92471 Introduction to Specialty Practice: Care of the Older Person
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Subject handbook information prior to 2025 is available in the Archives.
Credit points: 6 cp
Subject level:
Undergraduate
Result type: Grade and marksRequisite(s): (92438 Medical Surgical Nursing OR 92450 Medical Surgical Nursing (Graduate Entry) OR 92024 Medical Surgical Nursing (Graduate Entry) OR 92322 Medical Surgical Nursing OR 92454 Medical Surgical Nursing)) OR ((93211 Clinical Practice 2B OR 93225 Clinical Practice 2B) AND (93207 Foundations of Nursing Practice 2A OR 93200 Foundations of Nursing Practice 2A) AND (93224 Foundations of Nursing Practice 2B OR 93210 Foundations of Nursing Practice 2B) AND (93214c Foundations of Nursing Practice 3A OR 93228c Foundations of Nursing Practice 3A)
The lower case 'c' after the subject code indicates that the subject is a corequisite. See definitions for details.
Note
92472 Introduction to Specialty Practice: Community Health Nursing is not offered in 2024
Description
Caring for an older person is a complex and yet fulfilling area of clinical expertise. The imminent rapidly ageing population brings a plethora of challenges and demands which this subject aims to further explore. Older person nursing is designed to promote specialty practice for students in caring for the complex needs of older persons in the community and in acute care settings. The framework of the subject is to develop complex skill profiles for supporting the needs of a deteriorating older person. Based on strong theoretical foundations, students have the opportunity to participate in a variety of simulation activities.
Subject learning objectives (SLOs)
| A. | Discuss key practices and principles of caring for an older person, delivered within the context of interprofessional teams, across varied acute care and community settings (RN Standards for Practice 1.1, 2.6, 6.1, 7.1 ). |
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| B. | Demonstrate an understanding of key principles and practices of a comprehensive assessment of an older person and evidence based management of common health conditions. (RN Standards for Practice 3.5, 3.7, 4.2, 5.1). |
| C. | Identify a deteriorating older person and demonstrate knowledge of appropriate interventions to instruct the development of optimal plans of care (RN Standards for Practice 1.3, 1.6, 4.1, 5.3, 7.2). |
| D. | Demonstrate effective behaviour support strategies when caring for an older person with cognitive impairment. (RN Standards for Practice 1.2, 2.2, 2.5, 5.2, 6.4). |
| E. | Discuss social, political, economic, environmental, cultural and ethnic influences on the health and wellbeing of older people. (RN Standards for Practice 1.1, 2.2, 3.5, 6.6). |
Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)
This subject also contributes specifically to the following graduate attributes:
- The ability to plan and provide care that is respectful of each individuals’ needs, values and life experiences (1.0)
- Demonstrates an ability to provide holistic and compassionate care that takes into account people's lived experience, views and feelings. (1.1)
- The ability to communicate and collaborate safely, compassionately and respectfully. (3.0)
- The ability to provide patient care premised on the best available evidence (4.0)
- The intellectual capacity to use theoretical knowledge to address complex and non-routine clinical issues (6.0)
Teaching and learning strategies
In this subject, students will participate in a range of teaching and learning strategies that are designed to encourage them to engage with nursing care of older adults in various healthcare settings.
Clinical skills, collaboration, communication and simulation
Students participate in workshops that focus on integration of key concepts and skills. In these sessions, students are introduced to a range of nursing skills, including assessments, interventions and simulation activities. Simulation activities are practical learning experiences designed to give students exposure to a range of scenarios that may be encountered in practice. Activities include the use of audio-visual aids and clinical equipment set-ups, teaching staff or students as simulated patients/consumers. Students learn and practice clinical and interpersonal skills in groups with case scenarios in the workshops. These practice scenarios incorporate the development of professional communication skills including professional and therapeutic communication required for nursing practice. Students are provided feedback and with the opportunity to collaborate and develop skills to work effectively as a team member.
Patient stories and clinical case scenarios
Cases are used to help students explore health related scenarios. Cases depict patients/consumers and their families in acute care, aged care settings and the community. 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.
Clinical Placement
In this subject students complete 80 hours of clinical placement. Placements are provided in a range of healthcare facilities in mostly metropolitan locations. Students provide nursing care within their scope of practice alongside multidisciplinary teams to develop and consolidate their knowledge, skills and attributes relevant to the clinical field.
All clinical placements are managed under the UTS Internships Management Policy and students must comply and act in accordance with the Student Rules, the Student Rights and Responsibilities Policy and the Equity, Inclusion and Respect Policy.
