Women's Health Outreach Guide: Curriculum

Nursing Graduate Entry Pathway Courses 

NG518A Nursing III: Care of the Childbearing and Child Rearing Family
This is the classroom component of NG518B. The course presents the values, knowledge and competencies that are the foundation of safe, skilled, professional and patient-centered nursing care of families experiencing normative childbearing and child rearing, and for children experiencing acute and chronic conditions. Emphasis is on all stages of pregnancy, and the experience of hospitalization and adaptation to chronic conditions for children. Life transitions related to childbearing and child rearing experiences will be analyzed. 5 credits Prerequisites: NG510, NG511, NG513, and NG516A and B. Corequisites: NG514, NG517A and B, and NG518B.

NG518B Nursing III: Clinical Care of the Childbearing and Child Rearing Family
This course is the clinical component of NG518A. In this course, students will use critical thinking to make evidence-based clinical judgments for, and develop effective communication skills with, families experiencing normative childbearing and child rearing, and with children experiencing acute and chronic conditions. Working with nursing colleagues and other members of the interdisciplinary team, students will prioritize and provide nursing care in hospital settings. 3 credits Prerequisites: NG510, NG511, NG513, and NG516A and B. Corequisites: NG514, NG517A and B, NG518A.

NG519A Nursing IV: Clinical Capstone: Leadership and Management
This course focuses on the professional role of the nurse as a collaborator, leader and provider of care with nursing colleagues and other members of the inter-professional health care team, and within the context of complex health care systems 3 credits Prerequisites: NG510, NG511, NG513, and NG516A and B. Corequisites: NG514, NG517A and B, NG518A and B, and NG519B.

NG519B Nursing IV: Clinical Capstone: Clinical Internship
This clinical course focuses on the professional role of the nurse as a provider of care as part of the interprofessional health care team. Working one-on-one with a nurse preceptor approved by GSN nursing faculty, and with guidance from GSN nursing faculty, students integrate the values, knowledge and competencies of professional nursing into their practice as a manager and provider of safe, competent, patient-centered nursing care, and as a nursing colleague and member of an interprofessional health care team. 7 credits Prerequisites: NG510, NG511, NG513, and NG516A and B. Corequisites: NG514, NG517A and B, NG518A and B, and NG519A. 

Electives

N/NG691 Contemporary Issues in Women’s Health
This elective graduate nursing course provides the advanced practice nursing student with a theoretical foundation to provide evidence-based care to women and will focus on a variety of issues specific to their health care. Specific concerns of women across the lifespan and the effects of culture and environment on women’s health are analyzed. Gender-based health issues and disparities and the role of the advanced practice nurse in dealing with these issues are examined. 3 credits 

Doctor of Nursing Practice Clinical Courses

N709 DNP Capstone Project Prospectus
This course focuses on the refinement of the DNP Capstone Project Prospectus for the preparation of the advanced practice nurse with the practice doctorate. This course will include the integration of research findings into an advanced practice nursing plan to improve patient- and/or system-focused outcomes in an organization. The student integrates information from the DNP core and elective courses to formulate a prospectus that demonstrates the translation of research into evidence-based practice. 2 credits Prerequisites: Completion of DNP Year One courses or concurrent enrollment in N708.

N772 Doctor of Nursing Practice Capstone Project I
This course requires the development of a scholarly capstone project for the preparation of advanced practice nurses with the practice doctorate. The focus is on the identification and implementation of a specific activity that uses evidence to improve patient-focused organizational outcomes. The scholarly capstone project integrates knowledge from the DNP core and track courses, electives and clinical residency experience in the formulation of a capstone project that demonstrates advanced practice nursing leadership at the practice doctorate level. 2 credits Prerequisites: Completion of DNP Year One courses and concurrent enrollment in N770.


N773 Doctor of Nursing Practice Capstone Project II
This course requires the completion of a scholarly capstone project for the preparation of advanced practice nurses with the practice doctorate. The focus is on the completion of a specific activity that uses evidence to improve patient-focused organizational outcomes. This scholarly capstone project is derived from the DNP track courses and electives including clinical residency experiences. The scholarly capstone project demonstrates the student’s attainment of the program outcomes and provides evidence of the student’s knowledge and expertise as an advanced practice nurse at the practice doctorate level. 2 credits Prerequisites: Completion of DNP Year One courses, N772 and concurrent enrollment in N771.


