Health Care

Optional Courses

Assessing and Managing Symptoms – Cancer/Palliative Care

This course will help you to adopt a holistic and systematic approach when assessing and managing pain and other symptoms and so facilitate decision-making in what are often very complex situations.  It seeks to promote an interdisciplinary approach, effective communication and evidence based practice to provide effective care.

Advanced Communication Skills – Cancer/Palliative Care

The hallmark of effective palliative care as a whole, and good psychological, social and spiritual care, in particular, is effective communication (Johnston 2002).  For this reason there will be a taught component, and an assessment, related to developing communication and counselling skills in this course.

This course is designed to develop critical awareness of psychological, social and spiritual theory, concepts and issues, as well as enabling the student to explore and improve psychological, social and spiritual interventions.

The experiential component of the course will contain an element of self-awareness.  There will also be an opportunity to explore the impact of caring on the professional and the need for support.

Advanced Health Care Practice – Specialist/Advanced Practice

This programme seeks to facilitate professional and personal development of students, in preparation for their role as specialist/advanced practitioners.

Contemporary Issues and Systematic Approaches – Critical Care

This module seeks to provide the advanced knowledge required to effectively influence care and resources in the critical care environment.

Developing Clincial Practice – Critical Care

This module seeks to provide the advanced knowledge required to facilitate an enhanced level of clinical decision making in practice and dissemination of evidence based practice through research based learning and independent study skills.

Education for Professional Practice – Generic

In line with educational principles this course will provide the student with opportunities to experience both learning and teaching as part of a reflective model approach.  Through techniques of experiential learning, students will be enabled to design and participate in professionally based sessions with junior staff, patients and other learners.  This approach will also facilitate skills in techniques of lifelong learning and students will be supported in identifying those transferable skills from the course that they use in their future role as learners and educators.

Ethics for Professional Practice – Generic

This course provides an opportunity to consider the implications of professional caring as an individual and as part of a team, discuss principles and professional guidelines and how these can be used to guide our decision-making, our practice and our professional relationships.  It will seek to stimulate critical reflection on your own experience, practice and ethical decision-making.

Lymphoedema: Assessment & Management – Lymphoedema

This course aims to:
Develop practitioners' knowledge and skills gained in Lymphoedema: Diagnosis, Assessment & Risk Reduction in the assessment of patients with chronic oedema due to lymphatic failure and treatment of those with uncomplicated chronic oedema and to undertake responsibility for long-term monitoring of such patients.

Lymphoedema: Diagnosis, Assessment & Risk Reduction – Lymphoedema

This course is fundamental and must be taken first.  It explores the pathophysiology of the lymphatic and circulatory systems and how they interact, the nature of chronic oedema, its presentation and development and its impact on those affected and their families. It equips students with the necessary skills to undertake a comprehensive assessment of the individual with oedema resulting in diagnosis of the type of oedema present and appropriate referral The understanding gained will also allow students to initiate strategies to assist in risk reduction and self management.

Lymphoedema: Specialist Service Development – Lymphoedema

This course aims to prepare experienced practitioners to undertake a lead role in the development and management of specialist lymphoedema services.

Management for Change in Health Care: Leadership and Policy Issues – Generic

Good quality health care – the demand for which is insatiable – takes place in a variety of settings.  A critical understanding of issues pertinent to the effective management of health care enables health care professionals to more effectively manage care for diverse groups of patients, to lead and supervise others involved in caring for patients, and generally to manage the health care environment in a constantly evolving health care system.

Managing Cardiac Care – Cardiac Care

People living with cardiac disease undergo increasingly complex therapies and procedures, delivered by many specialist health disciplines, with the aim of increasing life expectancy and improving quality of life. Providing a seamless holistic approach to management requires health care professionals to reflect on the whole patient journey and appraise their own role in the delivery of evidence based interventions.  This course aims to prepare the student to intervene and manage cardiac disease. Students are supported to adopt effective patient care by delivering a systematic approach to cardiac care from diagnosis to palliative care. Decision-making skills and promoting effective communication between individuals and their carers, and among health professionals are important course components. Students are provided with opportunities to develop knowledge, understanding and transferable skills and to have the ability to lead and innovate in the advancement of practice.

Managing Cardiovascular Risk – Cardiac Care

The mortality and morbidity associated with cardiovascular disease creates a heavy burden on society and is recognized as a key health priority. This course aims to prepare the student to assess and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Students are supported to critically appraise strategies to identify and reduce risk in individuals at most risk of cardiovascular disease by changing lifestyles and delivering evidence based therapies for risk factors such as hypertension. Promoting interdisciplinary team working, decision-making skills and effective communication are important course components. Students are provided with opportunities to develop knowledge, understanding and transferable skills and to have the ability to lead and innovate in the advancement of practice.

Managing Complicated Lymphoedema  – Lymphoedema

This course aims to:
Develop practitioners' decision making and clinical skills gained in courses Lymphoedema: Diagnosis, Assessment & Risk Reduction and Lymphoedema: Assessment & Management to enable them to apply appropriate management strategies in relation to patients with complicated chronic oedema due to lymphatic failure.

Managing Oedema due to Advanced Disease – Lymphoedema

This course aims to develop practitioners’ decision making and clinical skills to enable them to determine causative factors and apply appropriate management strategies in relation to patients with advanced disease who develop oedema.

Managing Stroke Care – Stroke Care

This course aims to prepare the student to gain a deeper understanding of stroke related issues and explore the impact of clinical issues in stroke care.

Principles of Acute Cardiac Management – Cardiac Care

This course encourages students to reflect on how acute cardiac care is integrated into processes of service delivery to both sustain life and maintain dignity. By integrating the evidence from research into clinical practice students are encouraged to benchmark practice to the holistic needs of the acutely ill cardiac patient and their family.

Professional Practice in Spiritual & Religious Care in Healthcare – Healthcare Chaplaincy

This course aims to develop student’s understanding and evaluation of professional practice in spiritual and religious care in healthcare. It considers practice from the perspective of individuals, healthcare teams and the healthcare unit or institution.Through critical analysis of practice issues students will be encouraged to evaluate the core elements of legal, safe, accountable and effective practice and evaluate the implications for their own professional practice.

Providing Spiritual & Religious Care in Health Care – Healthcare Chaplaincy

This course aims to develop students’ understanding and assessment of the spiritualand religious needs of patients, carers and staff with reference to the main world faith and belief groups. Through reflection on personal communication skills in pastoral encounters and focusing on skills in reflective practice, students will be encouraged to critically evaluate their personal practice and the local and national procedures and protocols for spiritual and religious care services.

Scientific Basis of Cancer

An understanding of basic cell biology, structure, and function of the immune system and its reaction against malignant cells provides the foundation for understanding the mechanism of action of therapeutic agents. While not every oncology nurse can be expected to be an expert in cancer genetics, a body of oncology health professionals who are genetically informed, aware and perceptive is a realistic and necessary aim for competent practice (Bradley, 1999). Via active participation in classes, the Scientific Basis of Cancer course will facilitate students in achieving the theoretical underpinning essential for competent practice.

Systematic Assessment Skills and Advanced Decision Making – Specialist/Advanced Practice

This course aims to explore systematic assessment and advanced clinical decision making.  It is expected that this course will attract senior clinicians with at least 5 years clinical practice.