CQUniversity Unit Profile.

In this unit, you will have the opportunity to practice nursing care for individuals, including those who are acutely unwell. You will apply the relevant Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) Professional Standards and the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards (NSQHS) in your practice as a nursing student. You will identify risk and recognise and respond appropriately to the needs of the patient in the simulated and clinical environments. You will review the concept of scope of practice using the Decision-Making Framework (DMF) (NMBA, 2020). You are required to participate in a compulsory three (3) day, 24-hour residential school or equivalent prior to attending professional experience placement for this unit. This unit includes a 120 hour block professional experience placement in a clinical care environment. You must meet specific mandatory health, safety and security requirements to be eligible to attend each professional experience placement. Professional experience placements may be limited in your community, and you may be placed in other locations. Please be prepared financially and personally to cover the costs of relocating for placements. Due to the limited availability of placements, some block placements have start and/or end dates that fall outside standard term dates.

Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.

Feedback from Sute Comments

The number of people in our residential school group was too big. Because of this large group size, the teachers were unable to circulate the room and give feedback and assistance to each of us. If I did not have an EN in my group I would have learnt very little. This left me feeling very unprepared for placement.

To ensure quality of learning is achieved, the number of residential school teaching staff could be reviewed. Conduct regular check ins with students throughout the day to ensure student learning needs are being met will enhance and facilitate student learning. This allows the student opportunities to speak up regarding what learning needs and skill practices they require and/or missed out on practising.

Feedback from Sute comments

Maybe needs to be recognition of experience for EN's. All the skills shown in the lab were everyday skills already used by most of the EN's

It is recommended that the prior experience and clinical competence of Endorsed Enrolled Nurses (ENs) be recognised within the structure of residential school activities.This has been recognised and the implementation of a new pathway for EN's has been recommended, ensuring that ENs are challenged and engaged and their learning opportunities are tailored to their skill development.

Feedback from Sute Comments

Residential school was rushed. Two teachers for a large volume of students and the content to get through is too much. We got shown a PCA's and syringe drivers briefly to then have it followed up with 'but we will touch more on them in PEP4.'• Then why are we talking about it now and taking up valuable time. We got shown airway adjuncts but then were shown how an intubation was done but we are never going to intubate someone? This all takes up valuable time that could be spent one something else. The Enrolled Nurses in the group were having to guide and support the none EN's because the teachers are so stretched. Then the EN's would get in trouble for not 'staying in the scope of an RN student'•. The EN's would get told at the beginning that 'you are an RN student, things have changed since you studied'• but then the teachers would show techniques of 'this is how I was trained in the 80's'• yet best practice techniques have changed since then. The teachers would get frustrated with silence of the room when asking questions but then also get frustrated when the EN's 'weren't letting others answer'•.

Prioritise content based on Unit Learning Outcomes by limiting content to skills and knowledge directly relevant to PEP2-level outcomes. Clarify expectations for EN Students transitioning to RN by delivering clear, consistent messaging about the role and scope of ENs in the context of RN training. Ensure teaching aligns with current best practice by providing all educators with ongoing training in current clinical procedures and teaching practices. Review and improve time allocation by evaluating the structure of the three-day residential school to ensure adequate time for essential skill development. Implementing these changes can enhance student learning outcomes, ensure consistency across campuses, and better support both new and experienced learners in their transition to registered nursing practice.