Course Descriptions and Course Prerequisites
Semester I Courses
N301 Pathophysiology and Applied Pharmacology I :: 3 sem hrs
In this course, students apply their knowledge of basic anatomy and physiology to the development of an understanding of foundational pathophysiological concepts, such as cellular injury, loss/change in normal structure and function, inflammation, infection, and stress response and the pathogenesis, pathophysiology, manifestations, diagnosis and treatment modalities (including pharmacology) of selected health deviations. The disorders discussed are representative of those commonly occurring in the population. Emphasis is given to students’ development of an understanding of pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic principles and application of knowledge of major drug classifications/select prototype drugs to the safe administration of medications, effective monitoring, and appropriate evaluation of physiological responses (therapeutic and adverse) across the lifespan.
N306 Health Assessment and Promotion :: 3 sem hrs
This course provides an introduction to health assessment and promotion for adults of all ages. Emphasis is given to the theoretical concepts of physical assessment techniques, interviewing skills, focused body system assessments, genetic and health risk assessments and to the key elements of the physiological, developmental, spiritual, socioeconomic, cultural and aging dimensions essential for holistic assessment. Students are introduced to evidence-based clinical assessment tools.
N308 Health Assessment and Promotion Lab :: 1 sem hr
In this course, students master the skills required to collect a health history, perform health assessments, and to provide basic health promotion teaching to adults of all ages. Faculty designed and guided skills laboratory and simulated learning experiences provide opportunities for students to gain the cognitive, technical, and interpersonal skills needed to perform comprehensive and focused assessments. Students utilize evidence-based clinical assessment tools to identify patient specific health issues. Students document health assessment findings using appropriate medical terminology and current documentation methods, including electronic health records. Laboratory experiences provide students with opportunities to recognize abnormal assessment findings and to appropriately report findings to other interprofessional team members.
N338 Foundations of Professional Nursing :: 4 sem hrs
This course provides a foundation in the essential principles, concepts, and skills needed by the beginning nursing student learning the role of the nurse generalist. Students are introduced to legal/ethical principles, diverse health practices, health and illness concepts, health care systems, complementary and alternative therapies, evidence-based nursing practice, and to the underlying principles and rationale for basic nursing skill procedures. Interprofessional communication, ethical comportment, and professional standards and values are presented as the concepts foundational to the professional nursing role. Emphasis is placed on the role of the nurse in the provision of safe patient care, effective communication, accurate dosage calculation, safe medication administration, patient teaching, health promotion, performance of basic nursing skills, and utilization of the nursing process.
N340 Foundations of Professional Nursing Lab :: 2 sem hr
In this course, students have the opportunity to learn and practice essential basic clinical nursing skills in the Nursing Skills Laboratory. Through the planned use of human patient simulators, database searching, and laboratory learning activities, students are able to apply basic nursing concepts and clinical reasoning to simulated clinical situations and to the performance of safe, evidence-based basic nursing skills. Students apply knowledge of current technological trends and utilize equipment for delivery and documentation of basic nursing care.
N342 Foundations of Professional Nursing Clinical :: 2 sem hrs
Opportunities for the application of fundamental principles and the safe performance of basic nursing skills are provided through faculty guided clinical learning experiences in adult health care settings and planned patient simulations in the Nursing Skills Laboratory. Supervised clinical experiences are designed to promote problem solving and clinical reasoning, to increase knowledge of nursing practice, and to promote skill development. Students provide direct nursing care for adults and older adults with acute and chronic alterations in health in a variety of clinical settings.
Semester II Courses
N351 Pathophysiology and Applied Pharmacology II :: 3 sem hrs
This course provides opportunities for student application of pathophysiological concepts to the study of the functional or physiological changes in the body that result from disease processes and for application of pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic principles and knowledge of major drug classifications/select prototype drugs to the safe administration of medications, effective monitoring of patient responses to medications, and the appropriate evaluation of physiological responses (therapeutic and adverse) across the lifespan. Upon completion of the course, students should be able to identify the etiology, clinical manifestations and basic diagnostic and treatment modalities of major pathophysiological conditions and be able to discuss the basic actions and uses, pharmacokinetics, adverse effects, contraindications, and implications of major drug classifications/prototype drugs.
N365 Psychosocial and Ethical Aspects of Care :: 2 sem hrs
This course addresses the psychosocial and ethical aspects of caring for individuals and families across the lifespan. Emphasis is placed on basic psychodynamic, psychosocial, and ethical principles, collaboration and therapeutic communication skills, understanding of human responses in a variety of life situations, life transitions, diverse life styles, self efficacy and coping skills.
N376 Adult Health Nursing :: 4 sem hrs
This course provides a theoretical foundation in the essential principles, concepts, and skills needed for the care of adult patients with alterations in health. Emphasis is focused on evidence-based nursing care of adult and older adult patients with acute/chronic alterations in health and expansion of students’ knowledge and application of the nursing process and key pharmacology and pathophysiology concepts. Concepts of aging, health promotion, and restoration of health are integrated throughout the course.
N378 Adult Health Nursing Lab :: 0.5 sem hrs
In this course, students have the opportunity to learn and practice essential nursing skills in the care of adults with alterations in health. Students are given instruction and hands-on opportunities in the skills laboratory setting directed at the development of a curriculum specified set of clinical skills and attributes. Through the planned use of human patient simulators, database searching, and laboratory learning activities, students are able to apply concepts and clinical reasoning to simulated clinical situations and to the performance of safe, evidence-based nursing skills.
N380 Adult Health Nursing Clinical :: 3.5 sem hrs
Opportunities for the application of theoretical concepts and performance of nursing skills specific to adult and older adult patients are provided through faculty guided clinical learning experiences primarily in acute care settings. As the course progresses, students gain experience in caring for multiple patients.
N387 Evidence-based Practice in Nursing (Hybrid) :: 3 sem hrs
This course provides students with an understanding of research designs, methodologies, ethics and critique for use in their development of evidence-based practice. Through student collaboration on an evidence-based project, emphasis is given to refinement of students’ abilities to retrieve, analyze, synthesize, and disseminate evidence for enhancement of the quality and safety of patient outcomes.
Semester III Courses
N432 Maternal-Child Health Nursing :: 4 sem hrs
This course provides students with the theoretical basis for the nursing care of childbearing and childrearing families. Students are given instruction regarding the essential principles, concepts, and skills needed for the care of maternal-child clients within the context of the family and health care systems. Emphasis is placed on the physiological, psychological, developmental, cultural, and environmental theories for health promotion and disease prevention and on the nursing therapeutics necessary for optimal birth experiences and safe quality nursing care of neonatal and pediatric patients.
N434 Maternal-Child Health Nursing Clinical :: 2.5 sem hrs
Opportunities for application of theoretical knowledge and performance of nursing skills to maternal-child clients within the context of the family and health care systems during antepartal, intrapartal, postpartal, newborn, childhood, and adolescent periods are provided through faculty guided clinical and simulated learning experiences in acute and community healthcare settings.
N446 Complex Care of Adults :: 3 sem hrs
This course provides students with the concepts and skills necessary for the delivery of safe effective nursing care for patients with complex, multi-system alterations in health, as a result of disease or trauma. Emphasis is focused on evidence-based nursing care of adult and older adult patients with complex health and expansion of students’ knowledge and application of the nursing process and key pharmacology and pathophysiology concepts. Concepts of aging, health promotion, and restoration of health are integrated throughout the course.
N448 Complex Care of Adults Clinical :: 1.5 sem hrs
Opportunities for integration of theoretical concepts and nursing skills specific to adults of all ages with complex health alterations are provided through faculty guided clinical and simulated learning experiences. Emphasis is placed on provision of safe quality nursing care to patients in a variety of acute and critical care settings. Experiences are designed to stimulate critical thinking and clinical reasoning, while collaborating with the multi-disciplinary team.
N450 Management of Care :: 1 sem hr
This course provides students with the basic management concepts and skills necessary for the delivery of safe effective nursing care to a caseload of patients in an acute care hospital setting. Emphasis is placed on principles of effective health team communication, time management, priority setting, delegation, and utilization of material and human resources in the acute care setting and on strategies to assure the safe transition of patients to and from the acute care health setting.
N452 Management of Care Clinical :: 1 sem hr
Opportunities are provided for the application of the theoretical concepts of management necessary for the delivery of safe, effective nursing care to a caseload of patients in the acute care setting. Students assume responsibility for provision of nursing care to a full caseload of acute care patients.
Semester IV Courses
N465 Individual and System Leadership for Quality Patient Care (Hybrid) :: 3 sem hrs
This course prepares the nurse generalist for a leadership and advocacy role in an ever-changing health care environment through a review of numerous leadership, organizational, and systems theories. Students are given the opportunity to critically evaluate and analyze concepts of health services management, teambuilding, conflict resolution in the health care environment, health policy, accreditation of health care organizations, various quality improvement initiatives and the overarching concepts of health care finance and the economics of health care services. Emphasis is placed on the professional nurse’s role in health care policy development, social justice, political activism, collective action, teambuilding, and healthy work environments. As part of the course, students engage in the legislative process at the state level and explore ways to advance the nursing profession and enhance the quality of patient care.
N466 Mental Health Nursing :: 2 sem hrs
This course provides students with the essential principles, concepts, and skills needed for promotion of mental health and care of mentally ill patients across the lifespan. Emphasis is placed on human response to stressors; current issues and trends in psychiatric care and treatment modalities; and on the psychopathology and nursing care of major mental illnesses.
N468 Mental Health Nursing Clinical :: 1.5 sem hrs
Opportunities for the application of theoretical knowledge to meet the mental health needs of patients in a variety of clinical settings across the continuum of care are provided through faculty guided clinical and simulated learning experiences.
N475 Transition to Professional RN Practice (Hybrid) :: 1 Sem hr
This course provides student with information regarding the NCLEX-RN test plan and testing process and application for RN licensure. Emphasis is given to aggregate and individual remediation based on NCLEX-RN predictor performance. Additionally, this course provides seminars focused on entry into the profession and the professional issues that confront the registered nurse.
N482 Community Nursing and Population Health :: 3 sem hrs
This course provides students with an understanding of the factors that influence the health of the community and vulnerable populations and of the role of the professional nurse in the provision of population based nursing care directed toward health promotion and primary prevention in the community. Emphasis is placed on theories of community assessment, the health needs of and systems of health care available to vulnerable populations within the community, levels of disease prevention, health promotion of specific populations, and professional nursing roles and interprofessional collaboration within various community settings.
N484 Community Nursing and Population Health Clinical :: 1.5 sem hrs
Opportunities for application of theories of community assessment, disease prevention, and health promotion to the provision of care to vulnerable populations within various community settings are provided through faculty guided clinical and simulated learning experiences. Emphasis is placed on provision of population based nursing care directed toward health promotion and primary prevention in the community. Through collaboration on a community project, students fully engage in the assessment and health promotion of a specific community.
N496 Professional Nursing Immersion :: 3 sem hrs
Opportunities to demonstrate mastery of the concepts and skills inherent in the beginning practice role of a registered nurse (baccalaureate nurse generalist) and achievement of program student learning outcomes are provided in this five week preceptored clinical experience. Emphasis is placed on development of the first-level management skills necessary for the provision of nursing care to groups of patients in acute or sub-acute care settings.
