R.N. to M.S. in Nursing - Courses

This module will introduce the student to the research method and descriptive and inferential statistics including descriptive analysis of correlation and regression, sampling distributions, confidence intervals, hypothesis testing, inference about means and the Chi-square test. The research process will be defined and explored. Both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies will be examined. The central goal of this module is to provide students with the knowledge to make informed judgments about nursing research and its usefulness in meeting the wholistic needs of clients and advancing the professionalism of nursing.

This course will introduce the student to the research method. The research process will be defined and explored.  Both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies will be examined.  The central goal of this course is to provide students with the knowledge to make informed judgments about nursing research and its usefulness in meeting the whole person needs of clients and advancing the professionalism of nursing.

This course will introduce the student to comprehensive assessment of individuals related to wholeness. Students will utilize the nursing history and physical examination as well as developmental, sexual, mental, cultural and spiritual assessment. Basic skills of inspection, palpation, percussion and auscultation will be learned or reviewed. Modification of comprehensive assessment for specific age groups including the DDST for children and normal changes with aging will be explored. Students will consider their development from a novice to an expert nurse and examine the development of nursing diagnosis and contemporary methods of applying nursing process through managed care. Several theoretical frameworks will be introduced as the student considers his/her personal philosophy of nursing. This course includes simulation experience.

Community health nursing differs from hospital-based care in both philosophy and scope. In this course, students will examine the role of the baccalaureate prepared nurse in the community setting. The parts of a community, as well as the community as a whole, will be explored. Students will integrate the nursing process and nursing theory with health promotion, maintenance and restoration in the community setting. There will be opportunity to assess families and communities as well as to demonstrate effective teaching techniques. Epidemiology and its application to community health will be explored. School and occupational nursing will be examined as well as significant current community health issues. A field component will allow the student to apply the principles learned online through self-study and home visits.

This course will emphasize the philosophical base of Roberts’ nursing program through a comprehensive examination of the concepts of wholeness, caring and the nursing paradigm and will provide an introduction to nursing theory.

This course will address the dynamic nature of professional nursing as the student examines current trends and issues in nursing and the health care delivery system.  The evolution of the health care delivery system, its economic approaches, and reform will be emphasized.  The goal is a professional nurse with a holistic view of the profession within the health care delivery system. In addition, students will explore the role of the nurse as a leader and supervisor of client care and nursing care delivery systems.  Theories, principles, and skills of leadership and management are examined, including motivation, decision-making, delegation, conflict resolution, change strategies, and time management.  The students will assess their own philosophy of leadership and nursing management issues such as Quality/Performance Improvement and patient safety.

This course focuses on critical analyses of theory and its use for advanced nursing practice. Nursing’s scientific body of knowledge is examined through consideration of selected nursing models, theories, and constructs. Selected theories, models, and concepts from social and behavioral sciences, which enhance nursing as a scientific discipline, are also considered. Foundational to this course is the exploration of the ontological and epistemological issues central to theoretical thinking which include the art of critical thinking in nursing, the process of concept formulation and theory building. The inter-relationship between theory, practice and research is examined and various methods for developing scientific knowledge for practice are explored. Application of nursing theories to nursing practice is emphasized as the student’s chosen theoretical base for advanced practice is identified and developed.

This course emphasizes the theoretical concepts relevant to research methods that are used by nurses and other health care providers engaged in research and health care services. The course will begin with a review of concepts important to all research. After a review of the research process, quantitative and qualitative research approaches will be reviewed including: problem statement, research question, literature review, ethical considerations, research methodology and data collection, and management of data. Emphasis is on understanding and using appropriate methods and procedures to address problems of interest to nurse leaders and nurse educators. The role of theory and ethical issues involved in the conduct of research is addressed. Prerequisite: Introduction to statistics and NSG 510

The course will focus on advanced critical analysis and utilization of nursing research via evidence-based nursing practice models and will include an emphasis on synthesizing evidence as a scholarly practice endeavor.  The students’ understanding of qualitative and quantitative research methodology as well as examination of the role of the nurse leader and educator in relation to nursing research and evidence-based nursing practice continues to be developed.  Translation of evidence into the practice setting is addressed in depth. The use of research and evidence-based nursing processes to improve decision-making in the health care setting will be explored in depth.

