NURS 320: Death and Grief** 3 cr
Explores the dying process from various conceptual and theoretical frameworks. Focuses on historical, ethical, socio-cultural, and interpersonal perspectives on death. Students address their own mortality and develop a personal philosophy of death and grief. Opportunities are provided for students to interact with professional experts as well as individuals experiencing grief/death issues. Open to all students. Spring, annually, and as needed.
NURS 335: Alternative Therapies** 3 cr
Explores various approaches to health and healing that lie outside the realm of conventional Western medicine. Focuses on how these therapies are presented on the World Wide Web and how the registered nurse can evaluate their effectiveness. Students will research selected topics and critically appraise the quality of information found on the Internet. Open to all students. Fall annually, and as needed.
NURS 340: Nursing in Transition 3 cr
Provides a theoretical foundation for the transition from technical to professional nursing practice. Addresses the concepts of nursing, health, individual, and environment. Explores nursing as an evolving profession with emphasis on the historical perspectives, environmental context, and future trends that could impact health care. Views individuals from a holistic perspective, and explores the spectrum of health. Introduces theory and nursing inquiry as the basis for the practice of professional nursing. Open to students who are licensed RNs and others with permission of instructor. Fall, annually and as needed.
NURS 342: Thinking in Contemporary Nursing 3 cr
Focuses on thinking as a skill and its practical application in the health care arena. Emphasizes critical thinking, creative thinking, reasoning, decision making, problem solving, and metacognition as they relate to the many facets of professional nursing practice. Provides students opportunities to transfer skills to problems of a professional |and personal nature. Open to students who are licensed RNs and others with permission of instructor. Spring, annually and as needed.
NURS 346: Health Assessment 2 cr
Enables the registered nurse to enhance skills in assessing the health status of individuals. Provides an opportunity to obtain a comprehensive health history and perform a screening physical assessment. Emphasis is placed on recognizing deviations from normal and integrating physiological, psychosocial, developmental, spiritual, and transcultural dimensions in order to formulate diagnostic hypothesis. Open to students who are licensed RNs. Spring, annually and as needed.
NURS 347: Creating a Wellness Lifestyle** 3 cr
Introduces the student to the concepts of wellness and health promotion from a holistic perspective. Within this framework, students explore how to gain more control over their lives through effective stress management, management of time and change, and adequate self and social support. Assists students in increasing self responsibility and negotiating the health care delivery system. Discusses health measures such as diet, exercise, and sleep as they relate to a wellness lifestyle. Explores the balance of caring for others and caring for self. Each student is guided in formulating an individualized wellness plan. Open to all students. Fall, annually, and as needed.
NURS 357: Leadership in Nursing 3 cr
Provides a theoretical foundation for the practice of independent and interdependent nursing. Introduces the principles of leadership and management, and emphasizes their application to professional nursing. Focus includes concepts of motivation, change, group process, empowerment, and nursing care delivery systems. Open to licensed RN students and others with permission of instructor. Spring, annually and as needed.
NURS 361: Nurse as Educator 3 cr
Requires students to develop and provide health education to individuals, families, and communities. Content focuses on the nursing process, the teaching/learning process, and health care informatics. Opportunities are provided for the student to implement the teaching/learning process in the delivery of health education programs. Open to students who are licensed RNs. Fall, annually and as needed.
NURS 365: Health Promotion for the Elderly** 3 cr
Provides students with information and strategies related to the promotion and maintenance of health in a holistic manner for the elderly population. Promotes inquiry and stimulates the critical-thinking processes of the student by emphasizing health and wellness concepts. Open to all students. Fall, annually, even-numbered years and as needed.
NURS 368: Human Caring** 3 cr
Provides an opportunity for in-depth exploration of the concept caring. Appropriate to students entering any human service major. Derives content primarily from scholarly works in the discipline of nursing. Supplements Jean Watson's theory of human caring with guided experiences designed to facilitate personal discovery of one's caring capacities and opportunities to more fully integrate them into the work of one's discipline. Open to all students. Spring, annually, and as needed.
NURS 376: Frontiers in Health Care 3 cr
Provides an opportunity for students to explore the U.S. health care system, its complexities, problems, alternatives for managing problems, and its impact on individuals and populations. Social, technological, political, and economic contexts provide a framework to explore the collaborative efforts of professionals to transform health care delivery both nationally and internationally. Students address current, complex national and international health issues. Open to all RN students and others with permission of instructor. Fall, annually and as needed.
NURS 380: Applied Statistics for Health Care Professionals 3 cr
Introduces students in healthcare professions to knowledge and understanding of statistics as applied to health care practice and research. Introduces the basic rules and principles of statistics through investigation of quantitative and qualitative problems in healthcare. Pre-requisite: C or better in MATH 050 or any math course higher than MATH 110 which meets the math department's competency requirement. Spring annually, and as needed. Open to all students.
NURS 445: Inquiry in Nursing 3 cr
Emphasizes the role of inquiry as it applies to nursing. Includes principles of research and scientific method of inquiry and application of critical and decision making skills. Focuses on the ways research influences nursing and nursing care. Critiques current research for applicability to professional nursing practice in a variety of settings. Prerequisites: MATH 221, 222, NURS 380 and a minimum grade of "C" in NURS 361, 340, and 342. Fall, annually, and as needed.
NURS 470: Promoting Healthy Communities 3 cr
Introduces essential knowledge and important nursing roles for health promotion and illness prevention at the family and community level. Students will explore principles of epidemiology, demography, and relevant nursing and health-related theories and models as they apply to the health of individuals, families, and aggregates. Pre-requisites: NURS 340, 342, and 361. Pre or co-requisite NURS 346. Fall annually, and as needed.
NURS 480: Role Seminar in Professional Nursing 3 cr
This capstone course provides a culminating experience in the implementation of the professional nursing role. Emphasizes present and evolving nursing contributions in a reformed health care system. Students are guided in the development of a self-directed practicum in a selected role. Must be taken as a co-requisite to Nursing 481. Prerequisites: minimum grade of "C" in Nursing 340, 342, 346, 357, 361, 380, 376, 445, and 470. Spring annually and as needed.
*NURS 482: Role Exploration in Professional Nursing 2 cr
This capstone course provides opportunities for students to explore a professional role through research, interviews, and other scholarly activities. The role under investigation can be one of possible graduate study or career advancement. The student may select from a wide variety of roles, such as CRNP, CRNA, clinical specialist, nurse educator, nurse administrator, nurse researcher, etc.. Pre-requisites: minimum grade of "C" in NURS 340, 342, 346, 375, 361, 376, 380, 445, 470. Spring annually.
NURS 499: Special Topics in Nursing 1-6 cr variable
Deals with topics of special interest to professional nurses. Focuses on identified nursing subjects pertinent to the practice of professional nursing. May be offered during the academic year as well as summers and weekends, according to demand.
*NURS 351 and 481 are clinical courses. See below for specific requirements for enrollment.
**Nursing Electives