N795 Independent/Directed Study
This course is open to DNP students. The goal of independent study is to complement the DNP student’s program in a way that helps him/her develop additional knowledge and skills as an advanced practice nurse with a practice doctorate. Plans for study must be submitted in advance of registration on the Independent Study Advance Registration form obtained from the Graduate School of Nursing. The student must meet with the faculty member of record to establish written goals, objectives and evaluation criteria for the independent study. Upon establishing the goals and objectives, the number of credits will be determined by the faculty member in consultation with the DNP program director. The student may take more than one independent study, but no more than six credit hours may be applied toward the DNP degree. 1 to 6 credits, by arrangement with the faculty. 

PhD In Nursing Courses

N895 Independent/Directed Study
This course is open to PhD students. The goal of independent study is to complement the PhD student’s program in a way that helps him/her develop additional knowledge and skills that could not be reasonably gained with a traditional course offering. Plans for study must be submitted in advance of registration on the Independent Study Advance Registration form obtained from the Graduate School of Nursing. The student must meet with the faculty member of record to establish written goals, objectives and evaluation criteria for the independent study. Upon establishing the goals and objectives, the number of credits will be determined by the faculty member in consultation with the PhD program director. The student may take more than one independent study, but no more than nine credit hours may be applied toward the PhD degree. 1 to 3 credits Prerequisite: Agreement with course faculty.

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Core Clinical Experiences (CCE) 

The third and fourth year consists of rotations through required core clinical clerkships and electives. This phase involves a greater responsibility for the care of patients under faculty supervision at the UMass Memorial Health Care (UMMHC), Medical School, affiliated hospitals and in ambulatory or community-based settings. CCE Thematic sections include: 

Capstone Scholarship and Discovery Course 

For the Class of 2016 and beyond, completion of the Capstone Scholarship and Discovery (CSD) course is a requirement for graduation. The goal of this four year longitudinal course is to provide students with the support to build on a personal passion that existed prior to entering the field of medicine, or to identify and develop a new one encountered after matriculation through a mentored scholarly project in one of the School of Medicine’s core competencies (Physician as Professional, Scientist, Communicator, Clinical Problem Solver, Advocate and Person). This work is called the Capstone Project (CP). 

3^rd and 4^th Year Optional Enrichment Electives

• Adoption & Foster Care: Considerations for Medical Practice

This elective is sponsored by the Office of Foster Care and Adoption. The course is designed to help students develop their clinical skills to work with children and youth in foster care, foster parents, birth parents, adoptive parents, and individuals who were adopted or lived in out of home care; to introduce awareness of the biological, psychological, and social issues related to adoption and foster care; to provide an opportunity for participants to consider their own attitudes about adoption and foster care; to introduce awareness of community resources available for patient education and referral; and to allow students to consider research directions related to adoption and foster care. The course meets for 8 weeks for 1.5 hours per week, and is taught by faculty from both the Office of Foster Care and Adoption and the Medical School. For further information on this elective contact the Office of Foster Care and Adoption.

• Maternal Child Health

This is an elective for 3rd year "clerks" taking Pediatrics and OB/GYN consecutively. The focus of the clerkship is to provide you with an introductory understanding of some of the medical, psychosocial, ethical, and societal problems that face parents, infants, and the community. In addition to the "content" areas, we are excited about the opportunity to explore issues around the physician-patient relationship and the feelings this engenders. Students will be assigned to a woman in her third trimester of pregnancy.

• Rural Health Scholars Pathway

The goal of this course is to foster students' interests in and desire to learn about issues related to practicing in rural and small town communities, as well as to help them develop contacts with rural health clinicians and leaders while learning skills useful to rural/small town practice.

• The Pathway on Serving Multicultural and Underserved Populations

The overall goal is to develop the abilities of students to provide culturally and linguistically competent care to recent immigrants and refugees in the USA. Through international and domestic experiences and seminars, the program develops students' linguistic and cultural competence and sensitivity to the hardships that many immigrants and poor people face.

• Teen Pregnancy: Medical and Psychosocial Perspectives

First and second year students become familiar with the physiology of pregnancy, especially pregnancy during the teenage years. The student is introduced to psychosocial issues associated with teen pregnancy, including risk factors, outcomes and general epidemiology, as well as special concerns the clinician should have regarding the pregnant and parenting teen.  As part of this course, students will be given the opportunity to meet with teenage mothers and learn about their unique stories and experiences.