RN to BSN

Explores human caring science as a foundation of the discipline and profession of nursing. In this course RN-BSN students have the opportunity to reflect on lived practice experiences through multiple ways of knowing and examination of caring as a way of being. Implications for transformational practice, education, and research are addressed.  [1 credit]

This three-credit course is designed to explore various aspects of professional nursing practice. Learning experiences will include caring ways of being present to our patients, peers, and families. Students will also engage in the exploration of practice standards, ethical ways of being, linkages between theory/practice, multiple ways of knowing, reflective practice, and current trends in nursing. Upon completion of the course, students will have had the opportunity to refine their abilities to communicate through scholarly writing and informative presentations. [3 credits]

This course is designed for students to develop proficiency in information access and evaluation skills. The principles and techniques of scholarly writing along with other types of writing used by professional nurses will be introduced. Students will transform information into clear scholarly narratives.  [ 1 credit ]

Grounded in caring science, this three-week online course focuses on promoting holistic patient and family assessment and nursing care in the context of chronic and life-limiting illness. The role of the nurse in communicating with the patient, family, and interdisciplinary team will frame an exploration of personal beliefs and practices that inform the provision of palliative care. The framework of The Nursing Situation, as well as the End of Life Nursing Education Consortium (ELNEC) curricular framework will guide examination of the practice of palliative care, including pain and symptom management, pharmacology and complementary alternative methodologies, ethical issues, communication, and cultural competency will all be explored. The practice of palliative care nursing, within the context of a variety of cultures and among vulnerable populations will be considered.  [ 3 credits ]

This course prepares the student to critically evaluate the ethical, socioeconomic, political, legal, and power considerations influencing health care policy. An emphasis on professional values, advocacy, and political activism assists the student to become influencers in policy formation. Students will create an advocacy toolkit focused on a specific health policy, with the goal of exploring the role of the nurse in identifying, analyzing, and influencing policy at the local, state, federal and/or global levels.  [3 credits] 

This course will examine the concept of spirituality within nursing practice and its significance to patient care through an exploration of spiritual assessments, interventions, coping strategies and religious customs/beliefs. Students will learn to identify the spiritual needs of patients within a variety of settings and examine the relationship between religion and spirituality to promote a healing environment for the patient. Students will reflect on their own spiritual beliefs and practices to cultivate a deeper connection with spirit and the one-being-cared-for. Self-care for the caregiver will be emphasized throughout the course to foster loving-kindness and compassion within the context of caring practice.  [ 3 credits ]

This course introduces the student to knowledge and skills essential for holistic health assessment through a lens of caring science and an emphasis on social determinants of health. The student will practice assessment and interviewing skills in the Center for Caring with Technology. The student will analyze both subjective and objective data and document findings in an appropriate format. Students will enhance their abilities to conduct a culturally sensitive assessment. Nutrition principles will be reviewed for populations across the lifespan.  [ 5 credits ]

In this RN to BSN course, learners will explore the relationship between nurse and technology. Information systems used in nursing and healthcare and their application to patient safety and quality improvement through the lens of caring science will be introduced. Learners acquire technical skills needed for this application of patient care technologies and competency in information literacy, information management, and information management systems for safe, competent, and quality patient care.  [3 credits]

In this course, students will explore healthy aging through the lens of caring science. The course will provide an examination of theories, trends, and research related to aging and nursing care of older adults, with an emphasis on health promotion and health disparities of aging. Students will be encouraged to become advocates for older adults within healthcare and the greater community, examining economic and policy implications that shape models of care. Students will gain knowledge that will better enable them to eliminate health disparities among older adults, and develop nursing care strategies that improve the care and health of older adults within the acute healthcare system, institutionalized settings, and in the community.  The course will also prepare students to develop nursing care strategies that promote healthy aging for individuals throughout the lifespan. [3 credits] 

Grounded in caring science, this course focuses on promoting and protecting the health of the public using health promotion, risk reduction, and disease management and control strategies.  Community assessment, epidemiologic, change, political action, and case-management frameworks are used to guide evidence-based nursing care delivery to persons, families, and populations in community settings.  The role of social determinants of health will be explored; cultural competency, social justice, and advocacy will be discussed as strategies for the elimination of health disparities.  [4 credits]

This course introduces learners to knowledge and skills essential for a consumer of nursing research. It examines use of the research process as a method to enhance scientific inquiry and to develop a knowledge base for nursing practice.  Critical appraisal of both qualitative and quantitative methods in published nursing research is emphasized. Research on caring will be the central theme. [3 credits]

This course integrates previously learned nursing knowledge and skills of caring and contemporary leadership and management theories and processes, enabling learners to define more clearly their roles as baccalaureate-prepared nurses.  Learners analyze health care environment challenges of changes in focus to population health, economic realities, opportunities for continued professional development, and leadership/management challenges created by increasingly complex healthcare environments.  Knowing one’s-self, appreciating the diversity of the workplace and communities, caring for vulnerable and marginalized populations, and using caring science as a basis for leadership in nursing and healthcare are woven throughout the course.  [3 credits]

Building on previous learning in the curriculum and blending with leadership experiences, students will use the lens of caring science to analyze their current way of being with patients, colleagues, employers and the community at large. Being present in these relationships, students will use scholarship to investigate an area where relationships or processes could be improved with a focus on self-care, quality and/or safety. Each student will design a project that, if implemented, could improve praxis and advocate for change in the workplace. Using leadership skills, the student will determine the best way to communicate the proposed project. Reflective practice will be used throughout the course to focus on the program outcomes of presence, praxis, advocacy, scholarship, self-care, and leadership as it relates to their project.  [2 credits]