Study-Unit Description

Study-Unit Description


CODE NUR5127

 
TITLE Emergency and Urgent Care

 
UM LEVEL 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course

 
MQF LEVEL 7

 
ECTS CREDITS 10

 
DEPARTMENT Nursing

 
DESCRIPTION This study-unit is primarily aimed at nurses who work in areas of emergency and urgent care, and who are expected to assess and manage, either independently or as part of a team, patients with acute illness.

This study-unit builds on principles of emergency assessment and immediate interventions. Students will be guided to apply principles of emergency assessment and immediate care in the context of acute illness. This study-unit provides knowledge of specific medical, surgical and environmental emergencies, and their management. This study-unit is characterised by a focus on nursing care and nursing interventions, within a framework of multi-disciplinary cooperation and collaboration.

This study-unit will adopt a problem-based approach and will be conducted through lectures and workshops. Lectures will provide the baseline knowledge on which students will be expected to pursue additional self-directed learning. Through workshops students will have the opportunity to discuss case-scenarios with experienced nurses and emergency/urgent care physicians.

At the end of the study-unit, participants will be expected to demonstrate knowledge of the assessment and management of medical, surgical and environmental emergencies through a written examination. A written case-study will be used to evaluate reflection on the complexity of nursing care in emergency situations.

Study-unit contents:
- Assessing the acutely ill patient;
- Respiratory and cardiovascular emergencies;
- Acute neurological and neurovascular disorders;
- Diabetic, metabolic and endocrine emergencies;
- Gastro-enterological emergencies;
- Acute renal disorders;
- Obstetric and gynaecological emergencies;
- Infection and sepsis;
- Intoxication, envenomation, poisoning and anaphylaxis;
- Acute pain and pain management;
- Prioritisation of care and triage; and
- Health education in the acute/emergency scenario.

Each topic addresses various common adult and paediatric conditions, and includes pathophysiology, assessment and diagnostics, emergency management guidelines and planning of nursing care/nursing considerations.

Study-unit Aims:

- To consolidate the emergency assessment of patients presenting with an acute illness;
- To provide students with knowledge on diagnostic tools for medical and surgical conditions (e.g. history, examination, imaging, blood investigations, electrocardiogram);
- To provide students with the knowledge required to manage a patient or a number of patients with an acute illness (medical, surgical, environmental); and
- To enhance students' non-clinical competencies and attributes in the provision of emergency and urgent care.

Learning Outcomes:

1. Knowledge & Understanding:

By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:
- Critically outline the pathophysiology of acute illnesses;
- Critically discuss assessment and examination findings in relation to pathophysiology;
- Critically interpret relevant biochemical, haematological, pathological, radiological and physiological investigations;
- Critically describe and discuss the clinical guidelines and approaches that guide the diagnosis and management of acute illnesses;
- Critically appraise and discuss the clinical evidence that informs the development of clinical guidelines;
- Describe and discuss the pharmacological considerations for the management of acute illness and in relation to the nursing care provided;
- Critically discuss the nursing assessment and care of patients presenting with an acute illness in consideration of the pathophysiology, the clinical management, and the pharmacological management of the patient; and
- Describe and discuss the decision making process which guides the prioritisation of care for multiple patients.

2. Skills:

By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:
- Carry out a comprehensive emergency assessment of patients with an altered level of response, dyspnoea, chest pain, abdominal / flank pain, and other acute signs/symptoms;
- Carry out a detailed physical examination of a patient presenting with an acute illness;
- Initiate the diagnostic work-up of patients presenting with sudden acute illness;
- Communicate to, and discuss assessment and examination findings with the multi-disciplinary team as appropriate;
- Discuss the plan of treatment and care for patients with sudden acute illness with the multi-disciplinary team;
- Refer patients to and through the appropriate modalities of care;
- Prioritise emergency care for multiple patients using relevant triage guidelines;
- Design a plan of emergency nursing care for a patient with an acute illness; and
- Provide health and life-style education/advice as appropriate for the acute/emergency care scenario.

Main Text/s and any supplementary readings:

Main Texts:

- Cameron, P., Little, M., Mitra, B. and Deasy, C. (Eds.) (2019) Textbook of adult emergency medicine. (5th ed.) Elsevier, London.
- Dolan, B. and Holt, L. (Eds.) (2013) Accident and emergency: Theory into practice. (3rd ed.) Elsevier, London.

Supplementary Readings:

- Campo, T.M. and Lafferty, K.A. (Eds.) Essential procedures for emergency, urgent and primary care settings: A clinical companion. (2nd ed.) Springer Publishing, New York.
- Creed, F. and Spiers, C. (Eds.) (2010) Care of the acutely ill adult: An essential guide for nurses. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
- Crouch, R., Charters, A., Dawood, M. and Bennett, P. (Eds.) (2016) Oxford handbook of emergency nursing. (2nd ed.) Oxford University Press, Oxford.
- Goyall, G.D. and Mattu, A. (Eds.) (2012) Urgent care emergencies: Avoiding the pitfalls and improving the outcomes. John Wiley & Sons, New York.
- Lott, C. (Ed.) (2015) Advanced life support: ERC guidelines 2015. European Resuscitation Council, Belgium.
- NAEMT (2015) Advanced medical life support: An assessment based approach. (2nd ed.) Jones & Bartlett, Sudbury.
- Nutbeam, T. and Boylan, M. (2013) ABC of pre-hospital emergency medicine. John Wiley & Sons, New York.
- Roberts, J. (2017) Roberts and Hedges’ clinical procedures in emergency medicine and acute care. (7th ed.) Elsevier, Philadelphia.
- Shah, K.H., Weingart, S.D., Medlej, K. and Lee, J. (2013) Practical emergency resuscitation and critical care. Cambridge Universty Press, Cambridge.
- Soar, J., Perkins, G.D. and Nolan, J. (2013) ABC of resuscitation. (6th ed.) John Wiley & Sons, New York.

 
ADDITIONAL NOTES Pre-requisite Qualifications: Registered nurses, in possession of an MQF Level 6 qualification, with at least 1 year experience in an area of emergency or urgent care.

 
STUDY-UNIT TYPE Lecture, Independent Study and Workshop

 
METHOD OF ASSESSMENT
Assessment Component/s Assessment Due Sept. Asst Session Weighting
Assignment SEM2 Yes 50%
Multiple Choice Questions Examination (2 Hours) SEM2 Yes 50%

 
LECTURER/S

 

 
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The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints.
Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice.
It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2024/5. It may be subject to change in subsequent years.

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