| Nursing |
NURS 801 - Introduction to Nursing
Credits:
2.00
Examines the values and philosophy of the Department of
Nursing. Explores the four domain concepts of nursing:
health and how it is defined, the diverse clients served by
nursing, nursing as a profession, and the complex
environment within which nursing is practiced. The nature
of nurse-client encounters is explored with an emphasis on
teaching students the skills to interact in a caring,
facilitative manner. Special fee.
NURS 802 - Concepts in Pathophysiology/Pharmacology
Credits:
4.00
Focuses on concepts of pathophysiology/pharmacology
relevant to nursing practice. The physiologic response and
manifestations of alterations on normal body functioning
are analyzed and the effects of pharmacological agents on
these alterations are examined. Prereq: NURS 801.
Co-requisites:
NURS 808, NURS 814
NURS 806 - Clinical Inquiry
Credits:
4.00
Theory course focuses on identifying problems and the role
of the nurse in decision-making situations in nursing
practice. Emphasizes using decision-making theories,
patient education theories and practice, critical thinking,
ethical concepts in decision-making, tools for organizing
nursing information, and applying evidence based practice.
In addition, learners are introduced to information
management and nursing informatics as they apply to
planning and delivery of nursing care. Special fee.
Co-requisites:
NURS 807, NURS 813, NURS 825, NURS 900
NURS 807 - Pathophysiology and Pharmacology
Credits:
4.00
Theory course focuses on concepts of human pathophysiology
and pharmacology relevant to professional nursing
practice. Physiologic repsonse and manifestations of
alterations in normal body functioning are analyzed.
Pharmacological agents used for these alterations are
examined. Application of concepts across the lifespan are
incorporated through the discussion of pathophysiology and
pharmacology. Provides the foundation foe the clinical
decision-making and management of care. In addition,
learners are introduced to the professional nurse's
responsibility for educating clients about basic
pathophysiology and pharmacology issues.
Co-requisites:
NURS 806, NURS 813, NURS 825, NURS 900
NURS 808 - Foundations of Nursing Judgment
Credits:
4.00
Focuses on the knowledge and analytical skills required to
adequately assess the health status of individuals.
Students learn how to collect data using an assessment
framework, to analyze the data, and to identify client
resourses and problems. Emphasizes the implications of the
individual's development status, culture, and biologic
variations at all points in the assessment process. Prereq:
NURS 801.
Co-requisites:
NURS 802, NURS 814
NURS 810 - Families in Health and Illness
Credits:
3.00
Seminar focusing on the family environment as a context
for the experience of health and illness. Current
middle-range theories and research from nursing and other
disciplines analyzed for their application to family
health. Public policy initiatives related to family health
will be explored.
NURS 813 - Health Assessment and Clinical Nursing
Credits:
5.00
Clinical course provides student with evidence-based
knowledge related to acquiring the psychomotor and
assessment skills required for the safe delivery of nursing
care across the lifespan. Students develop foundational
skills applicable to achieving program outcomes. Focuses on
developing beginning health assessment and clinical nursing
skills while implementing critical thinking and application
of the nursing process to highlight fundamental nursing
concepts as they pertain to providing and improving client
care. Special fee.
Co-requisites:
NURS 806, NURS 807, NURS 825, NURS 900
NURS 814 - Techniques of Clinical Nursing
Credits:
4.00
Focuses on the aquisition of psychomotor and assessment
skills required for the delivery of safe nursing care.
Students begin by learning clinical skills in the
simulation setting and then using those skills with
supervision in the clinical setting. An additional focus of
this course is understanding fundamental nursing concepts
as they pertain to providing safe, effective care. Prereq:
NURS 801, Lab. Special fee.
Co-requisites:
NURS 802, NURS 808
NURS 815 - Care of the Adult
Credits:
8.00
Addresses the professional nursing practice, decision
making processes, strategies and interventions as they
relate to the care of adults who are experiencing chronic
illnesses, acute illnesses, or impending death. The
perspective adopted emphasizes the functional issues of
daily living that these illnesses impose and the meanings
these illnesses have for adults and their families within
cultural, socioeconomic, sociopolitical, physical, and
personal contexts. Prereq: NURS 801, 802, 808, 814.
