Overview
This unit provides you with advanced knowledge of normal homeostatic mechanisms and the pathophysiological basis of common health disorders seen in medical/surgical nursing. You will explore the impact of the common safety concerns of persons receiving nursing care in medical/surgical settings. You will apply the Registered nurse standards of practice to the person-centred nursing care of those receiving medical and surgical nursing care. You will have the opportunity to review, critique and refine the planned care of those receiving medical and/or surgical nursing care.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Students must be enrolled in CL22 Master of Clinical Nursing to undertake this unit.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 1 - 2025
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Postgraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of 'pass' in order to pass the unit. If any 'pass/fail' tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully ('pass' grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the 'assessment task' section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback - Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
- Analyse the metabolic, biophysical, and pathophysiological changes that lead to a person requiring medical and/or surgical interventions and nursing care.
- Explore the impact of common safety concerns on persons experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions in your healthcare setting.
- Apply the Registered nurse standards of practice to the person-centred nursing care approach to people experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions to optimise their health outcomes in your healthcare setting.
- Critically review and enhance the planned nursing care of the person experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions to optimise health outcomes.
There are no learning outcomes linked to external accreditation for this unit.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 1 - Written Assessment - 40% | ||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 60% | ||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 1 - Knowledge | ||||
| 2 - Communication | ||||
| 3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills | ||||
| 4 - Research | ||||
| 5 - Self-management | ||||
| 6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility | ||||
| 7 - Leadership | ||||
| 8 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | ||||
Textbooks
There are no required textbooks.
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- Academic Learning Centre services
- Access to MIMS through the university library
- CQ U library search engines for research articles
- CQUniversity library literature search tools
- Microsoft Word
- Wordprocessing, spreadsheeting and powerpoint software
- Zoom account (Free)
- Zoom app on your smart phone or access to Zoom on your laptop
- Endnote bibliographic software. This is optional for formatting references.
- Online access Australian Standards (through CQU Library)
- CQUniversity Library Nursing Resources
- CQUniveristy Library Resources
- Zoom (both microphone and webcam capability)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: American Psychological Association 7th Edition (APA 7th edition)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
s.ohlin@cqu.edu.au
a.monson@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Acute care nursing, advanced practice nursing, and clinical reasoning.
Chapter
Review the Moodle site and click on all the links.
Find out what is in Student Support?
Find out how to find the Library?
Click on the link and learn what is the Academic Learning Centre?
Readings and activities as outlined in module.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Recorded presentations:
- Welcome and Unit Introduction O Week.
- Assessments 1 and 2.
- Acute care nursing, advanced practice nursing and clinical reasoning.
Activity – Access the General Discussion page and introduce yourself to your colleagues by providing your:
- Name
- Where you work
- Why you are studying MCN.
Assessments 1 and 2 - Review the assessment tasks and make a study plan.
Foundations of Academic Integrity Program - complete your annual program.
Announcement and Discussion Boards - Check for posts and updates.
Module/Topic
Nursing knowledge, law, ethics, and professional practice.
Chapter
Readings and activities as outlined in module.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Tutorial and Unit content and assessment question and answer.
Assessment 1 - Start your literature searching and preparing assessment.
Announcement and Discussion Boards - Check for posts and updates.
Student email - Check your student email at least twice per week for communication.
Module/Topic
Preoperative and postoperative assessment and care of the surgical patient care.
Chapter
Readings and activities as outlined in module.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Recorded presentation: Listen to the presentation.
Assessment 1 - Read the literature you search for credibility and continue preparing your assessment.
Announcement and Discussion Boards - Check for posts and updates.
Student email - Check your student email at least twice per week for communication.
Module/Topic
Shock.
Chapter
Readings and activities as outlined in module.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Tutorial and Unit content and assessment question and answer.
Assessment 1 - Read the literature you search for credibility and continue preparing your assessment. You might wish to seek assessment preparation help from the Academic Learning Centre and/or Studiosity.
Announcement and Discussion Boards - Check for posts and updates.
Student email - Check your student email at least twice per week for communication.
Module/Topic
Wound care and the prevention and treatment of infections in the acute care nursing.
Chapter
Readings and activities as outlined in module.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Recorded presentation - Listen to the presentation.
Assessment 1 - Continue preparing your assessment. You might wish to seek assessment preparation help from the Academic Learning Centre and/or Studiosity.
Announcement and Discussion Boards - Check for posts and updates.
Student email - Check your student email at least twice per week for communication.
Module/Topic
Vacation week.
Chapter
Please use this mid-term break as an opportunity to rest and recover. Enjoy your break!
Events and Submissions/Topic
No timetabled learning activities.
Please use this week to progress your assessments.
Module/Topic
Sepsis and septic shock.
