PROGRAMME SPECIFICATION POSTGRADUATE PROGRAMMES

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1 PROGRAMME SPECIFICATION POSTGRADUATE PROGRAMMES KEY FACTS Programme name Public Health (Health Visiting, School Nursing or District Nursing) Award Postgraduate Diploma/MSc School School of Health Sciences Department or equivalent Division of Health Services Research and Management Programme code PSSPHV, PSSPSN, PSSPDN Type of study Full Time/Part Time Total UK credits Postgraduate Certificate (without professional award) - 60 credits Postgraduate Diploma 135 credits MSc Total ECTS Postgraduate Diploma PROGRAMME SUMMARY The role of the Health Visitor, School Nurse or District Nurse in the new NHS is changing in response to the health and public health needs of society, legislation, policy direction and research development (DH 2010a, b). Health Visitors, School Nurses and District Nurses acting as Public Health Nurses must have the skills and knowledge to effectively and efficiently lead, manage, plan and evaluate care delivery at individual, community and population level in order to contribute to and operate within the health and social care agenda of the new NHS (DH 2010a,b). They must be able to lead a multi-skilled team, navigate the complexity of the commissioner/provider division, develop effective, enduring relationships with groups, communities and individuals, and work in partnership with a myriad of agencies and deal with conflicting priorities and ambiguous, complex situations (DH 2010 a, b). This programme is designed to meet these requirements through the appropriate balance of practice and learning. The content takes the learner through a public health trajectory which allows them to consider health attainment, promotion and illness prevention in the context of local, national and international public health and primary care policy and practice. While applicants initially register for a Postgraduate Diploma, if they successfully complete the Postgraduate Diploma they may opt to transfer to the MSc programme (hence forth referred to as MSc conversion in this documentation). If an applicant is unsuccessful in completing the Postgraduate Diploma but has successfully completed 60 credits they may be awarded the Postgraduate Certificate without a health visiting, school nursing or district nursing award. The MSc conversion programme will help the learner to develop research skills through conducting, in an area related to health visiting, school nursing or district nursing practice: - a empirical research project - Secondary analysis of an existing dataset - A systematic review of the literature, or 1

2 - A critical-interpretative analysis of existing knowledge within the student s specialist field MSc By completing the MSc in Public Health you will have demonstrated original application of knowledge to the public health field of health visiting, school nursing or district nursing and clinical decision making in relation to practice. You will have been engaged in research that contributes new views to this area. Postgraduate Diploma Those of you who exit the programme with a postgraduate diploma will have explored knowledge related to the public health field of health visiting, school nursing or district nursing from different perspectives to broaden your expertise and skills. You will also have critically evaluated current evidence in the field and provided appropriate critiques of knowledge and techniques in relation to this. Postgraduate Certificate If you exit the programme at postgraduate certificate level will be have been enabled to examine theories related to public health and will be able to synthesise and apply these to practice (but will not have demonstrated sufficient application to have gained any professional award). You will have gained critical insight into problems that may arise in this area and be able to consider problem solving mechanisms. You will also be able to use a range of techniques to undertake your scholarly work. Aims The aims of the programme are to enable nurses and midwives from a wide range of professional backgrounds to develop the skills and knowledge to become proficient leaders in public health policy making and practice development in relation to the management and delivery of Primary Care (district nursing) or Specialist Public Health Nursing (school nursing or health visiting) practice through: - The critical synthesis and acquisition of professional and technical skills and knowledge for public health policy, practice, care delivery and service development. - The development of public health and discipline orientated leadership and management skills. - Critical analysis, synthesis and application of management skills in practice, including: implementation management; work management; staff and resource management. - Critical analysis of social and cultural perspectives of public health, health and disease and the influence they have on judgements and decisions for practice, practice development and service delivery. - Learning about public health policy structures and processes. - Multi-agency and multi-disciplinary working in relation to public health policy and practice. - Critical analysis, synthesis and application of Specialist Public Health Nursing or Primary Care Nursing knowledge, policy and practice. - Achieving the learning outcomes to prescribe from the community practitioner formulary for nurse prescribers (V100)- if you undertake module V100 or are already a recorded prescriber 2

