Nursing Science Registered Nurse (Learning Disability) MSc
2 Years Full-Time | January Start

The content of Applied Life Sciences will be informed by the proficiency standards outlined in Annex A and B in ‘Future Nurse: standards of proficiency for registered nurse’ (NMC, 2018; 2023).

This module will introduce the concept of safe nursing practice, effective communication, medicine management, and the proficiencies of physical assessment. This module will be taught across the year aligned to your learning within LE7002 and LE7003 bringing together theory and practice to facilitate your development as a safe and effective practitioner. You will learn how to observe and assess people of all ages in terms of symptoms and signs of physical ill health. You will learn how to take, record and interpret a patient’s vital sign and use communication tools to support verbal and written reports. An introduction to basic medicine calculation and management will also be part of your learning. You will consider and develop fundamental nursing skills to act in a holistic, individualised, non-judgemental, and honest way, with integrity, and apply principles of The Code (NMC, 2018). Prior to your first placement, you will complete a number of mandatory requirements, which will enable you to practice with confidence and to protect your patients. These mandatory requirements will include moving and handling (M&H), basic life support (BLS), and de-escalation technique.

These skills and proficiencies will be supported by opportunities to participate in a variety of a blended approach of face-to-face practical sessions in simulated education taught by experts utilising a range of specialist technologies such as human patient simulators and immersive interactive environments underpinned by online learning and digital resources contained within the BlackBoard Ultra site. These dynamic learning opportunities will support you to develop knowledge and help you gather evidence, which will inform your attainment of your Ongoing Record of Achievement (ORA).

Encouraging and supporting families with regards to lifestyle changes that could improve their health is an element of nursing that you will undertake in both community and hospital environments. You will be introduced to key concepts in contemporary public health promoting the health and wellbeing of children, young people, families and communities through the facilitation of health enhancing activities.

You will increase your knowledge and awareness of a range of strategies to support children and young people and their family in promoting health and preventing ill health. This will include a range of health promotion approaches and models and developing your skills in promoting behaviour change in your professional practice. You will explore the relationship between the wider health determinants of health, wellbeing and health inequalities incorporating skills required to understand and undertake community profiling.

By building upon the skills and knowledge from concurrent modules you will be able to show resilience and tenacity within the often-challenging situations faced in with regard to health promotion in clinical practice. Through developing assessment and communication skills and enhanced evidence-based knowledge you will have a comprehensive and holistic approach to managing people’s care in partnership with the person with a learning disability.

This module will enable you to learn about the nature of assessment and planning for ongoing care in learning disability nursing. Providing you with the fundamental knowledge required to meet the proficiencies outlined in Platform 3: Assessing needs and planning care, in the NMC (2018) Future Nurse: Standards of proficiency for registered nurses. You will be encouraged to critically explore contemporary theoretical perspectives and approaches, considering their application to the individualised needs of the person receiving care. Key concepts related to nursing models, research skills, independent learning will be addressed.

Throughout the module you will debate the themes, principles and challenges for the ongoing assessment of the complex physical and mental health, and behaviour of a person with a learning disability. Considering diagnostic overshadowing and the impact on assessment and care delivery. Critically analyse approaches such as person-centered care; partnership working between the professional and individual receiving care; the recovery model and collaborative partnerships with other professionals and agencies. How such approaches impact on shared decision making in relation to treatment options, assessment and the development of care plans will be a central theme of the module.

The module requires you to demonstrate your growing skills in academic research, through the appraisal of contemporary literature relating to people with complex care needs. The module explores the philosophical assumptions underpinning contemporary healthcare literature to select appropriate research findings to apply to current nursing practice.

This practice module will provide you with a unique opportunity to develop skills and knowledge directly relevant to your current practice placement experiences. The practice module will both support your learning while you are in practice and provide an environment, within university, to consolidate the skills and knowledge necessary to progress effectively. By using a concept curriculum approach, the nursing practice module will support you to learn how to become an accountable professional, lead and manage nursing care, and work in teams.

During the first year, you will learn the fundamental skills that are necessary for safe, effective and professional practice.

During the majority of your first year clinical placements you will return to university for two days a week to reflect on your experiences. You will learn together with your peers and examine theoretical concepts such as professionalism, interprofessional learning, medicines management and safeguarding that will enhance your practice. Seminars and workshops will focus on a range of subjects that will enhance your professional nursing practice. Innovative teaching and learning strategies will be used to enhance your learning, This will include the use of digital educational resources to support your learning in relation to concepts such as medicines management.

You will learn how to develop your Ongoing Record of Achievement (ORA) and how to reflect on your personal and professional development. You will learn about the importance of patient centred and recovery focussed approaches and will be asked to reflect on feedback given by Experts By Experience (EBE). These skills are the start of your development as an evidence-based practitioner.

Academic skills when studying away from your home country can differ due to cultural and language differences in teaching and assessment practices. This module is designed to support your transition in the use and practice of technical language and subject specific skills around assessments and teaching provision in your chosen subject. The overall aim of this module is to develop your abilities to read and study effectively for academic purposes; to develop your skills in analysing and using source material in seminars and academic writing and to develop your use and application of language and communications skills to a higher level.

The topics you will cover on the module include:

• Understanding assignment briefs and exam questions.
• Developing academic writing skills, including citation, paraphrasing, and summarising.
• Practising ‘critical reading’ and ‘critical writing’
• Planning and structuring academic assignments (e.g. essays, reports and presentations).
• Avoiding academic misconduct and gaining credit by using academic sources and referencing effectively.
• Listening skills for lectures.
• Speaking in seminar presentations.
• Presenting your ideas
• Giving discipline-related academic presentations, experiencing peer observation, and receiving formative feedback.
• Speed reading techniques.
• Developing self-reflection skills.
• Discussing ethical issues in research, and analysing results.
• Describing bias and limitations of research.