Co-requisites:
NURS 819
NURS 818 - Caring for People with Alterations in Mental Health
Credits:
4.00
Provides an understanding of the concepts of mental health
and major factors affecting human behavior and
interaction. Uses specific theoretical concepts and
psychosocial theories as a vehicle for supporting the
person's and family's optimum state of well-being. Also
emphasizes the practice of psychiatric nursing as being
grounded on certain empirical, aesthetic, personal, and
ethical knowledge. Through a variety of clinical
experiences, the student applies mental health concepts,
principles of therapeutic communication, and the nursing
process in caring for individuals and families with
alterations in mental health. Prereq: NURS 801, 802, 808,
814, 815, 819.
Co-requisites:
NURS 819 - Clinical Decision Making I
Credits:
4.00
To practice effectively nurses must be able to gather
data, interpret its meaning, take actions based on an
understanding of the data, and evaluate outcomes. They also
must be aware of the processes used to reach conclusions
and be prepared to revise, adapt, or reject them. The
course focuses on teaching learning theory, ethical
decision making, and helping clients and families deal with
situational and maturational crises, using a critical
thinking framework. Prereq: NURS 801, 802, 808, 814.
Co-requisites:
NURS 815
NURS 820 - Caring for the Childbearing and the Childbearing Family
Credits:
8.00
This course has family as the focus for nursing practice,
introducing the student to the care of young families
throughout pregnancy, birth, and child-rearing periods.
Healthy transitions and physical alterations occurring from
conception through adolescence are examined. The health
needs of the young family are discussed in terms of major
morbidity/motality and contemporary issues. Experience in
various clinical settings will provide opportunities for
the development of professional practice roles. Prereq:
NURS 801, 802, 808, 814, 815, 818, 819, 823, 845.
Co-requisites:
NURS 822
NURS 822 - Clinical Decision Making II
Credits:
4.00
Emphasizes the clinical decision making process in the
nursing care of individuals, families, and communities
across the lifespan and from diverse backgrounds. Builds
upon the theoretical foundation developed in 819, Clinical
Decision Making I. Students strengthen expertise in
developing clinical judgements, interventions, and outcome
evaluations. Skills predicted upon attending to and
processing relevant information from clinical situations.
Students apply knowledge from clinical nursing courses in a
variety of ways. Prereq: NURS 801, 802, 808, 814, 815, 818,
819, 823, 845.
Co-requisites:
NURS 820
NURS 823 - Nursing Leadership/Management and the Organizational Context
Credits:
4.00
Focuses on understanding ways in which the nurse can
affect the organizations in which practice occurs and ways
in which the organizations affect the individual's
practice. Emphasizes issues of leadership; management;
power; change; motivation; and interfacing of autonomous,
dependent, and interdependent nursing functions in current
and future health care delivery systems. Prereq: NURS 801,
802, 808, 814, 815, 819.
Co-requisites:
NURS 824 - Community Health Nursing
Credits:
4.00
Explores the role of community health nursing in health
promotion, disease prevention, and long-term care.
Analyzes contemporary community health problems with
implications for community health nursing. Exlpores a
variety of clinical and population-focused roles in
primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention of health
problems. Prereq: NURS 801, 802, 808, 814, 815, 818, 819.
Special fee.
Co-requisites:
NURS 845
NURS 825 - Collaborative Care I: Care of Older Adult
Credits:
3.00
Theory course focuses on care outcomes for major functional
and health transitions of older adults across health
settings. Emphasizes nurse's advocacy in facilitating care
collaboration based on informed practice utilizing current
research and best practice models of care. Learners
incorporate theories from nursing and other disciplines to
achieve a broad perspective and understanding of the aging
experience and cultural implications for nursing practice.
Co-requisites:
NURS 806, NURS 807, NURS 813, NURS 900
NURS 826 - Caring for People with Severe and Persistent Mental Illness
Credits:
4.00
This theory and clinical course is designed to provide an
understanding of the neurobiological and psycosocial
concepts of mental health and illness, factors influencing
human behavior and interaction, current somatotherapies,
and the role of the psychiatric nurse as part of the
interdisciplinary team. Previous course knowledge and
communication skills provide a theoretical foundation in
explaining, guiding, and predicting nursing action. During
the clinical experience, students are responsible for
collaborative and interdependent health care relationships
with professional and paraprofessional mental health
partners. A special focus is placed on the integration of
personal knowledge, therapeutic use of self, and
professional communication skills inherent in nurse-client
relationships. Emphasis placed on the practice of mental
health nursing as being supported by the Scope and
Standards of Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing Practice
to frame care plan implementation. Through a variety of
clinical experience, the student assumes a leadership role
within the interdisciplinary practice team of a designated
mental health care delivery system. Prereq: NURS 806, NURS
807, NURS 813, NURS 825, NURS 900.