3 MSc conversion - To develop critical analysis and synthesis skills in research or literature reviewing WHAT WILL I BE EXPECTED TO ACHIEVE? On successful completion of this programme, you will be expected to be able to: Knowledge and understanding: Collect and critically synthesise health and public health data and apply this when identifying the health and social needs and justifying resource allocation for a defined population in practice. Critically synthesise the policy and practice of community nurse prescribing and apply this to maintain professional accountability and responsibility when making decisions in prescribing practice- if you undertake module V100 or are already a recorded prescriber Critically appraise the process for prescribing and apply this in practice to promote safe, efficient and cost effective prescribing if you undertake module V100 or are already a recorded prescriber Critically evaluate drug actions and interactions and outline the way in which this information influences your prescribing practice if you undertake module V100 or are already a recorded prescriber Critically appraise strategies for team leadership and management and outline ways in which effective leadership and management can impact on the standard of care delivery. Critically synthesise the health and social care need of a defined geographical area, appraise the health and social care resources and services that are available to communities in that area and select strategies that will enable named population groups to access the services in response to expressed needs. Critically synthesise the research and literature relating to the different approaches to partnership working and outline ways in which this can be applied in practice when working with specific individuals, clients, families and populations including informal carers in practice. Critically appraise the ways in which collaborative working relationships protect the public s health and well being from specific risk. Critically synthesise issues that must be addressed when managing cases in which people/clients/patients are vulnerable and in need of safeguarding because of actual and potential abuse or violence. Critically synthesise health promotion models and rationalise the use of specific models when working with different populations/communities including patients, carers and their families to promote health and prevent ill health in practice. Critically appraise the social, political and economic factors which affect the health and social well being of individuals, families and communities and apply this information during the health needs assessment process. 3

4 Critically appraise the National and Local legislation and policy which guides the prescription, supply, administration and management of medicines in practice if you undertake module V100 or are already a recorded prescriber. MSc conversion- Develop a proposal for a dissertation on a topic relevant to your nursing practice and follow an appropriate action plan to complete it. Skills: Assess the needs of patients, carers and their families for nursing/health care using a holistic approach and critically evaluate this when consulting with clients in a variety of settings in order to collect and collate information. Critically appraise strategies to develop, manage and deliver programmes of care for people with complex and enduring health and nursing needs e.g. clients with a diagnosed long term condition/chronic disease/disability. Critically evaluate the local and national health and social care policy agenda in terms of the potential to positively influence the health and well being of the local population and justify the approach used when contributing to and influencing the policy agenda for health and social care. Critically synthesise knowledge of public health policy and evaluate its influence on the health and well being of a defined population. Construct and critically synthesise the strategies and tools that are used to identify individuals, families and groups who are at risk and in need of further support, and appraise the extent to which available resources are accessible to and accessed by individuals/communities who need them. Critically appraise the principles and practice of multi-agency, multi-disciplinary and independent working to practice including prescribing, health promotion and illness prevention. Critically appraise the strategies which facilitate and support patients, clients and carers to lead their care and apply these when caring for families and groups in the local area or setting. Critically appraise styles of leadership and management and rationalise the use of particular approaches when leading and managing the team, individuals and resources in situations which may have ethical and legal implications and act accordingly to minimise risk Critically evaluate strategies which facilitate the continuing professional development of team members by effective and efficient use of education opportunities. Construct and critically appraise strategies for managing the evaluation, interpretation and dissemination of data and information concerning the health and well being and related needs of a defined population. Critically synthesise health and safety legalisation and approved codes of practice and rationalise the use of this when considering the environment, wellbeing and protection of those who work with and within the wider community. Critically appraise styles of communication used to promote communication with individuals, groups and communities and evaluate their use in practice. 4