This graduate level course will integrate principles of advanced pathophysiology, physical assessment, and pharmacology as a foundation to support the role of the nurse educator in clinical practice. The focus will be on the development of advanced knowledge of human pathophysiological functions and response to selected disease processes and the integration of this knowledge into evidence-based nursing practice. The students will expand and refine skills related to health assessment essential for advanced nursing practice.

This module highlights teaching and learning theories appropriate to nursing education and within the context of teaching as a scholarly endeavor. Contrasting theories of learning will be explored, with an emphasis on educational psychology of adults. Students also will examine various theories of measurement and evaluation as they begin to understand the psychometrics of student evaluation. Prerequisites: Admission to the Nursing Education Program

The history of nursing education in America will form a backdrop for examining the processes for developing and assessing curricula. Students will explore the issues and controversies affecting curriculum development in the 21st century. The relationship between course development and curriculum design will be explored and students will have the opportunity to begin to design a course as it relates to a specific curriculum. The emphasis will be on undergraduate and staff development.

This course explores the creative design of teaching/learning strategies in the context of classroom instruction specific to nursing education within a caring student/faculty community. Learners develop teaching plans, learner objectives, and specific teaching/learning strategies while addressing the topics of caring, facilitating learning in large and small classrooms, clinical instruction, using creative teaching strategies, and evaluating classroom and clinical learning using formative and summative evaluation strategies. The course culminates in the development of a teaching toolbox portfolio showcasing dynamic teaching strategies to engage future students in interactive and student-centered learning.

In this course the significance of informatics as a part of effective teaching and learning in the virtual learning environment is examined. This course provides nurse educator students with the knowledge and skills for understanding and using a variety of computer technologies to support the teaching-learning process. The course will discuss principles and application of online learning, use of the Internet in teaching and learning, and how to integrate computer technologies into the nursing curriculum. The course includes email, electronic discussion forums, world-wide web, blogging, and internet assignments.

Students will examine the multiple roles of the master’s prepared nurse leader and educator in today’s complex health care environment. The role of the educator and leader as change agent will be explored within the context of using the best evidence to inform the role of leader and educator and transform practice.

The purpose of the graduate project is to identify a clinical problem, analyze the problem, and propose an evidence-based change to address the problem. Students will choose problems within their area of clinical specialty, thoroughly review and analyze the available literature/information, identify the current best practices and, using a change theory/evidence-based practice model, propose a change that would lead to improved quality and safety for patients. The student will include measureable outcomes to evaluate the practice change in the proposal. The proposal will be developed as a substantive, formal paper in addition to a professional poster design and power point presentation, which prepares the student to deliver a professional presentation appropriate to a number of settings (e.g. academic, practice, continuing education).

This course explores the creative design of teaching/learning strategies in the context of classroom instruction specific to nursing education within a caring student/faculty community. Learners develop teaching plans, learner objectives, and specific teaching/learning strategies while addressing the topics of caring, facilitating learning in large and small classrooms, clinical instruction, using creative teaching strategies, and evaluating classroom and clinical learning using formative and summative evaluation strategies. The course culminates in the development of a teaching toolbox portfolio showcasing dynamic teaching strategies to engage future students in interactive and student-centered learning.

This course provides a focused examination of strategic Human Resources management that creates value and delivers results in health care through the review of the strategic framework necessary for Human Resources management decision-making. Human Resources Management is concerned with ensuring that qualified, motivated, human capital is available to staff the multitude of business units that are operated within health care organizations. As such, this course will have a primary focus on talent management (talent acquisition, training and development, coaching, organizational effectiveness, diversity and inclusion, culture, employee relations, employee development, and retention). In addition, this course will examine compensation, benefits, labor unions, employment law, ethics and safety, careers in health care, terminations, and trends in Human Resources. To meet the requirements of the Human Resources strategic framework, both traditional and non-traditional Human Resources management initiatives and practices will be studied and examined.

