This module is the fourth and final module for nurses and other registered healthcare professionals working in the neonatal unit that, upon completion, will enable the practitioner to be recognised as qualified in speciality (QIS). The delivery of neonatal care to the intensive care infant is dependent both on the clinical skills of the practitioner and the development and maintenance of therapeutic relationships with the parents and the multi- disciplinary team using appropriate communication and interpersonal skills. This module facilitates the development of reflective skills to provide and critically analyse the care for an intensive care baby and family.

Aims

This module will develop students’ knowledge and skills in the assessment and management of critically unwell infants.

What and how you will learn on this module

How you will learn:

This module is delivered using a blended learning approach which integrates a variety of on-campus and online activities, supported by Canvas, the University’s virtual learning environment. A complementary range of activities are employed to engage you in the critical exploration of key topic areas, and the completion of formative tasks during the module also helps to keep you on track with the learning and gain feedback on your understanding of the content. A sense of community is developed and maintained with frequent opportunities for peer learning, enabling you to share your practice experiences and to learn from each other. 

Academic writing and critical thinking skills are developed through ‘The Critical Thinking Skills Toolkit’ and other academic practice activities embedded within the module, that have been designed to nurture the skills needed to facilitate you to become a thoughtful, objective and reasoned thinker. This will help you tackle the assignment(s) confidently, understand marking criteria, use evidence, take a reasoned approach, make structured arguments and engage with other points of view. 

What you will learn:

Ventilation

• Nursing care issues

• General care, blood pressure, suctioning

• Modes of ventilation/ventilation strategies

• Pressure controlled ventilation, trigger, volume ventilation

Nursing management of related pathophysiology of infants requiring Intensive Care

• Persistent pulmonary hypertension

• Meconium aspiration syndrome

• Hypoxic Ischaemic Encephalopathy

• Surfactant deficiency

• Therapeutic cooling and cerebral function monitoring

• Pneumothorax and chest drains

• Umbilical/Venous Catheters

• Admission, Stabilisation and Transport Intensive care pharmacology

• Pain medication and sedation Pain assessment/management Leadership and role modelling

Neonatal surgery

• Pre/post-operative nursing care

• Gut atresia

• Diaphragmatic and inguinal hernias

• Abdominal wall and renal tract defects

Family-centred care

• Neonatal loss/separation/perinatal palliative care

• Neonatal ethical/legal issues

• Social media/networking /society influences

Innovations in care

• Developmental care strategies/outcomes

• Compassionate Fatigue / professional perspectives

• Strategies to enhance service delivery

Academic practice

• Database searching

• Evidence-based practice

• Referencing and avoiding plagiarism

• Critical Thinking Skills Toolkit

Course length: 5 Teaching Days

Assessment

Literature review (2000 words) and Competency assessment document (CAD)