5 Critically synthesise the process of screening and appraise the value and ethics of screening and responding to the findings in practice. Critically synthesise the process involved when assessing, diagnosing and caring for clients with specific conditions in accordance with agreed nursing/medical protocols and evaluate the outcome. MSc conversion - Produce work of a publishable standard. Values and attitudes: Critically synthesise the research and literature relating to public health nursing practice and appraise ways in which this can be applied when working with health and nonhealth related agencies e.g. when working in partnership. Critically appraise the process and purpose of developing relationships with groups and individuals in order to improve health and social well being. Critically synthesise the strengths and weaknesses of strategies for staff appraisal, quality assurance and quality audit. Critically appraise and evaluate the planning, implementation and delivery of care in different environments with varied resources. Critically appraise own and team members professional accountability in applying skills, knowledge and attitudes in dynamic practice environments. MSc Conversion demonstrate an awareness of the implications of your practice of research findings or an evaluative exposition of the literature or a workplace based project. The Postgraduate Diploma/MSc public health programme has been developed in accordance with the QAA Subject Benchmark for Health Visiting and nursing. HOW WILL I LEARN? During the programme you will learn in and from practice and theory. You will spend 50% of the time in the practice setting working alongside a practice teacher and 50% of your learning time in the University. During the programme you will be encouraged to analyse and apply theory in practice and vice versa, practice into theory in order to learn about the policy and practice of specialist community nursing and public health and relate this to your chosen professional field. You will be given the opportunity to learn how to lead the multi-skilled team in the delivery of evidenced based care, manage complex issues systematically and creatively, and demonstrate originality in problem solving. Students undertaking the MSc conversion will also learn how to undertake a research project or an evaluative exposition of literature relevant to their practice. The learning and teaching strategies will include formal lectures, seminars; student-led seminars; group projects and practice based activities. You will be encouraged to explore the roles and responsibilities of professionals working in health, public health, social care and voluntary sectors. Students on the MSc conversion route will be offered seminars and project 5

6 supervision sessions. During the programme you will be given the opportunity to develop the knowledge and skills required to meet the Nursing and Midwifery Councils (NMC) Standards of Proficiency for Specialist Community Public Health Nurses (NMC 2004) for school nursing and health visiting students and the Standards for Specialist Education and Practice (NMC 1994) - for district nursing students. As a paid employee it is expected that you attend all of your timetabled classes and placement learning experiences, and it is your responsibility to notify your employing NHS Trust and CUL programme staff of any untoward circumstances that prevent you from attending timetabled events. If your attendance falls to 80% or less for any module, your employing NHS Trust will be informed. Please note that poor attendance will have implications for continuation on the programme. WHAT TYPES OF ASSESSMENT AND FEEDBACK CAN I EXPECT? Assessment and Assessment Criteria During the programme you will complete formative and summative assessments. Formative assessments are designed to help you to prepare for the summative assessments and strategies will include group projects, seminar presentations and oral presentations. Summative assessment strategies will focus on the analysis of theory and practice through a variety of media including the formal assessment of practice through observation, development of a professional practice portfolio, seen and unseen examinations; poster presentation at the student conference; research proposal and case study. Students on the MSc conversion route will be expected to submit a 12-15,000 words (excluding references and appendices); or a manuscript in the format of a research paper, with word length dependent on the target Journal selected. You will undertake a dissertation option as outlined in the APM002 module specification. Assessment will take place in theory and in practice. Assessment Criteria are descriptions, based on the intended learning outcomes, of the skills, knowledge or attitudes that you need to demonstrate in order to complete an assessment successfully, providing a mechanism by which the quality of an assessment can be measured. Grade- Related Criteria are descriptions of the level of skills, knowledge or attributes that you need to demonstrate in order achieve a certain grade or mark in an assessment, providing a mechanism by which the quality of an assessment can be measured and placed within the overall set of marks. Assessment Criteria and Grade-Related Criteria will be made available to you to support you in completing assessments. These may be provided in programme handbooks, module specifications, on the virtual learning environment or attached to a specific assessment task. Feedback on assessment Feedback will be provided in line with our Assessment and Feedback Policy. In particular, 6

