4 Year Nursing Degree Programme (BSc Cur)

NU2S02 Professional Concepts for Nursing (5 ECTS)

Learning Outcomes

Following completion of this module the student should be able to

Unit 1 Philosophy and Ethics for Nursing Practice

• Appreciate the significance/relevance of philosophy for nursing.
  
• Outline the theoretical foundations of ethical nursing practice.
  
• Employ an ethical decision making framework to critically debate aspects of nursing practice.
  

Unit 2 Theoretical Foundations of Caring, Spirituality, Spiritual Well –Being, Grief and Loss

• Outline the Theoretical Foundations of Caring in Nursing.
  
• Discuss the Concept of Caring and Professional Care.
  
• Discuss the Concept of Spirituality and associated concepts of Hope and Advocacy.
  
• Acknowledge the significance/relevance of health related dimensions of Spirituality and consider ways in which the Spiritual dimension may impact upon health and wellbeing.
  
• Debate the theories of bereavement and grief in relation to loss, death and dying.
  

Unit 3 Legal Perspectives in Nursing

• Give an account of the statutory background to the health services and nursing profession.
  
• Develop an understanding of legal frameworks and principles that inform effective professional nursing practice.
  
• Explore the concepts of duty of care, tort and negligence and the implications for nursing practice.
  
• Analyze and discuss the principles relating to consent to treatment and its application to nursing practice.
  
• Discuss how principles of data protection and confidentiality apply to personal health information

Module Learning Aims

This module aims to develop students’ knowledge of professional concepts central to nursing. The
module will provide students with the opportunity to explore the following: philosophical, ethical, spiritual,
caring and legal perspectives of nursing in three distinct units of learning as follows:

• Unit 1 - Philosophy and Ethics for Nursing Practice.
  
• Unit 2 - Theoretical Foundations of Caring Spirituality, Spiritual Well-Being, Grief and Loss.
  
• Unit 3 - Legal Perspectives in Nursing.

Recommended Reading List

Essential Reading

Unit 1

• NIMBI (2014) Code of Professional Conduct and Ethics for Registered Nurses and Registered Midwives (Available online.)
  
• Purtilo R &.Doherty R. (2011) Ethical Dimensions in the Health Professions, 5th edn. Elsevier Saunders, Philadelphia.
  

Unit 2

• McSherry W. (2007) The Meaning of Spirituality and Spiritual Care within Nursing and Healthcare. Quay Books, UK.
  
• McSherry W, McSherry R & Watson R (Eds.)(2012) Care in Nursing : Principles, Values and Skills, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
  

Unit 3

• Madden D. (2011) Medicine, Ethics and the Law.2nd edn,. Bloomsbury Professional, Dublin.
  

Recommended Reading

Unit 1

• Beauchamp.T.L Childress J.F (2008) Principles of Biomedical Ethics.6th edn. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
  
• Brykczynska .G.M. Simons J. (2011) Ethical and Philosophical Aspects of Nursing Children and Young People. Whiley Blackwell. UK.
  
• Dooley D. Mc Carthy J. (2012) Nursing Ethics Irish Cases and Concerns, 2nd edn,Gill and Macmillan, Dublin.
• Hugman R. (2005) New Approaches in Ethics for the Caring Professions. Palgrave McMillian.UK.
  
• Unit 2Baughan J. & Smith A. (2013) Compassion Caring and Communication : Skills for Nursing Practice, 2nd edn, Pearson Education, UK.
  
• Bowlby, J (1980) Attachment and Loss, Vol. 3: Loss: Sadness and Depression. New York: Basic Books.
  
• Doka, K J. (2002) Disenfranchised Grief: New Directions, Challenges and Strategies for Practice. Research Press, Champaign, IL.
  
• Kubler Ross E. (2014) On Death & Dying: What the Dying Have to Teach Doctors, Nurses, Clergy & Their Own Families, Scribner, New York.
  
• Kubler Ross D & Elisabeth Kessler (2014) On Grief and Grieving: Finding the Meaning of Grief Through the Five Stages of Loss, Simon and Shuster, London.
  
• McSherry W & Ross. L (2010) Spiritual Assessment in Health Care. M&K Update, Cumbria.
  
• McSherry W (2006) Making sense of spirituality and health care practice. An Interactive approach. 2nd edn. Jessica Kingsley Publishers, UK.
  
• Smith MC Turkel MC& Wolf ZR (2013) Caring in Nursing ; An Essential Resource, Springer Publishing Company , New York.
• Watson J. (2011) Human Science Caring A Theory of Nursing, 2nd edn. ,Jones and Bartlett, USA.
  
• Worden, W.J. (2009) Grief Counselling and Grief Therapy: A Handbook for the Mental Health Practitioner, 4Th edn, Springer Publication Company, New York.
  

Unit 3

• Byrne R , McCutcheon J.P., Bruton C. & Coffey G. (2009) Byrne and McCutcheon on The Irish Legal System. 5th edn Bloomsbury Professional, Dublin.
  
• Casey, P., Brady, P., Craven, C. & Dillon, A. (2010) Psychiatry and the Law 2nd edn, Blackhall Publishing, Dublin.
  
• Department of Health and Children (2011) Children First- National Guidelines for the Protection and Welfare of Children. Stationery Office, Dublin.
  
• Government of Ireland (2000) The National Children’s Strategy ‘’ Our children- Their Lives’’. Stationery Office, Dublin.
  
• Kilkelly U. (2008) Children’s Rights in Ireland: Law, Policy and Practice. Tottel Publishing Ltd, Dublin
  
• Mills S. (2008) Clinical Practice and the Law. 2nd edn, Dublin, Butterworths (Ireland) Limited, Dublin.
  
• Ryan D. (2010) The Mental Health Acts 2001-2009. Blackhall Publishing, Dublin.
  
• Van Dokkum, N. (2011) Nursing Law for Irish Students. 2nd edn, Gill and MacMillan, Dublin.
  
• Byrne R , McCutcheon J.P., Bruton C. & Coffey G. (2014) Byrne and McCutcheon on The Irish Legal System. 6th edn Bloomsbury Professional, Dublin.
• Department of Health and Children (2011) Children First- National Guidelines for the Protection and Welfare of Children. Stationery Office, Dublin.
  
• Government of Ireland (2000) The National Children’s Strategy ‘’ Our children- Their Lives’’. Stationery Office, Dublin.
  
• Higgins A. and McDaid S. (eds) (2014) Mental Health in Ireland Policy Practice & Law. Gill and MacMillan, Dublin.
  
• Kilkelly U. (2008) Children’s Rights in Ireland: Law, Policy and Practice. Tottel Publishing Ltd, Dublin
  
• Madden D. (2011) Medicine, Ethics and the Law. 2nd edition. Bloomsbury Professional, Dublin.
  
• Mills S. (2008) Clinical Practice and the Law. 2nd edn, Dublin, Butterworths (Ireland) Limited, Dublin.
  
• Van Dokkum, N. (2011) Nursing Law for Irish Students. 2nd edn, Gill and MacMillan, Dublin.
  

* Additional readings will be given for each unit of learning