Professional Nursing Practice

NURS N310 Professional Nursing Practice is a higher-level course that forms part of the Bachelor of Nursing degree programme. The course has been designed for registered nurses in Hong Kong. It is a one-year, ten-credit course.

The purpose of this Course Guide

Before you begin working on the content of the course, you need to understand how the course functions and how the various parts of it fit together. You will find the information you need in this Course Guide. You may be tempted to stop reading it in order to get started on your course work. Please don't. It is important that you understand how the system works. Many distance students are unsuccessful, not because they cannot do the work but because they do not understand how to do it. You will be able to tackle your studies with confidence if you read this Course Guide thoroughly now, and if you refer to it frequently while you are doing the course. It contains information you cannot find anywhere else.

The Course Guide tells you briefly what the course is about and how you can work your way through the material. It suggests the amount of time you are likely to spend in order to complete the course successfully. It also gives you guidance on your assignments. There are two assignments in this course. For detailed information, see the Assignment File. There are also 20 hours of tutorials that are linked to the course. You are strongly recommended to attend these tutorials. You will probably wish to refer to this Course Guide throughout the course to help clarify important points about studying with HKMU.

Course aims

The overall aim of Professional Nursing Practice is to advance your understanding of the conceptual dimensions of nursing practice.

Specifically, NURS N310 Professional Nursing Practice aims to:

1. Expand your understanding of the theoretical and research perspectives in nursing.
2. Develop your knowledge on issues related to professional nursing practice, including power, politics, and nursing leadership and management.

Course learning outcomes

Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:

1. Analyse the major theoretical perspectives in nursing and apply the nursing theories to clinical nursing practice.
2. Appraise the methodology adopted in and findings generated from nursing research.
3. Discuss the importance of evidence-based practice in nursing.
4. Compare the quantitative and qualitative approaches in nursing research.
5. Describe the various types of power in relation to nursing and discuss the impact of politics and professional organizations on the development of nursing.
6. Comment on issues related to nursing leadership and management in contemporary healthcare.
7. Elaborate on the strategies required for effective change and stress management.

Course description

In NURS N310 Professional Nursing Practice, you will be provided with opportunities to explore a range of theoretical perspectives in nursing. Discussions of research and critical issues related to the nursing discipline will also be included. There are no prerequisites for this course.

Course overview

The following table provides an overview of the course. It suggests the amount of time you should allow for completing units. The time needed to complete the study units, work on the self-tests and assignments, and finish the rest of the work involved in this course will vary from learner to learner. These times can be adjusted to fit your personal needs more closely, and you need to carefully plan your own work and study schedule. The estimated time, on average, that you need to spend on this course is ten hours per week. This estimation includes time for reading the study units, studying the readings, completing self-tests and assignments, attending the tutorials and preparing for your final assignment.

In addition to this Course Guide, there are the following important components of the course: study units, Readings and Assignment File. Please ensure that you have all of these materials available and can identify the various components in the course. If you do not have the above-mentioned materials, you should contact HKMU immediately.

Study units

There are ten study units in Professional Nursing Practice. Each study unit consists of three to four weeks' work and includes directions for study, readings with commentaries, and summaries of key issues and ideas. The units direct you to work on assignments related to the required readings and provide self-tests where appropriate. In general, these tests help you to gauge your progress and reinforce your understanding of the material.

The study units are:

Unit 1 Theoretical nursing I
Unit 2 Theoretical nursing II
Unit 3 Theoretical nursing III
Unit 4 Evidence-based practice and an overview of nursing research
Unit 5 Research process
Unit 6 Quantitative research
Unit 7 Qualitative research
Unit 8 Power and politics in nursing
Unit 9 Nursing leadership and management
Unit 10 Change and stress management in nursing

Readings

Each study unit has a number of supplementary readings, which have been carefully chosen for you from relevant books and professional journals. Working through these readings is a required part of studying for NURS N310. All required readings are supplied in your course materials package. Please note that there is no textbook for this course.

E-Library E-Reserve readings

You may be instructed to read articles in the E-Library E-Reserve. To read these items, go to the HKMU E-Library and click E-Reserve. Log in, click Accept/Agree on the Copyright Restrictions page, fill in the Course Code box, and click Search.

Assignment File

The Assignment File contains the details of all the assignments for this course. There are two assignments, which will be counted towards your final result.

Presentation Schedule

The Presentation Schedule is available on the Online Learning Environment (OLE). Remember, you are required to submit all your assignments by the due date. You should guard against falling behind in your work.

You should pay particular attention to this Course Guide and to all instructions in the study units.

Study units

In distance learning, the study units replace the university lecturer. This is one of the great advantages of distance learning. You can read and work through specially designed study materials at your own pace and at a time and place that suit you best. Think of it as reading the lecture instead of listening to a lecturer. In the same way that a lecturer might set you some reading to do, the study unit will tell you when to read your supplementary readings. Just as a lecturer might give you an in-class exercise, your study unit will provide exercises for you to do at appropriate points.

Each of the study units follows a common format:

• An Introduction to the subject matter of the unit and how a particular unit is integrated with the other units and the course as a whole.
• A guide to the required Readings. These readings are journal articles and excerpts from books, and comprise a key component of the course materials.
• Self-tests. You will find self-tests interspersed throughout each study unit, with answers given at the end. These self-tests are designed to help you remember what you have learned. Doing these tests will help you to prepare for your assignments. You should do each self-test as you come to it in the study unit.
• References. These are books and articles that have been used in the preparation of the unit. You do not have to read them but you may find them useful if you want to know more about a particular topic. You will find them in the HKMU Library.