7 you will normally be provided with feedback within three to four weeks of the submission deadline or assessment date. This would normally include a provisional grade or mark. For end of module examinations or an equivalent significant task (e.g. an end of module project), feedback will normally be provided within four weeks. The timescale for feedback on final year projects or dissertations may be longer. The full policy can be found at: df Assessment Regulations In order to pass your Programme, you should complete successfully or be exempted from the relevant modules and assessments and will therefore acquire the required number of credits. The Pass mark for each module is 50% (including the APM002 dissertation module for the MSc conversion). Where a module has different assessment component, each component must be passed (mark of 50%) in order to successfully complete the module. For further details please see module booklets/module specifications. Resit: you will normally be offered one resit attempt. However, if you did not participate in the first assessment and have no extenuating circumstances, you may not be offered a resit. In addition, if you fail to pass assessment of your practice you may not be offered a reassessment (for example, if a fitness to practice consideration has arisen). You should note that if you require additional time to complete the programme it may have implications for your funding and employment status. In order to meet with NMC (2004) standards of proficiency, you must ensure that you complete a Specialist Community Public Health Nursing programme within 78 weeks fulltime or 156 weeks part time (including interruptions). This criterion is also applied to the District Nursing route. If you are successful in the resit, you shall be awarded the credit for that module. The mark used for the purpose of calculation towards your Award shall be calculated from the original marks for the component(s) that you passed at first attempt and the minimum pass mark for the component(s) for which you took a resit. If you do not satisfy your resit by the date specified you will not progress to the end of the programme (i.e. successfully complete the programme) and the Assessment Board shall require that you withdraw from the Programme. This will have implications for your funding and may affect your employment status. The Postgraduate Diploma/MSc Public Health uses the following criteria as the basis of Assessment/Award Board consideration for offering a third and final attempt at an assessment to individual students (see Senate Assessment Regulations S19): That a student must have achieved an overall average of at least 60% (postgraduate, across the taught elements of the programme.). Also, only one assessment should have been failed. When making a decision on whether an Assessment/Award Board should exercise discretion in awarding a third and final attempt the average across all previous parts will be considered, but the failed module will not be taken into account when looking at the average. 7

8 All modules will be weighted equally in this process so a 15 credit module would be given equal consideration as a 45 credit module. To pass the programme you must pass both the theory and practice components. I.e. you must have acquired 135 credits as specified in the Programme Scheme and have successfully completed all professional practice assessments. If you fail to achieve a PASS in the assessment of practice but gain 60 academic credits from the theoretical component of the programme you may be awarded a Postgraduate Certificate Public Wellbeing without a v100 (community prescriber), health visiting, school nursing or district nursing professional award. If you would like to know more about the way in which assessment works at City, please see the full version of the Assessment Regulations at: data/assets/word_doc/0003/69249/s19.doc WHAT AWARD CAN I GET? Postgraduate Diploma: HE Credits Weighting Class % required Level (%) Taught With Distinction 70 With Merit 60 Without classification 50 MSc Conversion: HE Level Credits Weighting (%) Class % required Taught With Distinction 70 Dissertation With Merit 60 Without classification 50 WHAT WILL I STUDY? Postgraduate Diploma The Postgraduate Diploma Public Health programme will consist of 5 x 15 credit core modules, 2x 30 credit core modules equal to 135 credits. If you fail a module you will be offered one opportunity to resit/resubmit the assignment. If you fail to pass your assessment of practice you may be able to retake this assessment. You should note that if you require additional time to complete the programme it may have implications for your funding and employment status. In order to meet with NMC (2004) 8

9 standards of proficiency, you must ensure that you complete a Specialist Community Public Health Nursing programme within 78 weeks fulltime or 156 weeks part time (including interruptions). This criterion is also applied to the District Nursing route. If you wish to achieve a Masters Degree you will need to complete a dissertation module (60 academic credits) in addition to the content of the Postgraduate Diploma. This is outlined below. Module Title SITS Code Module Core/ Can be Level Credits Elective Compensated? Clinical Assessment in NMM C N 7 Primary Care Philosophy and Politics of NMM C N 7 Primary Health Care Innovations in Health NMM C N 7 Care: Leadership and Management Perspectives Public Health and Society NMM C N 7 Research Methods NMM C N 7 Introductory Practice Based Module NMM C N 7 Those taking Specialist Practice Route Evidence for Practice NMM C N 7 Those not taking Specialist Practice Route Leading and Facilitating Learning in Practice NMM C N 7 MSc This is available to students who have successfully completed the Postgraduate Diploma (usually with not more than 2 fails at first attempt for a module or module component) and who wish to use this as credit towards an MSc Public Health (health visiting, school nursing or district nursing). The MSc public health should normally be completed within 5 years from enrolment on the Postgraduate Diploma. The MSc conversion consists of all the modules in the Postgraduate Diploma and a dissertation module. This equals 195 academic credits. If you fail the dissertation module you will be offered one opportunity to resit/resubmit the assignment. Module Title SITS Code Module Core/ Can be Level Credits Elective Compensated? MSc Dissertation APM C N 7 9

