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Unit Synopsis
Two in five adult Australians have experienced mental illness in their lifetime, including substance use disorder, affecting the health and well-being of individuals, families, and communities (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2023). Therefore, all registered nurses will encounter people with mental health issues. This unit introduces you to mental health as a national health priority, including the importance of assessing the mental health of people with physical health issues and the physical health of people with mental health issues. You will also develop strategies to support people experiencing stress and distress in various health settings. Finally, you explore recovery-oriented, trauma-informed, and culturally safe approaches to providing care to people with mental illness, including relevant legal, ethical and professional frameworks and self-care strategies.
Details
| Level | Undergraduate |
|---|---|
| Unit Level | 2 |
| Credit Points | 6 |
| Student Contribution Band | SCA Band 1 |
| Fraction of Full-Time Student Load | 0.125 |
| Pre-requisites or Co-requisites |
Pre-requisites: N7218 or NURS11165 NURS11170 or admission to CM77 Co-requisite: BIOH12011
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). |
| Class Timetable | View Unit Timetable |
| Residential School | No Residential School |
Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2026
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 Undergraduate 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.
Assessment Tasks
| Assessment Task | Weighting |
|---|---|
| 1. Case Study | 40% |
| 2. Written Assessment | 60% |
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%).
Past Exams
All University policies are available on the Policy web site, however you may wish to directly view the following policies below.
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of policies are available on the Policy web site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
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.
Source: SUTE
This was an exceptional unit both in the quality of teaching and the content. By far the most beneficial unit to my learning experience. Every aspect from the weekly content to the res school, assessment and placement was a powerful and needed insight into mental health nursing. It has forever changed my personal and professional mindset in the most positive ways. Thank you for giving me this learning opportunity!!!!
Unit Coordinators will continue to apply diverse teaching, learning and assessment philosophies and methods aligned with pedagogy, andragogy, Bloom's taxonomy framework, Benner's concept relating to stages of clinical competence and principles of equality, diversity and inclusion.
Unit Coordinators applied diverse teaching, learning and assessment philosophies and methods aligned with Pedagogy, Andragogy, Bloom's taxonomy framework, Benner's concept relating to the stages of clinical competence and principles of equality, diversity and inclusion. Unit Coordinators underpinned their educationalist practice with recognised educational and mental health nursing theories and practice skills; Australian College of Mental Health Nursing (ACMHN) Standards of Practice and Scope of Practice; NMBA Standards and Codes; ICN Code of Ethics and the CQUniversity Values (Engagement, Can do approach, Openness, Leadership, Inclusiveness).
Source: 2-Day Residential Schools and SUTE
The learning material and residential school attached to this unit were valuable and well delivered. However, this unit is not enough to adequately prepare nurses to care for those with mental health concerns. I am disappointed that further content and written assessments were not included as part of learning for mental health. I believe this would have best been delivered as another unit. I am aware that post-graduate study is an option, but there are many nurses that will undertake this study and this will result in a lack of understanding and adequate care of patients that are suffering with mental illness. The small amount of time dedicated to mental health demonstrates that the university does not consider mental health to be a serious or worthwhile topic to educate their about. Unfortunately, this is reflected by the attitudes of nurses across the profession. It is unlikely to improve without a solid foundation of learning provided by universities throughout Australia.
Unit Coordinators will continue to develop and ensure the 2-Day Residential School and Moodle learning content, teaching and assessment methods are underpinned by current evidence-informed educationalist and mental health nursing theoretical knowledge and practice skills. The Bachelor of Nursing-Head of Course (BN-HOC)/School of Nursing & Midwifery executive will incorporate this feedback when planning and formulating the revised Bachelor Of Nursing (BN) degree curriculum.
The Bachelor of Nursing-Head of Course (BN-HOC)/School of Nursing & Midwifery executive incorporated this student feedback and aligned recommendations to inform their planning and development of NURS12162 in the new Bachelor of Nursing (BN) degree curriculum.
Source: SUTE
[Unit Coordinator] was a fantastic facilitator and shared so openly his experiences with nursing. He checked in regularly while on placement and I felt very supported. He also contacted me once my placement was done to commend me on my feedback and ask me about my experience. I have never had this from any other university facilitator and it showed such wonderful personalisation and support.
Unit Coordinators will continue to apply evidence-informed diverse teaching, learning and assessment philosophies and methods that are person-centred/student-focused and culturally sensitive to enhance individual students’ motivation, commitment and ability to complete all the unit assessments and meet the set learning outcomes.
Unit Coordinators applied evidence-informed diverse teaching, learning and assessment philosophies and methods that are person-centred/student-focused and culturally sensitive to enhance individual students' motivation, commitment and ability to complete all unit assessments and meet the set learning outcomes.
Source: SUTE
I wanted to take a moment to sincerely thank Steve Haines for his incredible support and leadership throughout our placement and this unit. Your dedication to preparing us both mentally and professionally made such a difference, especially during my mental health placement. I truly appreciate the time, care, and encouragement you provided to ensure we felt ready and confident in our roles. I am also deeply grateful for how you stood up for me and continuously advocated for our wellbeing and learning experiences. It meant more than I can express to know that you genuinely cared about our growth and success. and a huge thanks to all the unit coordinators for yout ongoing support and guidance throughout this unit. Your collective effort has created an environment where we could learn, reflect, and thrive. Thank you again for everything you've done to support and inspire us. Your compassion and professionalism have left a lasting impact.
