BSc (Hons) Mental Health Nursing

This module is a core requirement for the BSc Nursing students. The content of the module is designed to help students develop their knowledge and understanding of human anatomy and physiology in relation to nursing, which is an essential element of nursing proficiency. Pathophysiology will be explored in relation to common conditions and students will also begin to develop their knowledge of pharmacological concepts in preparation for therapeutic interventions explored in year 2.

The main features of the module are to enable students to apply scientific principles to nursing care. It will also support students to identify and understand current nursing practices underpinned by scientific theory.

This module introduces students to the context of mental health nursing practice across a range of healthcare settings. Students will learn about contemporary healthcare concepts underpinning mental healthcare practice and a range of common mental health conditions. Students will be introduced to The Code (NMC, 2018) to gain knowledge and understanding of its importance in guiding the nurse to deliver safe, effective and compassionate care, which is essential when caring for adults in partnership with families and other healthcare professionals. A range of common disorders within mental health care and basic assessment processes will be explored.

This module is a core requirement for all students across all fields of the BSc Nursing programme.  As an introductory module it will enable students to develop knowledge and understanding of the principles of public health and health promotion. Students will explore the global, social-political-economic and psycho-social forces on the population’s health and well-being. In addition the student will explore the evolution of public health, the determinants of health and health inequalities.

This module will prepare students for placements and their learning in practice and the assessment process during year one of the programme. It will introduce a range of nursing procedures to enable students to provide skilled, evidence based, person centred compassionate care to people  at any stage of life who may have a range of physical, mental, cognitive or behavioural health conditions.

This module will prepare students for their role in medicines administration and optimisation in care settings. Students will revisit what they have learnt in the Year 1 Introduction to life sciences module and develop their knowledge of pharmacology, pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics. Students will apply this to the assessment of people when collecting data about physical, mental, cognitive and behavioural status. A range of common medications used across the lifespan will be explored, including their usage and indications. Students will learn to recognise the effects of medicines, allergies, drug sensitivities, side effects, contraindications, incompatibilities, adverse reactions, overdose, prescribing errors and the impact of polypharmacy and over the counter medication usage.

The module will also cover the principles of safe and effective administration and optimisation of medicines in accordance with local and national policies, including storage, transportation and disposal. Students will consider their role in supporting people to maintain independence through self-administration of medication in community and primary care. They will also discuss how to work in partnership with people and explore concepts such as concordance.

The module will also explore the various routes of administration and link this to practice of skills in the Simulation Suite. Students will also apply what they have learnt to the medicines management assessment in the Practice Assessment Document (PAD).

The module enables students to apply evidence-based principles to administering and applying therapeutic care and develop an understanding and awareness of safe and effective treatment approaches. Students will learn about partnership working with healthcare professionals, patients, service users and carers for administering treatment, as well as enabling students to identify contemporary nursing practices underpinned by therapeutic procedures.

This module enables students to build on anatomy, physiology and pathophysiology knowledge acquired in year one to develop the knowledge and skills necessary to assess and deliver safe and effective mental health care. The module focuses on knowledge and skills necessary to deliver safe and competent mental health practice and recovery focused care. It will focus on assessment and implementing and evaluating a range of evidence-based mental health care interventions within a variety of mental health settings.  It will equip students to recognise people who are acutely ill and who are at risk of deteriorating, by undertaking timely structured assessments, being able interpret clinical data and use situational judgement to escalate findings, prioritise care needs and to plan, deliver and evaluate evidence-based, person-centred care as part of the interdisciplinary team.

This module develops the students’ knowledge and understanding of long term mental health conditions and the lived experience of adults from a bio-psycho-social perspective. Students will consider the political agenda and the socio- economic issues impacting on the management of mental health long term conditions. This will enable students to consider the role of the community care nurse in promoting self-management, shared decision making and hospital avoidance. It will incorporate professional accountability, social inclusion, partnership and interdisciplinary working, patient involvement in the provision of care, leadership and quality assurance in nursing, all of which are essential elements of mental health nursing proficiency.

This module will further develop the skills taught and practised in the introduction to professional practice in year one.  Students will be able to assess, plan and rationalise the nursing care they provide for people in health and social care and community settings. The emphasis will be on holistic person-centred care covering physical, psychological, social and cultural care. It will look at evidence based person centred care being delivered inter- and intra-disciplinary.

This module will help students develop their knowledge of evidence-based practice in nursing and also their critical thinking skills. The relevance and application of evidence-based will be explored, together with the evidence-based practice frameworks and hierarchies of evidence in care practices. The module will build on knowledge of the research process and provide further depth on research methodologies. A range of quantitative, qualitative and mix methods approaches will be explored using relevant research studies. The critical thinking frameworks for analysing the quality and reliability of published research, identifying methodological strengths and weaknesses will be explored, together with the key literacy skills, such as constructing a coherent argument will be developed. Ethical considerations during research will be explored, including the involvement of service users and carers. The use of evidence-based practice in safety and quality improvement will also be introduced and students will explore a range of regularly employed improvement methodologies, such as audit. The module will help the students understand that any care and treatment given to people is research based and has shown to be the most effective.

This module will provide the nursing student with the underpinning knowledge and skills required for their future leadership role in coordinating and managing the complex nursing and integrated care needs of people at any stage of their lives, across a range of organisations and settings.

The module will also provide the nursing student with the theoretical knowledge and skills required for their future role as a qualified nurse when contributing to risk monitoring, quality care provision and optimised service improvements. The student will learn to manage and prioritise clinical actions, participate in clinical audit activities for quality and service improvements and learn to avoid compromising quality care using evidence-based knowledge and experience from practice. Regulations essential for maintaining safety at work and in different care environments will be covered.

The student will build on their knowledge of partnership and collaborative working and complexities of physical care through resource management, finances and patient involvement, all of which are essential elements of nursing proficiency.

Navigating the transition from student to a professional practitioner who is skilled at leading teams is critically important to the delivery of safe, effective and high quality health care. This module is designed to prepare the student for professional nursing practice by expanding their knowledge and skills to enable them to be an accountable and compassionate leader within the health and social care system. It focuses on leadership, team working, and performance management and enables adult nursing students to reflect on their transition to registered practice and build the evidence base for a career development portfolio. Some sessions will be shared across fields as they are core for all fields.

The module examines what is required to be an accountable professional within the healthcare system, policies, organisational structures and role, professional hierarchies, and ethics and values. Theories of leadership and group dynamics and evidence of the emergence of conflict and stress are examined and applied to practice. Communication, feedback and performance management are examined in detail and the module considers both formal and informal approaches to supporting other healthcare workers. The transition toward professional registration and employment prepares adult nursing students for their future careers by encouraging them to reflect on their personal qualities and experiences.

This module advances the skills taught and practiced in years one and two in order to prepare students for their transition to registered nurse. The module focuses on the assessment and management of patients with complex health care needs, working in partnership with other health care professionals. Students will integrate their clinical and communication skills with evidence based knowledge to become clinically proficient and confident nurses. It is a generic module where all fields of nursing learn with and from each other.