10 TO WHAT KIND OF CAREER MIGHT I GO ON? Successful completion of School Nursing and Health Visiting routes on this programme will enable you to gain second registration on the third part of the NMC register (professional award) plus an academic award at Postgraduate Diploma or MSc level. You will also be able to practise as a school nurse or health visitor. Successful completion of the District Nursing route will enable you to record a district nursing qualification with the NMC. The programme is approved by the NMC. It is aligned to NMC standards of proficiency for specialist community public health nurses (School Nursing and Health Visiting routes). It is also aligned to V100 standards (community prescribing) and specialist professional qualification standards for District Nursing. Previous graduates have taken up posts as school nurses, health visitors and district nurses in local Trusts. If you would like more information on the Careers support available at City, please go to: WHAT STUDY ABROAD OPTIONS ARE AVAILABLE? Following consultation with the Programme Manager, setting appropriate learning outcomes and sufficient evidence of a safe and effective learning environment that will meet programme learning needs, it may be possible to have up to 5 Alternative Practice Placement days in another country, during the Postgraduate Diploma (part 1) of the programme. WHAT PLACEMENT OPPORTUNITIES ARE AVAILABLE? During the Postgraduate Diploma (part 1) programme, in order to meet the Nursing and Midwifery Councils (NMC) Standards of Proficiency for Specialist Community Public Health Nurses (NMC 2004) for school nursing and health visiting students and the Standards for Specialist Education and Practice (NMC 1994) - for district nursing students, 50% of your learning opportunities will be in practice. Your sponsoring NHS Trust will allocate you a practice teacher who will support your practice-based learning and assessment. A link lecturer (based in the University) will also support you in practice. Practice days are timetabled throughout the programme in term 1, 2 and 3. WILL I GET ANY PROFESSIONAL RECOGNITION? Accrediting Body: Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) 10

11 Nature of Accreditation Students who successfully complete the Postgraduate Diploma (part 1) programme will be able to record that they either achieved a Specialist Practice District Nurse qualification or entry to the third part of the register (Specialist Community Public Health Nursing) HOW DO I ENTER THE PROGRAMME? All applicants should normally have at least a BSc Honours degree 2:1 or above. Applicants for School Nursing or Health Visiting should also have active registration on Part 1 or Part 2 of the NMC register. If newly qualified evidence of this registration must be provided within 2 months of commencing the programme, otherwise the student will be discontinued from the programme as per NMC (2011) circular District nursing applicants require active registration on Part 1 of the NMC register as an adult nurse. Recruitment to the programme takes place in partnership with the NHS organisations that commission the programme from City University London. All applicants will be subject to a joint NHS Trust and University application process. During the application process all applicants will be expected to complete a written mathematics test, written English test, and answer interview questions to an interview panel consisting of members of the NHS Trust and the programme team (usually the Programme Manager), as well as meeting NHS Trust appointment criteria. APL/AP(E)L Requirements Students may be exempted from undertaking a module if they have successfully completed a relevant standalone 15 credit or more module at HE6 or above, within the last 2 years (i.e. one with the same or very similar learning outcomes, as per the discretion of the module leader and programme manager). Please note that if you wish to seek exemption for the V100, the v100 component will count as one module. Some commissioning NHS Trusts may request that their Health Visiting or School Nursing students do not undertake the V100 registration; these students will be exempt from the V100 component of the Practice-based module. Students may also be exempted from undertaking V100 (prior to module commencement) if they provide proof of: 1) Live NMC registration and recorded entry for V150, V200 or V300 2) Recent evidence of current prescribing (provision of a resume of prescribing activity from employer or Pharmacist) 3) Pass a 2000 word critical essay set at level 6 (BSc level) that demonstrates upto-date knowledge of evidence-based prescribing activity. 11

12 Version: 3.0 Version date: July 2015 For use from: