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HLTH 3611: Professional Growth

This course is designed to reacquaint health practitioners with the standards that govern professional practice; update participants' awareness of Canadian health care system trends and perspectives; and advance participants' understanding of disciplinary inquiry emerging from multiple ways of knowing.

Learning outcomes

By working through the learning activities in this course, students will:

  • Understand and apply the characteristics and requirements of a professional nurse to your practice.
  • Understand and apply the principles of ethics and the process of ethical decision-making with an awareness of the inherent legal implications, in order to also understand legal liabilities in nursing practice.
  • Understand the significance of knowledge development in nursing and develop skills in accessing, analyzing and communicating knowledge in nursing.
  • Identify conditions necessary for creating safe and quality practice environments.
  • Enhance your understanding of issues of gender and its significance in relation to practice.
  • Investigate information technology and its influence on health care delivery, inquiry and professional practice.

Course topics

Module 1: Nursing: A Self-Regulating Profession

  • Professionalism and Professional Organizations
  • Health Professions Act
  • Standards of Nursing Practice
  • Continuing Competence and Self-Assessment

Module 2: The Law and Ethics in Nursing

  • Ethical Principles
  • Code of Ethics
  • Ethical Decision-making
  • Ethical Issues
  • Legal Liability
  • Legal Issues

Module 3: Inquiry and Knowledge Development in Nursing

  • Evolution of Knowledge Development in Nursing
  • Ways of Knowing
  • Critical Thinking
  • Accessing Knowledge for Nursing Practice
  • Writing for Professional Practice

Module 4: Health Care Delivery in Canada

  • Evolution of Canada's Health Care System
  • The Meaning of Health and Determinants of Health
  • Perspectives of Health and Health Care Delivery

Module 5: Nursing Practice Environments

  • Quality Practice Environments
  • Gender and Nurses' work
  • Intra-professional practice

Module 6: Information and Communication Technology

  • Nursing Informatics and E-Nursing Strategy
  • Nursing Information and Knowledge Management
  • Electronic Health Records

Required text and materials

Potter, P., Perry, A., Ross-Kerr, J., Wood, M., Astle & Duggleby. Canadian Fundamentals of Nursing. 6th ed. Toronto, CA: Elsevier-Mosby, 2019.
Type: Textbook: ISBN: 978-1-77172-1134

Assessments

Please be aware that should your course have a final exam, you are responsible for the fee to the online proctoring service, ProctorU, or to the in-person approved Testing Centre. Please contact exams@tru.ca with any questions about this.

To successfully complete this course students must obtain 50% or higher in the course overall. Credit will be granted towards a program in the School of Nursing when course grade is 60% (C) or better. This refers to the overall course with assignments averaged to this percentage. A cumulative Grade Point Average (GPA) of 2.33 (minimum 65%) must be maintained in order to progress to the next course.

Marks for the course will be distributed among the assignments and the final exam as shown:

Assignment 1 Seminars 20%
Assignment 2 Self-Assessment and Learning Plan 25%
Assignment 3 Scholarly Paper Outline 10%
Assignment 4 Scholarly Paper 25%
Final Exam (mandatory) 20%

Open Learning Faculty Member Information

An Open Learning Faculty Member is available to assist students. Students will receive the necessary contact information at the start of the course.

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