.
Improve your academic and English language skills
Marks for all assessment tasks such as assignments and examinations are given not only for what you write but also for how you write. If you would like the opportunity to improve your academic and English language skills, make an appointment with the HELPS (Higher Education Language & Presentation Support) Service in Student Services.
HELPS (Higher Education Language & Presentation Support)
HELPS provides assistance with English language proficiency and academic language. Students who need to develop their written and/or spoken English should make use of the free services offered by HELPS, including academic language workshops, vacation intensive courses, drop-in consultations, individual appointments and Conversations@UTS (www.ssu.uts.edu.au/helps). HELPS staff are also available for drop-in consultations at the UTS Library. Phone (02) 9514 9733
Please see www.uts.edu.au for additional information on other resources provided to students by UTS.
The Accessibility and Financial Assistance Service
The Accessibility Service can support students with disabilities, medical or mental health conditions, including temporary injuries (e.g., broken limbs). The Accessibility Service works with Academic Liaison Officers in each Faculty to provide ‘reasonable adjustments’ such as exam provisions, assistive technology, requests and strategies for managing your studies alongside your health condition. If you’re unsure whether you need assistance, we recommend getting in touch early and we can provide advice on how our service can assist you. Make an appointment with an Accessibility Consultant (AC) on +61 2 9514 1177 or Accessibility@uts.edu.au.
The Financial Assistance Service can assist you with financial aspects of life at university, including Centrelink information, tax returns and budgeting, interest-free student loans and grants to assist with course-related costs. Check eligibility and apply online and make an appointment on +61 2 9514 1177 or Financial.assistance@uts.edu.au.