This unit, which was at the consolidating stage of the course, built on preceding units and prepared me for the transition to independent practice as a registered nurse. I was expected to leverage knowledge and skills acquired in previous units to enhance my capabilities for practice. A comprehensive understanding of the NMBA Registered Nurse Standards for Practice, National Health Priority Areas, and National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards was crucial to nursing practice and formed the foundation for this unit.
The focus of this unit was on National Safety and Quality Health Standards, particularly Comprehensive care (Standard 5) and Recognising and responding to acute deterioration (Standard 8). Grasping these standards and their relevance to nursing care enabled early identification of patient deterioration, potentially improving outcomes and reducing necessary interventions. This on-campus unit further fostered the development of knowledge and skills that I critically analyzed and reflected upon throughout my remaining off-campus experiences.
This unit utilized a combination of face-to-face and online activities to develop essential knowledge and skills. I actively participated and collaborated with peers in tutorials, exploring various clinical situations and the corresponding nurse role. The learning experiences presented opportunities for me to enhance and practice multimodal communication skills. Specifically, I developed skills for collaborative practice and communication by engaging in teams within clinical practice groups, simulations, and other small group activities during tutorials.
Tutorials provided chances for me to work with case studies and scenarios covering the lifespan, fostering the development of critical inquiry skills. These activities served as crucial experiential learning opportunities, allowing me to apply knowledge and skills, as well as to evaluate and refine my thinking in preparation for off-campus clinical placement. I used a structured framework to engage in critical reflection on my experiential learning. The utilization of the clinical reasoning cycle framework and its key components—Assessment, Planning, Implementation, and Evaluation (APIE)—served as the foundation for my critical inquiry across a range of learning activities.
see https://www.qut.edu.au/courses/bachelor-of-nursing for full unit information
Learning outcomes
Consolidate knowledge of key NMBA Registered Nurse Standards for Practice, National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards, and National Health Priority Areas to enable effective clinical reasoning in a range of complex clinical situations across the lifespan, including a focus on the deteriorating patient
Critically apply knowledge of anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiology to support evidence-based clinical reasoning to provide safe person-centred care in a range of settings, across the life span
Demonstrate effective clinical reasoning to review a range of health situations, synthesise a range of evidence to determine priorities, and formulate plans and interventions consistent with timeframes and goals
Recommend effective inter and intra-professional communication to maintain safe, person-centred care
Critically apply knowledge and skills to communicate and collaborate effectively with consumers and families.
Projects
Project One
Critique of an evolving case study
I completed an assessment that employed an evolving case study. In this task, I synthesized experiential learning experiences in integrated nursing practice, incorporating key points of interprofessional collaboration to identify practice priorities.
Project Two
Short answer case study exam.
I participated in a centrally timetabled, written examination that entailed analyzing case studies and answering short-answer questions.
Overall Grading
Mark: -
Grade: 5
Grade Description: Credit