Chapter
Readings and activities as outlined in module.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Tutorial and Unit content and assessment question and answer.
Assessment 1 - Check originality of your assessment through Turnitin and make relevant changes to your assessment after reviewing your originality report.
Assessment 2 - Review assessment task again and make a study plan to address this assessment.
Announcement and Discussion Boards - Check for posts and updates.
Student email - Check your student email at least twice per week for communication.
Written Assessment Due: Week 6 Wednesday (23 Apr 2025) 4:00 pm AEST
Module/Topic
Acute pain.
Chapter
Readings and activities as outlined in module.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Recorded presentation - Listen to the presentation.
Assessment 2 - Search the literature for your assessment. You might wish to seek assessment preparation help from the Academic Learning Centre and/or Studiosity.
Announcement and Discussion Boards - Check for posts and updates.
Student email - Check your student email at least twice per week for communication.
Module/Topic
Fluids and fluid assessment.
Chapter
Readings and activities as outlined in module.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Tutorial and Unit content and assessment question and answer.
Assessment 2 - Review the literature and access the NANDA nursing care plans.
Announcement and Discussion Boards - Check for posts and updates.
Student email - Check your student email at least twice per week for communication.
Module/Topic
Nutrition and hydration.
Chapter
Readings and activities as outlined in module.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Recorded presentation - Listen to the presentation.
Assessment 2 - Search the literature for your assessment. You might wish to seek assessment preparation help from the Academic Learning Centre and/or Studiosity.
Announcement and Discussion Boards - Check for posts and updates.
Student email - Check your student email at least twice per week for communication.
Module/Topic
Pharmacology and advanced nursing practice.
Chapter
Readings and activities as outlined in module.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Tutorial and Unit content and assessment question and answer.
Assessment 2 - Review the literature and start writing your NANDA nursing care plan.
Announcement and Discussion Boards - Check for posts and updates.
Student email - Check your student email at least twice per week for communication.
Module/Topic
Communication for patient safety.
Chapter
Readings and activities as outlined in module.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Recorded presentation - Listen to the presentation.
Assessment 2 - Continue preparing your assessment and check originality through Turnitin, make relevant changes to your assessment after reviewing your originality report. Access Studiosity for help with structure/flow/spelling/referencing for your assessment.
Announcement and Discussion Boards - Check for posts and updates.
Student email - Check your student email at least twice per week for communication.
Module/Topic
Acute care nursing of the oncology patient.
Revision and finalisation of term.
Chapter
Readings and activities as outlined in module.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Tutorial and Unit content and assessment question and answer.
Assessment 2 - Check originality of assessment through Turnitin and make relevant changes to your assessment after reviewing your originality report.
Announcement and Discussion Boards - Check for posts and updates.
Student email - Check your student email at least twice per week for communication.
Written Assessment Due: Week 12 Wednesday (4 June 2025) 4:00 pm AEST
Module/Topic
Nil.
Chapter
Nil.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Nil.
Module/Topic
Nil.
Chapter
Nil.
Events and Submissions/Topic
Nil.
1 Written Assessment
Aim
The aim of this assessment is for you to demonstrate how advanced practice nurses play a pivotal role in integrating clinical expertise, patient safety and the principles of person-centred care to deliver high-quality evidence-based care in medical and/or surgical settings/complex clinical settings
Instructions
Please follow the steps below to complete your assessment task:
1. Provide an introduction outlining the aim of your assessment (approximately 100 words).
2. Select a case study you have cared for that involves a complex patient undergoing medical or surgical interventions. Provide detailed information about their medical history, presenting condition, and the intervention performed. Provide a de-identified name for your case study (approximately 300 words).
3. Analyse the metabolic, biophysical, and pathophysiological changes that necessitated the intervention (approximately 300 words).
4. Identify at least one safety concern (e.g., infection risk, medication error, or falls) related to the patient’s care and discuss its potential impact on their health outcomes (approximately 300 words).5. Develop a person-centred nursing care plan aligned with the Registered Nurse Standards of Practice. Access the NANDA nursing care plans and use the five-column format to develop your nursing care plan for your case study. This format allows you to include your nursing assessment, diagnosis, outcomes, intervention, rationale, and evaluation (approximately 500 words).
6. Conduct a critical review of the nursing care provided, proposing evidence-based enhancements to improve patient outcomes. Additionally, explain how these improvements would differ if implemented by an advanced practice nurse (approximately 400 words).
