NURS 103 - Level III: Acute Care

7 Credits

This course is designed to prepare the future nurse with strategies of self-care and resiliency to support ethical and culturally competent nursing practice. Content investigates both positive and negative coping strategies to stress and anxiety and how nurses are affected. Students will focus on serving diverse populations locally and examining how world religions relate to health. It continues with pharmacology concepts and the use of medications in the role of a nurse. Intravenous fluid and medication administration practices and advanced numerical calculations for rates of administration are explored. Common medication classifications and considerations related to disorders of inflammation, infection, metabolism, and elimination are emphasized. It also examines health and illness across the lifespan with a focus on normal and abnormal pathophysiological alterations. Students will build on clinical judgment, informatics, and quality improvement with a focus on priority nursing actions in delivering person-centered care.

Pre-requisite(s) NURS 102 with min 2.5
Program Admission Required Yes Admitted Program NURS
FeesNursing Materials Fee

Quarters Typically Offered
Fall Day
Winter Day
Spring Day

Designed to Serve 3rd Quarter RN students
Active Date 20240401T16:19:02

Grading Basis Decimal Grade
Class Limit 28
Contact Hours: Lecture 77
Total Contact Hours 77
Degree Distributions:
ProfTech Course Yes
Restricted Elective Yes
Course Outline

Concepts: Professional Behaviors, Stress & Coping, Advocacy, Anxiety, Ethics & Legal Issues, Pharmacology, Metabolism, Fluid & Electrolytes, Safety, Nutrition, Fluid & Electrolytes, Metabolism, Inflammation/Infection, Elimination, Perfusion, and Oxygenation

Exemplars: Delegation, Supervision, Scope of Practice Decision Tree, and Prioritization Frameworks, Antibiotic Resistance, Infection, Diabetes, Medication Administration, Dosage Calculation (IVF rates and IVP), Pharmacodynamics, Pharmacokinetics, SIADH, Diabetes Insipidus, Addison’s, Cellular Regulation (Cancers), COPD, Asthma, Clotting (CVA/Neuro)

Student Learning Outcomes
Describe acute health conditions and the responding plan of care utilizing appropriate resources and patient data.

Identify strategies for therapeutic communication in professional collaboration, client interactions and patient education.

Define strategies for approaching health concerns among diverse populations with cultural humility and responsiveness.

Identify potential nursing diagnoses, desired outcomes, and interventions using theoretical knowledge of disease processes

Discuss evidence-based health promotion and risk reduction strategies for acutely ill clients.

Discuss the value of EBP as being integral to determining best clinical practice.

Apply principles of nursing delegation and supervision.

Discuss RN scope of practice and professional behavior expectations.

Identify selected safety enhanced medication administration related technologies and resources that create a culture of safety.

Explain the value of self-care and resiliency in nursing practice.