Co-requisites:
NURS 827, NURS 901
NURS 827 - Collaborative Care II: Managing Acute and Complex Care of Individuals
Credits:
6.00
In this combined theory and clinical course students
develop the knowledge base to refine their clinical
judgment and decision-making skills in care of individuals
from diverse populations with acute, critical, and chronic
illnesses. Focuses on illness management, health
restoration, and risk reduction in prototypic health care
problems. Focuses on nurses' ability to use leadership
skills and concepts of care collaboration with clients,
families, peers, and members of the health care team to
maximize client outcomes. Care expriences primarily center
on the acute care environment. Prereq: NURS 806, NURS 807,
NURS 813, NURS 825, NURS 900.
Co-requisites:
NURS 826, NURS 901
NURS 828 - Public Health Nursing
Credits:
5.00
This theory and clinical course prepares the student for
community and population focused practice. Emphasis placed
on the synthesis of concepts, theories, knowledge and
practice from nursing, and public health sciences. The
concepts of community assessment, health promotion, health
protection, illness prevention, and vulnerability are
examined from a public health nursing perspective. Prereq:
NURS 826, NURS 827, NURS 901. Special fee.
Co-requisites:
NURS 829, NURS 905, NURS 908
NURS 829 - Collaborative Care III: Childbearing and Childrearing Families
Credits:
6.00
This theory and clinical course focuses on providing
competent nursing care for young families throughout
pregnancy, birth, and child-rearing periods. Healthy
transitions and physical alterations occurring from
conception through adolescence are examined. The health
needs of the young family are discussed in terms of major
morbidity/mortality and contemporary issues. This
experience integrates real-world experience in the
discipline through clinical opportunities in a variety of
acute and community clinical settings together with
seminars that build on theories of growth and development,
pathophysiology and use of decision-making models to
provide opportunities for the development of the nurse
generalist role. Prereq: NURS 826, NURS 827, NURS 901.
Co-requisites:
NURS 828, NURS 905, NURS 908
NURS 845 - Nursing Research
Credits:
2.00 to 4.00
Focuses on enhancing the student's ability to evaluate,
read, comprehend, participate in, and apply research to
the practice of nursing. Prereq: NURS 801, 802, 808, 814,
815, 818, 819.
Co-requisites:
NURS 824
NURS 850 - Clinical Decision Making III
Credits:
4.00
Provides opportunity for students to refine and integrate
theory and practice from previous coursework into
professional practice through cooperatively designed
learning experience. Prereq: NURS 801, 802, 808, 814, 815,
818, 819, 820, 822, 845. Special fee.
Co-requisites:
NURS 850C
NURS 850C - Transition to Professional Nursing
Credits:
6.00
Provides opportunity for students to refine and integrate
theory and practice from previous coursework into
professional practice through cooperatively designed
learning experience. Prereq: NURS 801, 802, 808, 814, 815,
818, 819, 820, 822, 823, 845.
Co-requisites:
NURS 850
NURS 894 - Special Topics
Credits:
1.00 to 4.00
Formal course given on selected topics or special interest
subjects. Several topics may be taught in one year or
semester. Prereq: permission. May be repeated. Special fee
on some sections.
NURS 899 - Master's Thesis
Credits:
1.00 to 6.00
Prereq: permission. Cr/F.
NURS 900 - Discipline of Nursing
Credits:
3.00
Nursing as a discipline with a focus on paradigms for
nursing science, patterns of knowing, concept analysis,
and nursing theory. Emphasis on concepts fundamental to
nursing practice, including advocacy, caring, power, and
collaboration; analysis of nursing theories in relation to
practice and research. Prereq: permission.
NURS 901 - Nursing and Change in Health Services
Credits:
3.00
Emphasizes identification of emerging issues that have an
impact on the health care system and determination of
nursing in providing leadership to address these issues.
Students analyze problems and process solutions from a
nursing perspective with reasoned approach to their
resolution. Prereq: permission.
NURS 905 - Research
Credits:
3.00
Provides overview of current state-of-the-art research in
nursing. Emphasis on critique of research findings and
application of research to clinical practice. Prepares
student to work collaboratively with expert researchers in
either academic or clinical settings. Discusses types of
research designs and qualitative and quantitative methods.
Critique process focuses on individual components of
research study, including the theory, purpose, sample, data
collection procedures, and analysis. Includes ethical
issues of scientific fraud and misconduct and issues of
human subjects. Prereq: permission.
NURS 907 - Pharmacology
Credits:
3.00
Principles of pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics
relevant to primary care practice. Focuses on major
classes of drugs with an emphasis on knowledge necessary
for prescriptive authority. Prereq: permission.
NURS 908 - Clinical Application of Human Physiology
Credits:
3.00
Examines human physiologic function and interaction of
selected body systems in maintaining health. Clinical
correlation strategies used to examine implications of
recent advances in selected areas of human physiology to
better understand the human body and its functioning in
health and illness. Stresses application of course
materials to advanced nursing practice in a variety of
settings. Prereq: permission.
NURS 909 - Health and Illness Appraisal
Credits:
3.00
Advanced health assessment including communication
strategies, functional health pattern assessment, advanced
physical assessment, screening diagnostic tests,
developmental evaluation, and clinical decision making. Lab
and clinical component. Pre- or Coreq: NURS 900; 905; 907;
908. Special fee.
NURS 920 - Administrative Theories in Nursing
Credits:
3.00
Application of administrative theories and organizational
behavior concepts to the practice of nursing
administration in current and emerging health care
settings. Examines organizational structure, motivation,
leadership/management, decision making, creativity, and
change. Prereq: permission.
NURS #921 - Administrative Context for Quality Nursing Care Delivery
Credits:
3.00
Identification of strategies to create an organizational
context to enhance effective and efficient quality nursing
practice in a variety of health care settings. Intra- and
interdepartmental effectiveness, care delivery models,
governance models, patient/client focused redesign,
operations improvement programs, and human resource
management are studied within an open systems focus.
NURS 925 - Health Care Systems and Leadership
Credits:
3.00
This theory course emphasizes the use of systems thinking
and systems theory as a guide for analyzing and improving
health systems. Careful consideration is given to the
complex challenges of achieving quality care delivery and
quality health outcomes for aggregates within specific
environments. Course contents include systems theory,
health systems analysis, shapingcare delivery, research
utilization, ethics, and leadership. Course fosters student
integration of knowledge in preparation for clinical
nursing leadership responsibilities. Prereq: NURS 900, NURS
905, NURS 908.
NURS 935 - Primary Care of the Adult
Credits:
3.00
Lecture/discussion course covering the primary care
management of healthy adults through the lifespan with a
focus on health maintenance and disease prevention. Focuses
on evaluation and management of common acute and chronic
adult health care problems. Major causes of adult morbidity
are covered. Prereq: NURS 909.
NURS 936 - Practicum in the Primary Care of Adults
Credits:
3.00
Supervised clinical experience in the primary care
management of adults through the lifespan, including
assessment and management of common acute and chronic
clinical problems. Focuses on the clinical application of
knowledge of health maintenance, disease prevention, and
the evaluation and management of major causes of adult
morbidity and mortality. Prereq: NURS 908; 909. Pre- or
Coreq: NURS 907; 935.
NURS 937 - Primary Care of Children
Credits:
3.00
Lecture/discussion course covering the primary care
management of children across the health-illness
continuum, including assessment and management of common
acute and chronic clinical problems. A developmental
perspective is taken to examine child-health evaluation and
maintenance from infancy through adolescence. Prereq: NURS
909.
NURS 938 - Practicum in the Primary Care of Children
Credits:
3.00
Supervised clinical experience in the primary care
management of the child and adolescent, including
assessment and management of common acute and chronic
clinical problems. A family-centered developmental
perspective is taken to provide child-health services from
infancy through adolescence. Nursing care, family, and
rehabilitation issues related to various health problems
are investigated in practice. Prereq: NURS 908; 909. Pre-
or Coreq: NURS 907; 937.