In this subject, the following students are not required to complete a clinical placement for the Introduction to Specialty Practice subject:
- Students enrolled in the STM91471 Bachelor of Nursing Standard Program in 2021 or thereafter
- Students enrolled in the STM91472 Bachelor of Nursing Enrolled Nurse Accelerated program in 2022 or thereafter
Content (topics)
- Assessment of an older person whereby a clinician accesses a body of knowledge and maximises resources available at point of care to undertake a comprehensive assessment and interventions based on contemporary evidenced based practices.
- Chronicity and multimorbidity in ageing considers the complex conditions that older persons experience, the micro, meso and macro influences on their wellbeing, and the nature of services and resources to support needs for older persons.
- Principles of strengths based care whereby dignity and personhood is acknowledged and promoted to ensure that the wellbeing of older persons is the focus of nursing care.
- Students will develop understanding of behaviour support strategies for persons with cogntive impairment, ethical considerations in decision making, and the importance of interprofessional collaborative practice in the care of older person.
Assessment
Assessment task 1: Caring for an older person: 2 Quizzes
| Intent: | Students will demonstrate knowledge of the content learnt in the workshop classes and the relevant online preparatory material on Canvas. |
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| 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): 1.0, 4.0 and 6.0 |
| Type: | Quiz/test |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 20% |
| Length: | 20 minutes for each quiz. A total of two (2) quizzes. |
Assessment task 2: Group work: Role Play
| Intent: | The aim of this authentic assessment is to provide an opportunity for students to demonstrate their clinical reasoning and communication skills with the interprofessional team, the care recipient and their significant persons.
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|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s): A, B, C and D This assessment task contributes to the development of graduate attribute(s): 1.0, 3.0, 4.0 and 6.0 |
| Type: | Presentation |
| Groupwork: | Group, individually assessed |
| Weight: | 30% |
| Length: | 15-20 minutes Role Play |
Assessment task 3: Video Presentation
| Intent: | This assessment will provide an opportunity for students to develop knowledge on the complex care needs of older persons that arise due to the ageing process, and relevant social, political, economic, environmental, cultural and ethnic influences on their health and wellbeing. Students will also demonstrate clinical reasoning, person-centred approach, and relevant interprofessional collaborative skills in caring for the older person. |
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| 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): 1.0, 3.0, 4.0 and 6.0 |
| Type: | Case study |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Weight: | 50% |
| Length: | Video presentation: 10-15 minutes |
Assessment task 4: Clinical Placement
| 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): 1.0, 1.1, 4.0 and 6.0 |
|---|---|
| Type: | Laboratory/practical |
| Groupwork: | Individual |
| Length: | 80 hours |
Required texts
There is no prescribed text for this elective. Linkage to resource material will be be provided for the subject in Canvas.
Recommended texts
Johnson, A & Chang, E (Eds) (2021). Caring for older people in Australia: Principles for nursing practice, Wiley& Sons Australia.
Thistlethwaite. (2012). Values-Based Interprofessional Collaborative Practice: Working Together in Health Care. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139108904
References
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.
Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety. (2021). Final Report: Care, Dignity and Respect. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia
Aged Care Workforce Strategy Taskforce (2018). A Matter of Care Australia’s Aged Care Workforce Strategy. Canberra: Commonwealth of Australia
Australian Health Ministers Advisory Council (2017). National Strategic Framework for Chronic Conditions. Government Canberra
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2018). Older Australia at a Glance 4th Edn, Cat. No. AGE87, AIHW, Canberra.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2021). Dementia in Australia. Retrieved from https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/dementia/dementia-in-aus
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2020). Australia’s health 2020: data insights. Canberra: AIHW.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2021. Australia’s welfare 2021: in brief. Cat. no. AUS 237. Canberra: AIHW.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2019). Consumers experience of residential aged care Australia 2017-2019. Cat No AGE101, AIHW Canberra
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
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
Nancarrow SA, Booth A, Ariss S, Smith T, Enderby P, Roots A. Ten principles of good interdisciplinary team work. Human Resource Health. 2013 May 10;11:19. doi: 10.1186/1478-4491-11-19.
Nolan, M. (1995). Towards an ethos of interdisciplinary practice. BMJ, 311(7000), 305-307. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.311.7000.305
Victoria Health. (2021). An interdisciplinary approach to caring. Department of Health. https://www.health.vic.gov.au/patient-care/an-interdisciplinary-approach-to-caring
McNaughton, S. M., Flood, B., Morgan, C. J., & Saravanakumar, P. (2021). Existing models of interprofessional collaborative practice in primary healthcare: a scoping review. Journal of Interprofessional Care, 35(6), 940-952.
Thistlethwaite. (2012). Values-Based Interprofessional Collaborative Practice: Working Together in Health Care. Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139108904
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