The course is structured so that each unit builds upon previous knowledge. The units use at least five different ways to help you learn. These are:

1. reading the study unit;
2. going through the Readings;
3. completing the self-tests throughout the units. These require you to think, observe or undertake some activity that is designed to help you apply the knowledge you have gained;
4. completing the assignments; and
5. attending the tutorials and interacting with other learners.

Checking your understanding

Some of the concepts in this course will be new to you and you may have to make a particular effort to understand them. You may also find some of the language difficult. Make a note of your problems and raise them with your tutor as soon as possible. Be specific about the problem so that your tutor can help you more easily.

A strategy for working through the course

The following is a recommended strategy for working through the course. If you have any problems, phone your tutor at once. Remember that your tutor's job is to help you. When you need help, don't hesitate to call and ask for it.

1. Read this Course Guide thoroughly.
2. Prepare your own study schedule and do everything you can to stick to it. The major reason that students fail is that they get behind with their course work. If you get into difficulties with your schedule, please let your tutor know before it is too late for help.
3. Turn to Unit 1 and read the introduction for the unit.
4. Assemble the study materials. You will almost always need the study unit you are working on and the readings on your desk at the same time.
5. Work through the unit. The content of the unit itself has been arranged to provide a sequence for you to follow. As you work through the unit you will be instructed to read sections from the readings. Use the unit to guide your reading.
6. Complete the required assignment. Keep in mind that you will learn a lot by doing the assignments carefully. Submit all assignments no later than the due date.
7. While you wait for the return of your assignment, begin work on the next unit. Proceed unit by unit through the course and try to pace your study so that you keep yourself on schedule.
8. When the assignment is returned, pay particular attention to your tutor's comments written on the assignment. Phone your tutor as soon as possible if you have any questions or problems.
9. After completing the last unit, review the course and prepare yourself for the final assignment. Check that you have achieved the unit objectives (listed at the beginning of each unit) and the course learning outcomes (listed in this Course Guide).

The course is designed to assist you to move easily through the units to the assignments. You are expected to apply information and techniques gathered during the course in tackling the assignments. The assignments must be submitted to your tutor for formal assessment in accordance with the deadlines stated in the Assignment File.

Assignments

There are two assignments in the course. For these assignments, you will be required to write essays of 1,500 to 1,800 words in length. The assignments are designed so that you gain experience in applying knowledge and analytical skills acquired in the course. Each of the two assignments should be completed, and will be counted. Therefore each assignment is assigned a real value of 25%. Together they are worth 50% of the total course mark.

Assignment questions for the units in this course are contained in the Assignment File. They cover material in the units as identified earlier in the Course Guide. You will be able to complete the assignments from the information and materials contained in your course materials, readings and study units. However, it is preferable, in all degree-level education, to demonstrate that you have read and researched more widely than the required minimum. Using other references will give you a broader viewpoint and may provide a deeper understanding of the subject.

Final assignment and grading

For the final assignment for Professional Nursing Practice, you will be required to write an essay of around 3,000 words in length and have a value of 50% of the total course mark. The final assignment would cover all the learning outcomes of the course. Several multi-layer scenario-based questions will be used in the final assignment in order to allow you to have a comprehensive application of the concepts acquired in the course.

There are 20 hours of tutorials designed to assist you. These are in the form of ten two-hour sessions. You are strongly recommended to attend the tutorials. They are organized with your assigned tutor. You will be notified of the dates, times and location of these tutorials, together with the name and phone number of your tutor, as soon as you are allocated a tutorial group.

Your tutor marks and comments on your assignments, keeps a close watch on your progress and on any difficulties you might encounter, and provides assistance to you during the course. You must mail your assignments to your tutor before the due date. They will be marked by your tutor and returned to you as soon as possible.

Do not hesitate to contact your tutor by telephone if you need help. The following might be circumstances in which you would find help necessary. Contact your tutor if:

• you do not understand any part of the study units or the assigned readings;
• you have difficulty with the self-tests; or
• you have a question or problem with assignments, with your tutor's comments or with the grading of an assignment.

NURS N310 Professional Nursing Practice is designed to assist you to build a firm foundation in the areas of nursing theory, nursing research, and critical issues that are related to the nursing discipline. The study units are designed to help you reflect on current practice and apply this knowledge to clinical practice. Knowledge that is obtained in this course can help you advance your nursing practice in a professional way. That's the reason behind this course's title: Professional Nursing Practice.

The course was originally developed by Dr Linda Lee, an Assistant Professor in the Nursing Team at Hong Kong Metropolitan University in 2004.

This major revision of the course was carried out by Rebecca Fong. Rebecca Fong is a registered nurse in Hong Kong. She has worked in different specialities including surgical, medical, geriatric, orthopaedic, ENT, dental, hospice and eye for more than 30 years. In the past 15 years of her service, she has worked in the capacity of Department Operations Manager. Academically, she obtained her Master in Health Care Management and Bachelor of Health Science in Nursing. She is also a fellow member of the Hong Kong College of Surgical Nursing.