This course will provide a thoughtful and integrated overview of financial fundamentals and the required leadership competencies to execute sound financial performance in healthcare. Most importantly, this course will provide practical applications along with tested theories that can be used in any healthcare setting. The academic objectives for this course are to provide the students with tools and techniques that can be applied in their day to day work environment. It is imperative that healthcare leaders have the ability to demonstrate communication and collaboration with all members of the healthcare team, in order to be successful leaders in the 21st century. Providing the students with the ability to discuss core values and leadership principles is paramount in being able to deliver optimal financial results. These concepts and terms will be encompassed in all lectures throughout this module. Understanding financial fundamentals and how to use proven methods to reach desired targets within healthcare will be the main objective of this module. During this course the participants will carefully construct an operating, long range planning document, aspects of a strategic plan and a business plan.

This course is intended to give those who seek to manage health care organizations the financial foundation they need to assure that their organizations produce information that will support their responsibility to make decisions. It focuses on health care organizations’ internal accounting systems and their managerial implications. In this course, we will first examine managerial accounting systems and their use in decision-making. Second, we will examine these systems and their use in planning, control, and performance evaluation. We begin the course with a discussion of the basics of Financial and Managerial Accounting and the differences between them. For the remainder of the course, we will focus on how to identify and extract relevant information from health care managerial accounting reports as an input to decision making and performance evaluation. Throughout, we consider the limitations of, and assumptions underlying, these data.

In this course the significance of informatics as a part of effective practice and research in nursing is examined. Students examine emerging trends in information technology and acquire the knowledge to understand the modern healthcare IT environment. Students, applying knowledge from assigned readings, will be introduced to the theoretical underpinnings of nursing informatics, the practice of nursing informatics, and the ethical issues in nursing and health care informatics. The course includes email, electronic discussion forums, worldwide web, and internet assignments.

This course presents a review of the ethical and legal dilemmas faced by health care providers and administrators. The values underlying the development of the health care system in the United States are explored in depth. The formation of governmental policy, state and federal, is reviewed. Health policy’s impact on and regulation of health care delivery in the United States is examined. Application of ethical decision-making is explored.

This course introduces the nursing leadership and administration student to their role in supporting, developing, administering, and evaluating educational programs to foster health promotion and teaching in the practice arena. This course will provide an overview of teaching methods and learning theories to support effective educational programs for individuals (patient population), communities, and health professionals. Students will explore the nurse leader’s role in facilitation of the development, design, implementation and evaluation of educational programs. Assessment of information sources within the area of practice to address health literacy and accessibility for individuals, families and communities will be explored.

Students will examine the multiple roles of the master’s prepared nurse leader and educator in today’s complex health care environment. The role of the educator and leader as change agent will be explored within the context of using the best evidence to inform the role of leader and educator and transform practice.

The purpose of the graduate project is to identify a clinical problem, analyze the problem, and propose an evidence-based change to address the problem. Students will choose problems within their area of clinical specialty, thoroughly review and analyze the available literature/information, identify the current best practices and, using a change theory/evidence-based practice model, propose a change that would lead to improved quality and safety for patients. The student will include measureable outcomes to evaluate the practice change in the proposal. The proposal will be developed as a substantive, formal paper in addition to a professional poster design and power point presentation, which prepares the student to deliver a professional presentation appropriate to a number of settings (e.g. academic, practice, continuing education).

The course is designed to prepare nurses for leadership and executive administrative positions in a variety of complex health care settings. The focus is on the nursing leaders and executives creating and maintaining a dynamic work environment by using planning, development, program evaluation, fiscal design and implementation, informatics and other resources. In addition, this course will examine the art and practices of strategic leadership within an organization. This course builds on the previous 10 modules and explores theories, research, and state of the art practices regarding the current issues facing nurse executives. The content will include advanced theories of leadership and management, ethical decision-making, health care policy, emotional intelligence, organizational assessment, performance evaluation, the role of the nurse executive and nurse leaders in strategic leadership, strategic planning, implementation of a strategic plan and monitoring progress. An internship will provide an organizational-based experience for the student to apply administrative and management knowledge and skills. The individualized internship builds on the previous courses and the student’s special interests, prior experience and personal strengths and weaknesses. The internship includes on-site hours, conference hours, and completion of a professional portfolio. Students will complete an organizational assessment of environmental satisfaction, financial stability, resource allocation, and resource utilization.