Unit Coordinators will continue to apply diverse teaching, learning and assessment philosophies and methods aligned with Pedagogy, Andragogy, Bloom's taxonomy framework, Benner's concept relating to stages of clinical competence and principles of equality, diversity and inclusion. Unit Coordinators will also continue to underpin their educationalist practice with recognised educational and mental health nursing theories and practice skills; Australian College of Mental Health Nursing (ACMHN) Standards of Practice and Scope of Practice; NMBA Standards and Codes; ICN Code of Ethics and the CQUniversity Values (Engagement, Can do approach, Openness, Leadership, Inclusiveness).
In Progress
Source: SUTE
Such a great unit. Enjoyed it experiencing another side of nursing, that really brings out the caring and compassionate qualities. I loved this unit and it was so informative, I have learnt so much over this term. The unit coordinators were amazing and I could not ask for a better layout or structure. It is disappointing that there is a possibility of removing Mental Health PEP, as it plays such a vital role in all aspects of nursing. Mental health is encountered in the community, medical wards, surgical wards, emergency departments, and almost every other area of practice. Removing it would take away essential experience that nurses need when caring for individuals experiencing mental health challenges.
Unit Coordinators will continue to apply diverse teaching, learning and assessment philosophies and methods aligned with pedagogy, andragogy, Bloom's taxonomy framework, Benner's concept relating to stages of clinical competence and principles of equality, diversity and inclusion.
In Progress
Source: Email
Good afternoon awesome Mental Health lecturers, I have just completed a 2-day residential school for Mental Health in Rockhampton and wanted to provide some feedback as I know it is valued. I very rarely provide feedback as I worry it may be interpreted in a wrong way and disadvantage me in my studies, if it is not necessarily “good” feedback. In these past 2 days I have had the honour of learning from Shunil, who confirmed for me that Mental Health is the type of care I want to specialise in. 3 years ago I completed my Diploma of Nursing and ever since, I have known Mental Health is my passion (which Shunil may of picked up on). Shunil over these past 2 days helped me see things in a new light, previously when disclosing that Mental Health is my interest I have been told “it’s a waste” and “you will lose all your clinical skills if you go into that speciality” which made me have a lot of self doubt. In saying this, I now see that this isn’t the case and it is still very much an important part of nursing. Shunil valued everyone’s inputs, thought processes, ideas and emotions in all aspects of his teaching. I never felt uncomfortable or like I wasn’t heard, Mental Health can be quite a touchy subject and he ensured to check in often to ensure no one felt offended. I want to thank you Shunil for this, for hearing us and giving us a space to have open and honest communication. I hope to one day learn again from you.
Unit Coordinators will continue to apply evidence-informed diverse teaching, learning and assessment philosophies and methods that are person-centred/student focused and culturally sensitive to enhance individual students' motivation, commitment and ability to complete all the unit assessments and meet the set learning outcomes.
In Progress
Source: SUTE
I feel happy thinking about mental health unit, I didn't feel pressure of any kind. I learned new things without any fear of passing or failing the unit. Emails from the unit coordinators were so humble and personalised. I felt valued. Thank you for taking care of our mental health as well. Appreciate your efforts. The Unit Coordinators have been so supportive and made this unit a valuable experience for me. They are RNs that I will remember throughout my career as they helped inspire me. The mental health placement was my most impactful placement by far and has changed my future aspirations.
Mental health nurse academics will continue to ensure their practice is humanistic, trauma-informed, recovery orientated, culturally sensitive and aligns with evidence-informed distinct mental health nursing philosophy to prepare graduate nurses with scope-specific mental health nursing theoretical knowledge and practice skills.
In Progress
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- Discuss why mental health is a national health priority in Australia, including the mental health of people with physical illness and the physical health of people with mental illness.
- Appraise holistic nursing approaches to assessment, planning, implementation, to support mental health consumers and their carers, including the evaluation of outcomes.
- Examine how nurses can support people experiencing stress and distress in diverse settings, and develop self-care strategies to manage work-related stress.
- Apply a recovery-oriented, trauma-informed, and culturally safe approaches when collaborating with mental health consumers and carers.
Content in this unit incorporates a number of professional nursing requirements
Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia Decision-Making Framework (DMF) - Nursing
Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia Registered Nurse Standards for Practice
Thinks critically and analyses nursing practice
Engages in therapeutic and professional relationships
Maintains the capability for practice
Comprehensively conducts assessments
Develops a plan for nursing practice
Provides safe, appropriate and responsive quality nursing practice
Evaluates outcomes to inform nursing practice
Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia Nursing Code of Conduct
Legal compliance
Person-centred practice
Cultural practice and respectful relationships
Professional behaviour
Research in health
Health and wellbeing
International Council of Nursing Code of Ethics for Nursing
Nurses and People
Nurses and Practice
Nurses and the Profession
Nurses and co-workers
National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards
Clinical governance
Partnering with consumers
Preventing and Controlling healthcare-associated infection
Medication safety
Comprehensive care
Communicating for safety
Recognising and responding to acute deterioration
Patient Safety Competency Framework
Person-centred care
Therapeutic communication
Cultural competence
Teamwork and collaborative practice
Clinical reasoning
Evidence-based practice
Preventing, minimising and responding to adverse events
Infection prevention and control
Medication safety
Aged Care Quality Standards
Consumer dignity and choice
Ongoing assessment and planning with consumer
Personal care and clinical care
Services and supports for daily living
Organisation’s service environment
Feedback and complaints
Human resources
Organisational governance
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 1 - Case Study | • | • | • | • |
| 2 - Written Assessment | • | • | • | • |
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 1 - Communication | • | • | • | • |
| 2 - Problem Solving | • | |||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | • | • | • | |
| 5 - Team Work | • | • | ||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | • | • | • | |
| 8 - Ethical practice | • | • | • | • |
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 10 | |