Nursing Art and Science: Professional Foundations

Curriculum guideline

Effective Date:
Course
Discontinued
No
Course code
NURS 2111
Descriptive
Nursing Art and Science: Professional Foundations
Department
Nursing
Faculty
Health Sciences
Credits
3.00
Start date
End term
Not Specified
PLAR
No
Semester length
15 weeks
Max class size
36
Course designation
None
Industry designation
None
Contact hours

Lecture: 4 hours/week

Method(s) of instruction
Lecture
Learning activities

Faculty will facilitate the student's integration of nursing theory and promote the development of critical inquiry, clinical reasoning and judgment through learning activities such as lectures, group discussions, client-based scenarios, and using electronic resources.

Course description
This is the first in a Nursing Art and Science course series. Students will explore the three interrelated concepts: professional nursing practice, health, and nursing practice with older adults. Students are introduced to the British Columbia College of Nurses and Midwives (BCCNM) Standards and Competencies. Emphasis is placed on the nurse's role in the healthcare system, promoting health and wellness, and the relationship between nursing theory, research, and practice. Students will be introduced to tools to aid in developing critical reflection, clinical reasoning, and judgment in their nursing practice.
Course content

Professional Nursing Practice:

  • Professionalism
  • Nursing image
  • The role of nurses and other healthcare professionals
  • Interprofessional collaboration
  • Current trends and issues in nursing (introduction)
  • Professional Organizations
  • CNA Code of Ethics

BCCNM:

  • Professional standards
  • Practice standards
  • Scope of practice
  • Entry-level competencies

 Legal Responsibilities:

  • Legal issues
  • Client rights
  • Documentation
  • Confidentiality

The Douglas College Decision-Making Framework:

  • Evidence-informed practice

Health and Health Promotion:

  • Theories and models (introduction)
  • Historical approaches to health
  • Wellness and health maintenance
  • Determinants of Health
  • Choice
  • Responsibility
  • Cultural safety, humility, and anti-racist practices
  • Health profile, personal health, and health risk
  • Personal empowerment
  • Prevention (introduction)
  • Nutrition

Older Adults: Health, Health Challenges, and Transitions:

  • Common and predictable health challenges and transitions associated with aging
  • Individual experiences of health, health challenges, and aging
  • Beliefs and values
  • Principles guiding nursing practice with older adults
    • Growth and development - considerations of the older adult
    • Theories of aging
  • Experience and interpretation of health challenges and transitions (e.g. loss, courage, resilience, independence, dependence)
  • Factors affecting wellness (e.g., isolation, loss, stress, potential for abuse)

 Nursing Care:

  • Holistic older adult assessment
  • Older adults who are higher risk for poor health outcomes
  • Provision of supportive care
  • End-of-life-care
  • The nursing process
Learning outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:

  1. Demonstrate beginner-level knowledge about the role of nurses, the nursing profession, and the professional standards and competencies in contemporary nursing practice;
  2. Expand their perspective of health, and identify factors that contribute to wellness and health promotion;
  3. Acknowledge individual experiences of health and health challenges as unique and influenced by personal meaning;
  4. Describe common and predictable health challenges and health transitions of the older adult;
  5. Integrate knowledge in planning safe, ethical, competent, compassionate, and evidence-informed nursing care with older adults experiencing a disruption in their health and quality of life;
  6. Critically reflect on how theory and research influence practice.
Means of assessment

This is a graded course, and the means of assessment are consistent with the Douglas College Evaluation Policy. The instructor's course outline will be available to students by the first class and list the evaluative components of the course.

Textbook materials

The instructor's course outline will be available to students by the first class and list the required textbooks and materials that students must purchase.

Prerequisites

Students in the BSN program are required to maintain a passing grade of 65% (C+) in all courses in order to progress in the program.

Corequisites
Which prerequisite