NURS 939 - Seminar and Practicum in the Primary Care of Families
Credits:
6.00
Final integrative clinical course that allows for
intensive application of primary care knowledge and skills
in practice. Seminar allows for in-depth analysis of
various clinical problems and role issues. Students are
actively involved in a primary care setting appropriate to
their area of study. Extensive clinical experience under
the guidance of a preceptor. Prereq: NURS 935; 936; 937; 938
NURS 941 - Population Focused Practicum
Credits:
3.00
In this practicum students acquire the specialty knowledge
and skills that are required in the care of a particular
population. Students propose clinical performance
competencies, learning activities, settings, and resource
persons for the supervised practicum and complete a minimum
of 112 perceptible clinical hours. May be repeated to a
maximum of 6 credits. Prereq: NURS 935; 936.
Co-requisites:
NURS 945 - Clinical Decision Making in Health Care
Credits:
3.00
Clinical decision making is analyzed and applied with a
focus on integrating the humanistic, functional and
medical frameworks of health care. An approach to
identifying and analyzing ethical conflicts is developed,
and culture-appropriate care is examined. Students consider
the range management modalities that might benefit their
populations of interest, and are assisted in expanding
their repertoire of interventions. Prereq: NURS 905.
NURS 946 - Practicum in Adult Health Care
Credits:
6.00
Students design the precepted clinical experience to
refine, expand, and/or re-focus existing clinical
competencies with the objective of developing the ability
to assess and manage complex client cases, and/or manage
cases across clinical settings. Seminars involve
presentation-discussions of case management situations, and
discussion of role issues relevant to advanced practice
roles. Pre- or Coreq: NURS 945.
NURS 950 - Reading and Research in Advanced Nursing
Credits:
2.00 to 8.00
Through a process of selective review and critical
evaluation, students examine the current literature and
explore the issues and trends in their topic area. Students
prepared by education and experience to do independent work
under the guidance of a professor may register for one or
more of these sections. Topics include: oncology, women's
health, community nursing, case management, geriatric
nursing, nursing care of children and families, nursing
those with disabilities, quality improvement, special
topics. Hours and credits to be arranged. Pre- or Coreq:
NURS 900, 901, 905.
NURS 951 - Clinical Epidemiology and Decision Analysis
Credits:
3.00
This theory course provides an in-depth study and
application of methods and tools used to guide clinical
nursing leader's decision-making under conditions of
uncertainty.
NURS 952 - Clinical Nursing Leadership I
Credits:
8.00 or 10.00
This clinical and seminar course focuses on the integration
of systems thinking when engaging in clinical nursing
leadership and the application of systems theory in
analyzing dynamic health systems. Emphasizes the developing
leadership role at the micro-system level and with an
aggregate focus (e.g., long term care; community/public
health agencies; ambulatory care clinics; health centers;
schools; and acute care settings). Seminars focus student
reflection on leadership experiences and emerging issues in
health systems, professional development and collegiality.
Prereq: NURS 900, NURS 905, NURS 908. Special fee.
NURS 953 - Promoting Quality Management
Credits:
2.00
In this seminar course, students work with agency preceptor
and faculty mentor to develop a proposal for a quality
improvement project. Concepts of clinical microsystems are
explored. Prereq: NURS 900, NURS 905, NURS 908.
NURS 954 - Clinical Nursing Leadership II
Credits:
3.00
In this clinical course students assume increasing
independence in identifying problems requiring quality
management techniques and skills. Students work with
preceptor and/or members of a project team to define and/or
implement strategies that will address/resolve identified
problems that will improve nursing practice or enhance
outcomes of a patient aggregate. Prereq: NURS 952.
NURS 955 - Practicum in Advanced Nursing Practice
Credits:
3.00 to 12.00
Students acquire the specialty knowledge and skills
required in the area of their master's study. Students
work with their faculty mentor to propose performance
competencies, learning activities, settings, and resource
persons for this supervised practicum. Practicum must
include a minimum of 112 hours of supervised practice. May
be repeated. Pre- or Coreq: NURS 950.
NURS 956 - Capstone Project Seminar
Credits:
3.00
This seminar course requires clinical nursing leadership
students to focus on substantive nursing practice issues
and to work as individuals or groups to develop solutions.
As the capstone course for the clinical nursing leadership
track, the students will be required to complete this
scholarly project under the direction of a faculty member.
Prereq: NURS 901, 905, 945, 950. Pre- or Coreq: NURS 955.
NURS 996 - Independent Study
Credits:
1.00 to 3.00
Opportunity for study and/or practice in an area of
choice. Objectives are developed by students and must be
approved by faculty. May be repeated. Prereq: permission.