Nursing Care for people with acute illness and diseases, 7.5 credits

Admission to semester 5:
All courses from semesters 1-3
Semester 4: Grade of Pass from clinical placement, 9 credits + 7.5 credits in (1SJ024, 1SJ023)

Students who have failed the clinical placement due to deficiencies in knowledge, skills or attitudes serious enough to jeopardise patient security or patients' trust in healthcare can qualify for a new clinical placement only when an individual action plan has been completed.

The courses general aim is that students with a person-centered approach will to be able to describe and problematize assessment, planning and prioritizing nursing interventions and symptom relief for patients with acute illness and /or injury.

Learning outcomes

Knowledge and understanding
On completion of the course, students should be able to:

•  Describe and problematize assessment, planning and prioritizing nursing interventions and symptom relief for patients with acute illness and /or injury.

Skills and abilities
On completion of the course, students should be able to:

• Assess patients' care needs based on symptoms of acute illness and / or injury.
• Prioritize, initiate and motivate nursing interventions and symptom relief for patients with acute illness and /or injury.
• Apply a person-centered, supportive and reflective care of patients and their relatives.

Values and perspectives
On completion of the course, students should be able to:

• Demonstrate their ability to evaluate and reflect on how patients 'and relatives' needs and life situation may be affected in acute illness and/or injury.
• Evaluate their own need for additional knowledge in the area acute care and design an action plan for further learning.
• Reflect on and analyse ethical dilemmas that can arise in connection with acute illness and/or injury.
• Critically review and evaluate current research in the area.

• Clinical placement in acute care.
• Principles of primary and structured assessment and prioritisation in acute care.
• Principles for prioritization and triage of patients.
• Principles for initiating symptom relief and nursing interventions, including first aid for patients with acute illness and / or injury.
• Traumatology, kinematics and injury mechanisms.
• Risk assessment and prevention of further injury/disease.
• Relevant laws, statutes and safety precautions in relation to nursing care and treatment in acute care.
• Structured oral and written information transfer in acute care settings.
• Ethical dilemmas in acute care.

The teaching is based on a problem-oriented and collaborative approach to learning in which the tasks provide opportunities for the student to take active responsibility for their learning. The course is based on the following pedagogical methods: clinical rotation, lectures, proficiency training/workshops, literature studies, seminars, written group assignments and a written individual examination.

The course is web-based and full-time, at 40 hours a week. The course has 4 compulsory sessions that take place on KI Campus. Normally these campus sessions are held on days in succession. Outside of the campus sessions the course will take place via a digital learning platform and include written assignments, examinations, virtual discussions, etc. Each student must therefore have basic computer knowledge as well as access to a computer with an internet connection.

The clinical rotation takes place over 3 weeks in an emergency care setting where registered nurses work and in the ambulance service. Emergency care is defined in this course in accordance with the Riksföreningen for emergency nurses and Swedish sjuksköterskeförenings (2010) definition of in-hospital emergency care: the care and nursing that is given to patient in the first 24 hours at an emergency department, emergency care ward or the equivalent. The clinical rotation is for 40/hours a week of which approximately 32 hours/week are located in a nursing care setting. The clinical rotation may include day, evening, night and weekend shifts, and even bank holidays if necessary. Student are not allowed to shorten the length of the clinicalrotation.

Assessment of the students' learning and achievements takes place continuously during the course.

The course is also assessed through an group assingment and an individual written examination.

Participation in study assignments, clinical training/ workshop and clinical rotation is compulsory. In case of absence from compulsory modules, contact the course coordinator.

If there are special grounds, or a need for adaptation for a student with a disability, the examiner may decide to deviate from the syllabus's regulations on the examination form, the number of examination opportunities, the possibility of supplementation or exemptions from the compulsory section/s of the course etc. Content and learning outcomes as well as the level of expected skills, knowledge and abilities may not be changed, removed or reduced.

For a grade of Pass a student must demonstrate achievement of all the course learning outcomes by achieveing a passing grade on the examination as well as by actively participating in compulsory components of the course. Late submissions of examinations are not accepted. Students who not have turned in examinations in time will be referred to the next examination date. An electronic examination that has been opened via the learning management system counts as an examination session even if the examination is not submitted. Grades are assigned by the examiner.

Students who do not pass a regular examination are entitled to re-sit the examination on five more occasions. Two of these occasions are offered within the current semester, and the next occasion thereafter may be offered during the next regular examination.  

If the student has failed six examinations/tests, no additional examination is given.
Submission of a blank exam paper is regarded as an examination. In case a student is registered for an examination but does not attend, this is not regarded as an examination. An examination that has been opened via the learning management system counts as an examination session even if the examination is not submitted.

The examiner may, with immediate effect, interrupt a student's clinical placement (or equivalent) if the student demonstrates such serious deficiencies in knowledge, skills or attitude that patient safety or patient confidence in healthcare is at risk. If a clinical placement is interrupted in this way the student is deemed to have failed that element and to have used up one clinical placement opportunity. In such cases, an individual action plan should be set up stating which activities and tests are required before the student is qualified for a new clinical placement on the course.
A failed clinical rotation can be repeated only once.

If the course has ceased, changed considerably in content, or substantially changed its reading list, the student may take three additional tests (excluding regular test) on the earlier contents or the previous literature for up to one year after the course changes have been made.

The course evaluation will be conducted according to the guidelines that have been established by the Committee for Higher Education.