7. Provide a concise conclusion summarising the main concepts from your assessment (approximately 100 words).
Literature and references
In this assessment use at least 15 contemporary references (7 years or less) to support your discussion. You may also use seminal scholarly literature where relevant. Suitable references include peer-reviewed journal articles as well as textbooks and credible websites. When sourcing information, consider the 5 elements of a quality reference: currency, authority, relevance, objectivity, and coverage. Grey literature sourced from the internet must be from reputable websites such as from government, university, or peak national bodies: for example, the Australian College of Nursing, the Australian Association of Social Workers, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Note, that websites such as StatPearls, Life in the Fastlane, and Wikipedia are not suitable for this assessment task. Lecture notes are not primary sources of evidence and should not be used in this assessment. All resources, other than web pages and grey literature, must be sources from the CQUniversity library.
Requirements
· Use a cover page for your assignment that includes in the following order:
· Student name
· Student number
· Unit code and name
· Assessment type
· Due date
· In-text word count
· Use of Gen AI: Gen AI agent has been used for editing and proofreading this assessment
· Use a conventional and legible size 12 font, such as Times New Roman, with 2.0 line spacing and 2.54cm page margins (standard pre-set margin in Microsoft Word).
· Include page numbers on the top right side of each page in a header.
· Indent the first line of each paragraph 1.27cm (standard pre-set indent in Microsoft Word).
· An introduction and conclusion are required for this assessment.
· All questions in the Instructions of this assessment must be attempted and clearly answered to pass this assessment task.
· Write in the third-person perspective when referring to the literature.
· Use formal academic, discipline specific, professional and inclusive language.
· Use Microsoft Word English (Australia) spelling and grammar checker.
· Paraphrase, summarise or quote information acknowledging the original source (referencing) to avoid plagiarism.
· Use essay structure.
· Follow academic writing conventions: spell out contractions in full; introduce abbreviations and acronyms; spell out numbers for zero through nine and use numerals for numbers 10 and above.
· All work submitted must be your own work.
· Start your reference list on a separate page to the body of your assessment.
· Use the seventh edition American Psychological Association (APA) referencing style. The CQUniversity Academic Learning Centre has an online APA Referencing Style Guide.
· The word count is considered from the first word of the introduction to the last word of the conclusion. The word count excludes the reference list but includes in-text references and direct quotations.
Resources
· You can use unit provided materials and other credible sources (e.g., journal articles, books) to reference your argument. The quality and credibility of your sources are important. Please note, lecture notes are not peer reviewed primary sources of evidence.
· We recommend that you access your discipline specific Nursing Resource Guide.
· You may like to manage your citations and reference list. Information on how to use academic referencing software (EndNote) is available at the CQUniversity Library website should you wish to learn how to use it.
· For information on academic writing and referencing please go to the Academic Learning Centre Moodle site. The Academic Communication section has many helpful resources, including information for students with English as a second language.
· You may wish to submit a draft to Studiosity.
· Submit at least one draft before the due date to review your Turnitin Similarity Score before making a final submission. Instructions are available here. Please remember, the similarity score is only a matching tool, and the score alone does not necessarily indicate or eliminate the presence of plagiarism.
Academic Integrity
1. You must abide by the principles of academic integrity (see Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure). Completion of this assessment with another party or sharing of responses is not permitted at any time.
2. The use of any generative artificial intelligence is permitted for the following purposes:
a. Gen AI content is used to generate ideas and general structures.
b. Gen AI content editing.
c. Checking spelling and grammar (for example, Grammarly).
If you use Gen AI to generate ideas, you are required to reference the Gen AI agent as per APA 7th guidelines. If you are using a Gen AI agent for content editing, please complete the declaration on the title page of your assessment. If Gen AI is not used, please delete this declaration.
Submission
Submit your assessment via the unit Moodle site in Microsoft Word format only.
Late penalties of 5% per day of the available mark may be applied as per the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Contact TASAC if you experience technical issues submitting your assessment:
· Phone toll-free 1300 666 620
· Email tasac@cqu.edu.au
Marking Criteria
Refer to the marking rubric on the Moodle site for more detail on how marks will be assigned. Assessment re-attempt is not available for this Assessment task.
Minimum Pass Criteria
· You must achieve a cumulative grade of at least 50% across all assessments to pass this unit.
· In the event you are eligible for a supplementary assessment, all assessment tasks must be reasonably attempted in this unit.
Week 6 Wednesday (23 Apr 2025) 4:00 pm AEST
Submit your assessment in Microsoft Word format only.
