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 course's general aim is that students develop-readiness to give person-centered nursing care in emergency care settings, based on central nursing concepts of the person, nursing care, the nursing relationship, health and the environment- knowledge, skills and ability to assess, analyse, prioritise, carry out and evaluate patients' nursing needs and to handle medications in emergency settings based on each patient's unique needs

Learning outcomes

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

• analyse and explain principles of patient supervision and nursing care for patients with signs of acute illness
• describe principles for assessment and prioritising in emergency care.
• demonstrate an understanding of the aims and functions of medical technological equipment and demonstrate an ability to use this equipment safely in emergency care settings
• pharmacological knowledge of the commonly occurring drugs in emergency care.

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

• analyse and apply structured principles of care and supervision of patients with failure or threatened failure of vital functions
• identify and explain the information and psychological support needs of patients' and their families' in emergency care settings
• communicate information about a patient's condition and care both in writing and orally to other healthcare providers in the chain of care
• plan, prioritise, implement and evaluate care in collaboration with different professional groups (teamwork)
• show nursing readiness in connection with acute illness conditions
• correctly calculate, prepare, administer and evaluate the effects of common medications in emergency settings while abiding by current laws and statutes.

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

• reflect on how the organisation and working environment in emergency care influence patient safety
• reflect on patient experiences of acute illness and care in highly technical emergency care settings
• reflect on and analyse ethical dilemmas that can arise in connection with emergency care
• reflect and analyse how emergency care is run and influenced by laws as well as the structures of the healthcare organisation.
• Apply person-centered nursing care to protect autonomy, security and integrity of patients and their family based on ethical perspectives and respect of sociocultural differences
• critically review and evaluate current research in the area.

• Clinical placement in emergency care.
• Working in a team
• Principles of structured assessment and prioritisation in emergency care
• Principles of structured treatment and care of patients with acute illness
• Nursing and supervision of patients based on patient needs and level of care
• Supervision and assessment of nursing needs of patients with failure of vital functions
• risk assessment
• Supplying information and psychological care to patients and their families in emergency care settings.
• Organisation in emergency care settings and working environments.
• Relevant laws, statutes and safety precautions in relation to nursing care and treatment in emergency care.
• Structured oral and written information transfer in emergency care settings
• Medical techniques
• Patient safety
• ethical dilemmas in emergency 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 placement, lectures, proficiency training, literature studies, seminars, simulations, written assignments and a written 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 placement takes place over 3 weeks in an emergency care setting where registered nurses work "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 placement is for 40/hours a week of which approximately 32 hours/week are located in a nursing care setting. The clinical placement may include day, evening, night and weekend shifts, and even bank holidays if necessary. Student are not allowed to shorten the length of the clinical placement.

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

The course is also assessed through an individual written case-based examination.

Participation in study assignments, clinical training simulations, proficiency training and the clinical placement 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.

Late submissions of examinations are not accepted. Students who have not submitted their examination on time are required to then take another examination. 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 placement 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.