Week 8 Wednesday (7 May 2025)
Students will be advised of release of assessment marking via an announcement posted to the Announcement's Board on the Unit Moodle site. Please note, the 'Return to Students Information" is an approximate date.
|
Key Criteria |
High Distinction 84.5–100% |
Distinction 74.50–84.49% |
Credit 64.50–74.49% |
Pass 49.50–64.49% |
Fail ≤49.4% |
|
Introduction (5%) |
(5–4.3) Comprehensive and succinct introduction that provides excellent background information that introduces the topic and outlines aim/s and direction of the assessment. |
(4.22–3.73) Clear and appropriate background that introduces the topic and outlines the aim/s and direction of the assessment. |
(3.72–3.23) An adequate and appropriate introduction that provides some background information that introduces the topic and outlines the aim/s and direction of the assessment. |
(3.22–2.48) An introduction has been attempted, however provides limited background information and the outline of the assessment’s aim/s and direction of the assessment is not clear. |
(2.47–0) The introduction has significant errors or omissions of background and the aim/s or the introduction is not evident or provided. The logical direction of the assessment is not evident. |
|
Conclusion (5%) |
(5–4.3) Comprehensive and succinct conclusion that summarises the main points and brings the discussion to a logical close. |
(4.22–3.73) Clear and appropriate conclusion that summarises the main points and brings the discussion to a close. |
(3.72–3.23) An adequate and appropriate conclusion that outlines most of the main points and brings some sense of closure. |
(3.22–2.48) A conclusion has been attempted, summarises some of the main points and endeavours to bring the discussion to a close-there may be some incongruity. |
(2.47–0) The conclusion has significant errors or omissions with minimal or no summarisation of the key points. |
|
Complex medical or surgical case study overview including discussion of their medical history, presenting condition, and the intervention performed (10%)
|
(10–8.5) Provides a comprehensive and concise justification within the case study of a person undergoing medical or surgical intervention. Provides comprehensive information about their medical history, presenting condition, and the intervention performed. |
(8.4–7.5) Provides a concise justification within the case study of a person undergoing medical or surgical intervention. Concise and detailed information about their medical history, presenting condition, and the intervention performed is provided. |
(7.4–6.5) Provides a clear justification within the case study of a person undergoing medical or surgical intervention. Providing majority of information about their medical history, presenting condition, and the intervention performed. |
(6.4–5) Basic justification is provided within the case study of a person undergoing medical or surgical intervention. Provides some information about their medical history, presenting condition, and the intervention performed. |
(4.9–0) Minimal or no justification provided within the case study of a person undergoing medical or surgical intervention. Minimal or no or information about their medical history, presenting condition, and the intervention performed is provided. |
|
Analyse the metabolic, biophysical, and pathophysiological changes that necessitated the intervention (10%) |
(10–8.5) Provides a comprehensive and concise analysis of the metabolic, biophysical, and pathophysiological changes that necessitated the intervention. |
(8.4–7.5) Provides a concise analysis of the metabolic, biophysical, and pathophysiological changes that necessitated the intervention. |
(7.4–6.5) Provides some analysis of the of the metabolic, biophysical, and pathophysiological changes that necessitated the intervention. |
(6.4–5) An analysis is attempted of the metabolic, biophysical, and pathophysiological changes; however, there are gaps in the discussion necessitated the intervention. |
(4.9–0) Limited or no information provided and/or lack of relevance in of the metabolic, biophysical, and pathophysiological changes and limited or no discussion of necessitated intervention. |
|
Safety concern related to the patient’s care and discussion its potential impact on their health outcomes (10%) |
(10–8.5) Comprehensive and concise discussion that identifies at least one safety concern related to the patient’s care and comprehensively discusses its potential impact on their health outcomes.
|
(8.4–7.5) Concise discussion that identifies at least one safety concern related to the patient’s care and concisely discusses its potential impact on their health outcomes.
|
(7.4–6.5) Mostly concise discussion that identifies at least one safety concern related to the patient’s care and discusses its potential impact on their health outcomes.
|
(6.4–5) Discussion of at least one safety concern related to the patient’s care and discusses its potential impact on their health outcomes is attempted, however there are gaps in the discussion.
|
(4.9–0) Limited, unclear or omitted discussion that does not identify at least one safety concern related to the patient’s care and its potential impact on their health outcomes.
|
|
Nursing care plan aligned with the Registered Nurse Standards of Practice utilising the NANDA nursing care plan (20%)
|
(20–17) Highly developed person-centred nursing care plan aligned with the Registered Nurse Standards of Practice utilising the NANDA nursing care plan. |
(16.9–15) Well-developed person-centred nursing care plan aligned with the Registered Nurse Standards of Practice utilising the NANDA nursing care plan. |
(14.9–13) Adequately developed person-centred nursing care plan aligned with the Registered Nurse Standards of Practice utilising the NANDA nursing care plan. |
(12.9–10) Somewhat developed person-centred nursing care plan aligned with the Registered Nurse Standards of Practice utilising the NANDA nursing care plan. |
(9.9–0) Limited, unclear or omitted person-centred nursing care plan aligned with the Registered Nurse Standards of Practice utilising the NANDA nursing care plan. |
|
Critical review of the nursing care (20%) |
(20–17) Provides a comprehensive and concise justification of the nursing care provided. Provides comprehensive information and explanation of how these improvements would differ if implemented by an advanced practice nurse.
|
(16.9–15) Provides a concise justification of the nursing care provided. Provides concise information and explanation of how these improvements would differ if implemented by an advanced practice nurse. |
(14.9–13) Provides a clear justification of the nursing care provided. Provides detailed information and explanation of how these improvements would differ if implemented by an advanced practice nurse. |
(12.9–10) Basic justification is of the nursing care provided. Provides limited information and explanation of how these improvements would differ if implemented by an advanced practice nurse.
|
(9.9–0) Minimal or no justification provided of the nursing care provided. No provision of information and explanation of how these improvements would differ if implemented by an advanced practice nurse. |
|
Professional writing and presentation (10%) |
(10–8.5) Content is clear, accurate and presented in a logical, succinct order demonstrating a comprehensive understanding of the topic. There are no errors in English grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Language of the discipline is comprehensively used. Formatting requirements applied without error. Literature cited is published in the last 7 years. Assessment is written using the student’s own words and is the student’s own work. |
(8.4–7.5) Content is frequently clear, correct and presented in a logical order demonstrating a good understanding of the topic. English grammar, spelling, and punctuation conventions have 1 error. Language of the discipline is frequently used. Formatting requirements are applied with 1 error. Majority of literature cited is published in the last 7 years. Assessment is written using the student’s own words and is the student’s own work. |
(7.4–6.5) Content is mostly clear, correct and presented in a logical order demonstrating a sound understanding of the topic. English grammar, spelling, and punctuation conventions have 2 errors. Language of the discipline is mostly used. Formatting requirements are applied with 2 errors. Most literature cited is published in the last 7 years. Assessment is written using the student’s own words and is the student’s own work. |
(6.4–5) Content is frequently clear, correct and presented in a logical order demonstrating a reasonable understanding of the topic. English grammar, spelling, and punctuation conventions have 3 errors. Language of the discipline is used. Formatting requirements are applied with 3 errors. Some literature cited is published in the last 7 years. Assessment is written using the student’s own words and is the student’s own work. |
(4.9–0) Content is consistently unclear or incorrect and is disorganised demonstrating insufficient understanding of the topic. English grammar, spelling and punctuation conventions have ≥4 errors. Language of the discipline is rarely, incorrectly or not used. Formatting requirements are applied with ≥4 errors. Majority of literature cited is published ≥7 years or not cited. Assessment is inconsistently or not written using the student’s own words and/or is not the student’s own work. |
|
Referencing (10%) |
(10–8.5) Acknowledges all sources of peer reviewed literature. Has no APA 7th Edition referencing errors, and all references have been cited. The assessment is substantiated with a minimum of 15 appropriate contemporary peer reviewed journal articles. Meets APA 7th Edition referencing standards with no errors in-text and the reference list. |
(8.4–7.5) Acknowledges majority sources of peer reviewed literature. Has 1 APA 7th Edition referencing errors or references not provided. The assessment is substantiated with a minimum of 13-14, appropriate contemporary peer reviewed journal articles. Meets APA 7th Edition referencing standards with no more than 1 errors in-text and the reference list. |
(7.4–6.5) Acknowledges most sources of peer reviewed literature. Has 2 APA 7th Edition referencing errors or references not provided. The assessment is substantiated with a minimum of 11-12, appropriate contemporary peer reviewed journal articles. Meets APA 7th Edition referencing standards with no more than 2 errors in-text and the reference list. |
(6.4–5) Acknowledges some sources of peer reviewed literature. Has 3 APA 7th Edition referencing errors or references not provided. The assessment is substantiated with a minimum of 9-10, appropriate contemporary peer reviewed journal articles. Meets APA 7th Edition referencing standards with no more than 3 errors in-text and the reference list. |
(4.9–0) Acknowledges minimal or no sources peer reviewed literature. Has ≥4 or more APA 7th Edition referencing errors or references not provided. The assessment cites ≤8 sources of peer reviewed evidence and/or evidence is not appropriate. Has ≥4 or more APA 7th Edition referencing errors in-text and the reference list. |
- Analyse the metabolic, biophysical, and pathophysiological changes that lead to a person requiring medical and/or surgical interventions and nursing care.
- Explore the impact of common safety concerns on persons experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions in your healthcare setting.
- Apply the Registered nurse standards of practice to the person-centred nursing care approach to people experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions to optimise their health outcomes in your healthcare setting.
- Critically review and enhance the planned nursing care of the person experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions to optimise health outcomes.
2 Written Assessment
Aim
The aim of this assessment is for you to demonstrate advanced nursing practice to improve healthcare outcomes of the medical and/or surgical patient with a health care associated infection.
Instructions
Please follow the steps below to complete your assessment task:
1. Provide an introduction outlining the aim of your assessment (approximately 150 words).
2. Choose a health care associated infection and analyse the underlying metabolic, biophysical, or pathophysiological factors related to this infection. Include an overview of a relevant case study (approximately 650words).
3. Discuss how advanced practice nursing, person-centred care and the Registered Nurse Standards of Practice can be applied to optimise patient outcomes regarding this infection (approximately 700 words).
4. Provide evidence-based recommendations for improving safety measures in your healthcare setting to reduce the risks of health care associated infections (approximately 650words).
5. Critically review and prioritise the advanced practice nursing care of the person experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions to optimise health outcomes from the infection (approximately 700words).
6. Provide a concise conclusion summarising the main concepts from your assessment (approximately 150 words).
Literature and references
In this assessment use at least 20 contemporary references (7 years or less) to support your discussion. You may also use seminal scholarly literature where relevant. Suitable references include peer-reviewed journal articles as well as textbooks and credible websites. When sourcing information, consider the 5 elements of a quality reference: currency, authority, relevance, objectivity, and coverage. Grey literature sourced from the internet must be from reputable websites such as from government, university, or peak national bodies: for example, the Australian College of Nursing, the Australian Association of Social Workers, Australian Bureau of Statistics, Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Note, that websites such as StatPearls, Life in the Fastlane, and Wikipedia are not suitable for this assessment task. Lecture notes are not primary sources of evidence and should not be used in this assessment. All resources, other than web pages and grey literature, must be sources from the CQUniversity library.
Requirements
· Use a cover page for your assignment that includes in the following order:
· Student name
· Student number
· Unit code and name
· Assessment type
· Due date
· In-text word count
· Use of Gen AI: Gen AI agent has been used for editing and proofreading this assessment
· Use a conventional and legible size 12 font, such as Times New Roman, with 2.0 line spacing and 2.54cm page margins (standard pre-set margin in Microsoft Word).
· Include page numbers on the top right side of each page in a header.
· Indent the first line of each paragraph 1.27cm (standard pre-set indent in Microsoft Word).
· An introduction and conclusion are required for this assessment.
· All questions in the Instructions of this assessment must be attempted and clearly answered to pass this assessment task.
· Write in the third-person perspective when referring to the literature.
· Use formal academic, discipline specific, professional and inclusive language.
· Use Microsoft Word English (Australia) spelling and grammar checker.
· Paraphrase, summarise or quote information acknowledging the original source (referencing) to avoid plagiarism.
· Use essay structure.
· Follow academic writing conventions: spell out contractions in full; introduce abbreviations and acronyms; spell out numbers for zero through nine and use numerals for numbers 10 and above.
· All work submitted must be your own work.
· Start your reference list on a separate page to the body of your assessment.
· Use the seventh edition American Psychological Association (APA) referencing style. The CQUniversity Academic Learning Centre has an online APA Referencing Style Guide.
· The word count is considered from the first word of the introduction to the last word of the conclusion. The word count excludes the reference list but includes in-text references and direct quotations.
Resources
· You can use unit provided materials and other credible sources (e.g., journal articles, books) to reference your argument. The quality and credibility of your sources are important. Please note, lecture notes are not peer reviewed primary sources of evidence.
· We recommend that you access your discipline specific Nursing Resource Guide.
· You may like to manage your citations and reference list. Information on how to use academic referencing software (EndNote) is available at the CQUniversity Library website should you wish to learn how to use it.
· For information on academic writing and referencing please go to the Academic Learning Centre Moodle site. The Academic Communication section has many helpful resources, including information for students with English as a second language.
· You may wish to submit a draft to Studiosity.
· Submit at least one draft before the due date to review your Turnitin Similarity Score before making a final submission. Instructions are available here. Please remember, the similarity score is only a matching tool, and the score alone does not necessarily indicate or eliminate the presence of plagiarism.
Academic Integrity
1. You must abide by the principles of academic integrity (see Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure). Completion of this assessment with another party or sharing of responses is not permitted at any time.
2. The use of any generative artificial intelligence is permitted for the following purposes:
a. Gen AI content is used to generate ideas and general structures.
b. Gen AI content editing.
c. Checking spelling and grammar (for example, Grammarly).
If you use Gen AI to generate ideas, you are required to reference the Gen AI agent as per APA 7th guidelines. If you are using a Gen AI agent for content editing, please complete the declaration on the title page of your assessment. If Gen AI is not used, please delete this declaration.
Submission
Submit your assessment via the unit Moodle site in Microsoft Word format only.
Late penalties of 5% per day of the available mark may be applied as per the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Contact TASAC if you experience technical issues submitting your assessment:
· Phone toll-free 1300 666 620
· Email tasac@cqu.edu.au
Marking Criteria
Refer to the marking rubric on the Moodle site for more detail on how marks will be assigned. Assessment re-attempt is not available for this Assessment task.
Minimum Pass Criteria
· You must achieve a cumulative grade of at least 50% across all assessments to pass this unit.
· In the event you are eligible for a supplementary assessment, all assessment tasks must be reasonably attempted in this unit.
Week 12 Wednesday (4 June 2025) 4:00 pm AEST
Submit your assessment in Microsoft Word format only.
Exam Week Wednesday (18 June 2025)
Students will be advised of release of assessment marking via an announcement posted to the Announcement's Board on the Unit Moodle site. Please note, the 'Return to Students Information" is an approximate date.
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Key Criteria |
High Distinction 84.5–100% |
Distinction 74.50–84.49% |
Credit 64.50–74.49% |
Pass 49.50–64.49% |
Fail ≤49.4% |
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Introduction (5%) |
(5–4.3) Comprehensive and succinct introduction that provides excellent background information that introduces the topic and outlines aim/s and direction of the assessment. |
(4.22–3.73) Clear and appropriate background that introduces the topic and outlines the aim/s and direction of the assessment. |
(3.72–3.23) An adequate and appropriate introduction that provides some background information that introduces the topic and outlines the aim/s and direction of the assessment. |
(3.22–2.48) An introduction has been attempted, however provides limited background information and the outline of the assessment’s aim/s and direction of the assessment is not clear. |
(2.47–0) The introduction has significant errors or omissions of background and the aim/s or the introduction is not evident or provided. The logical direction of the assessment is not evident. |
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Conclusion (5%) |
(5–4.3) Comprehensive and succinct conclusion that summarises the main points and brings the discussion to a logical close. |
(4.22–3.73) Clear and appropriate conclusion that summarises the main points and brings the discussion to a close. |
(3.72–3.23) An adequate and appropriate conclusion that outlines most of the main points and brings some sense of closure. |
(3.22–2.48) A conclusion has been attempted, summarises some of the main points and endeavours to bring the discussion to a close-there may be some incongruity. |
(2.47–0) The conclusion has significant errors or omissions with minimal or no summarisation of the key points. |
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Health care associated infection and underlying metabolic, biophysical, or pathophysiological factors (10%) |
(10–8.5) Provides a comprehensive and concise justification of the underlying metabolic, biophysical, or pathophysiological factors regarding a health care associated infection.
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(8.4–7.5) Provides a concise justification of the underlying metabolic, biophysical, or pathophysiological factors regarding a health care associated infection.
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(7.4–6.5) Provides a clear justification of the underlying metabolic, biophysical, or pathophysiological factors regarding a health care associated infection.
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(6.4–5) Basic justification is provided of the underlying metabolic, biophysical, or pathophysiological factors regarding a health care associated infection.
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(4.9–0) Minimal or no justification provided of the underlying metabolic, biophysical, or pathophysiological factors regarding a health care associated infection.
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Analysis of advanced practice nursing, person-centred care and the Registered Nurse Standards to optimise patient outcomes (20%) |
(20–17) Provides a comprehensive and concise analysis of how an advanced practice nurse applies person-centred care and the Registered Nurse Standards of Practice to optimise patient outcomes regarding the infection. |
(16.9–15) Provides a concise analysis of how an advanced practice nurse applies person-centred care and the Registered Nurse Standards of Practice to optimise patient outcomes regarding the infection. |
(14.9–13) Provides some analysis of the of how an advanced practice nurse applies person-centred care and the Registered Nurse Standards of Practice to optimise patient outcomes regarding the infection. |
(12.9–10) An analysis is attempted about how an advanced practice nurse applies person-centred care and the Registered Nurse Standards of Practice to optimise patient outcomes regarding the infection; however, there are gaps in the discussion. |
(9.5–0) Limited or no analyses provided of how an advanced practice nurse applies person-centred care and the Registered Nurse Standards of Practice to optimise patient outcomes regarding the infection. |
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Recommendations for improving safety measures in your healthcare setting. (20%) |
(20–17) Highly developed evidence-based recommendations for improving safety measures in your healthcare setting to reduce the health care associated infection.
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(16.9–15) Well-developed evidence-based recommendations for improving safety measures in your healthcare setting to reduce the health care associated infection.
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(14.9–13) Adequately developed evidence-based recommendations for improving safety measures in your healthcare setting to reduce the health care associated infection.
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(12.9–10) Somewhat developed evidence-based recommendations for improving safety measures in your healthcare setting to reduce the health care associated infection.
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(9.5–0) Limited, unclear or omitted evidence-based recommendations for improving safety measures in your healthcare setting to reduce the health care associated infection.
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Critical review of the nursing care and interventions to optimise health outcomes (20%) |
(20–17) Highly developed review and justification of prioritises of the nursing care of the person, experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions to optimise health outcomes from the infection. |
(16.9–15) Well-developed review and justification of prioritises of the nursing care of the person, experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions to optimise health outcomes from the infection. |
(14.9–13) Adequately developed review and justification of prioritises of the nursing care of the person, experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions to optimise health outcomes from the infection. |
(12.9–10) Somewhat developed review and justification of prioritises of the nursing care of the person, experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions to optimise health outcomes from the infection. |
(9.5–0) Limited, unclear or omitted review and justification of prioritises of the nursing care of the person, experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions to optimise health outcomes from the infection. |
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Professional writing and presentation (10%) |
(10–8.5) Content is clear, accurate and presented in a logical, succinct order demonstrating a comprehensive understanding of the topic. There are no errors in English grammar, spelling, and punctuation. Language of the discipline is comprehensively used. Formatting requirements applied without error. Literature cited is published in the last 7 years. Assessment is written using the student’s own words and is the student’s own work. |
(8.4–7.5) Content is frequently clear, correct and presented in a logical order demonstrating a good understanding of the topic. English grammar, spelling, and punctuation conventions have 1 error. Language of the discipline is frequently used. Formatting requirements are applied with 1 error. Majority of literature cited is published in the last 7 years. Assessment is written using the student’s own words and is the student’s own work. |
(7.4–6.5) Content is mostly clear, correct and presented in a logical order demonstrating a sound understanding of the topic. English grammar, spelling, and punctuation conventions have 2 errors. Language of the discipline is mostly used. Formatting requirements are applied with 2 errors. Most literature cited is published in the last 7 years. Assessment is written using the student’s own words and is the student’s own work. |
(6.4–5) Content is frequently clear, correct and presented in a logical order demonstrating a reasonable understanding of the topic. English grammar, spelling, and punctuation conventions have 3 errors. Language of the discipline is used. Formatting requirements are applied with 3 errors. Some literature cited is published in the last 7 years. Assessment is written using the student’s own words and is the student’s own work. |
(4.9–0) Content is consistently unclear or incorrect and is disorganised demonstrating insufficient understanding of the topic. English grammar, spelling and punctuation conventions have ≥4 errors. Language of the discipline is rarely, incorrectly or not used. Formatting requirements are applied with ≥4 errors. Majority of literature cited is published ≥7 years or not cited. Assessment is inconsistently or not written using the student’s own words and/or is not the student’s own work. |
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Referencing (10%) |
(10–8.5) Acknowledges all sources of peer reviewed literature. Has no APA 7th Edition referencing errors, and all references have been cited. The assessment is substantiated with a minimum of 20 appropriate contemporary peer reviewed journal articles. Meets APA 7th Edition referencing standards with no errors in-text and the reference list. |
(8.4–7.5) Acknowledges majority sources of peer reviewed literature. Has 1 APA 7th Edition referencing errors or references not provided. The assessment is substantiated with a minimum of 17-19, appropriate contemporary peer reviewed journal articles. Meets APA 7th Edition referencing standards with no more than 1 errors in-text and the reference list. |
(7.4–6.5) Acknowledges most sources of peer reviewed literature. Has 2 APA 7th Edition referencing errors or references not provided. The assessment is substantiated with a minimum of 14-16, appropriate contemporary peer reviewed journal articles. Meets APA 7th Edition referencing standards with no more than 2 errors in-text and the reference list. |
(6.4–5) Acknowledges some sources of peer reviewed literature. Has 3 APA 7th Edition referencing errors or references not provided. The assessment is substantiated with a minimum of 10-13, appropriate contemporary peer reviewed journal articles. Meets APA 7th Edition referencing standards with no more than 3 errors in-text and the reference list. |
(4.9–0) Acknowledges minimal or no sources peer reviewed literature. Has ≥4 or more APA 7th Edition referencing errors or references not provided. The assessment cites ≤10 sources of peer reviewed evidence and/or evidence is not appropriate. Has ≥4 or more APA 7th Edition referencing errors in-text and the reference list. |
- Analyse the metabolic, biophysical, and pathophysiological changes that lead to a person requiring medical and/or surgical interventions and nursing care.
- Explore the impact of common safety concerns on persons experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions in your healthcare setting.
- Apply the Registered nurse standards of practice to the person-centred nursing care approach to people experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions to optimise their health outcomes in your healthcare setting.
- Critically review and enhance the planned nursing care of the person experiencing medical and/or surgical interventions to optimise health outcomes.
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
