The University Of Texas at Arlington
School of Nursing
BSN Program
Senior II
N4261
Nursing of Older Adults
SYLLABUS
Melinda Hiemenz, PhD, RN
Spring 2009
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The University of Texas at Arlington School of Nursing
Undergraduate Program
COURSE DESCRIPTION: Selected concepts and issues related to aging and its impact on society and health care. Introduction to gerontologic nursing principles. Clinical application in diverse settings across the continuum of care.
CREDIT HOURS AND 2 Credit hours, Lecture 30 hours,
CLOCK HOURS: Class: On-Line WEB CT
PLACEMENT IN CURRICULUM: Senior Year Second Semester
PREREQUISITES: NURS 4581
FACULTY: Melinda Hiemenz, PhD, RN
E-mail:
Cell Phone: 214-914-3454
Mail: 22185 Timberland Ct
Clearwater MN 55320
STUDENT LEARNING 1. Discuss how the physiologic, psychological, cognitive, and emotional
OUTCOMES: changes of aging can influence the assessment of an older adult.
2. Use therapeutic communication and effective interpersonal skills in interactions with older adults, their support systems, and other healthcare providers.
3. Examine how the standards of gerontologic nursing and current legal and ethical standards influence the care of older adults
4. Evaluate community resources available to the older adult.
5. Synthesize theoretical knowledge and evidence based data with experiences involving older adults.
6. Examine self-awareness of personal and professional growth.
EVALUATION METHODS:
1. Examinations
Two exams will be given, a midterm and a final exam. The midterm will be scheduled during a lecture day at UTA and the final during Senior II final week. Multiple choice questions and essay/short answer questions may compose these exams. The exams may be given either in the written (paper) format or on a computer at UTA. Tests are given at UTA only and are proctored. Make sure you bring your UTA ID card for all tests.
Missed Exams
All students are expected to take exams at the scheduled time. In the event a student anticipates missing an exam, the student is expected to notify the lead teacher on or before the exam day. The lead teacher must approve a make-up exam. The make-up exam will cover the scheduled material and will be an essay/short answer format. The exam must be made up within one week.
Testing Guidelines for On-line Quizzes
It is expected that students will work alone and without notes to take each of the unit quizzes. You are expected to maintain test security by not discussing the questions with your peers. If you discuss quiz questions or content of quizzes with these students, this is a violation of test security, and will result in being reported for academic dishonesty. WE TAKE TEST SECURITY very seriously at the school of nursing. Violations in quiz and test security are considered not just academic violations, but ethical violations, which is unacceptable behavior for nursing professionals.
1. The online quiz will be set to 1.0 minutes per question and then the question will disappear from the screen. You will not be able to go back to that question. You will not have time to use your notes to look up the answers. You are on the honor system, and I trust you would not participate in unethical behavior. It is expected you will NOT use notes, books, or study templates to take your quiz.
2. Each student is likely to have a quiz formatted differently than other students, as the questions are scramble.
3. During a quiz you will be unable to save or print the questions; this is for test security purposes.
4. Do not wait until the last minute to take the quiz. You will be given a window of time in which you can take it. I suggest taking the quiz as soon as possible.
5. Your computer connection must be reliable. If you know that you are cut off of the Internet every time use it, don’t rely on your home computer to take the quiz. There are many options for you to use a reliable computer with a reliable Internet connection, including the public library, the UTA library, and the UTA Learning Resource Center.
Web CT: General Discussion
The WebCT discussion board should be viewed as a public and professional forum for discussion. Students are free to discuss academic matters and consult one another regarding academic resources. The tone of postings on the WebCT discussion board should remain professional in nature. It is not appropriate to post statements of a personal or political nature, or statements criticizing classmates or faculty. Inappropriate statements will be deleted by the course faculty. Announcements from student organizations may be posted with faculty permission. Failure to comply may result in further action including removal from the discussion board.
Web CT as a Class Discussion and Management Board
Classroom time, classroom activities, and resources retrieved from WebCT, and clinical labs occur over the entire semester. Web CT is our classroom for this course, and although it does not meet at a designated date or time, it is expected that all students participate in the discussion of material as 5% of your total grade will be based on your discussion within this course. The instructor will base this on how often you respond to questions on Web CT and the quality of answers and also questions that your bring to the discussion board. Statements of agreeing or disagreeing to other students thoughts do not represent “discussion” unless a student backs up a statement with a well thought out statement based on clinical experience, the text, or other resources.
TEACHING METHODS:
Lectures WebCT
Discussion Internet Resources
Interview Application/experiential activities
GRADING:
Exam 1 40%
Exam 2 35%
Life Review Paper 15%
Unit Quizzes’ (total 5) 10%
UTA School of Nursing Grading Criteria
In order to successfully complete an undergraduate nursing course at UTA, the following minimum criteria must be met:
70% weighted average on proctored exams (Exam I & II)
70% weighted average on major written assignments
90% on math test (not applicable for this course)
90% on practicum skills check offs (not applicable for this course)
In undergraduate nursing courses, all grade calculations will be carried out to two decimal places and there will be no rounding of final grades. Letter grades for tests, written assignments and end-of-course grades, etc. shall be:
A= 90.00 – 100.00
B= 80.00 - 89.99
C= 70.00 – 79.99
D= 60.00 – 69.99
NOTE: No extra credit projects are available to raise individual test or final grades.
The existing rule of C or better to progress remains in effect; therefore, to successfully complete a nursing course, students shall have a course grade of 70.00 or greater.
If a student is not passing the exams with a 70% the student is responsible for making a plan of how to improve future grades and should make an appointment with Ms. Kristine Nelson(Ext. 20704; Room 657) to discuss how remediation will take place).
REQUIRED TEXTBOOKS:
Ebersole, Hess, & Luggen. (2008). Toward healthy aging: Human needs and nursing response. (7th ed). St. Louis: Elsevier Mosby. ISBN 9780323047302
LIBRARY INFORMATION: Helen Hough, Nursing Librarian
(817-272-7429, Email:
Research Information on Nursing:
http://www.uta.edu/library/research/rt-nursing.html
UNDERGRADUATE
SUPPORT STAFF: Holly Woods, Administrative Assistant I, Senior II
646 Pickard Hall, (817) 272-2776 ext. 4811
Email:
Suzanne Mandell, Sr. Secretary, Junior I & Senior I
645 Pickard Hall, (817) 272-2776 ext. 4817
Email:
Kendra Erskine, Sr. Secretary, Pre-nursing & Junior II
644 Pickard Hall, (817) 272-2776 ext. 4833
Email:
FACULTY RESPONSIBILITIES:
The faculty will clearly communicate with students; provide learning experiences designed to meet essential course content; collaborate with students to facilitate the learning process; support creative, independent learning; and provide guidance for students in the pursuit of professional development.
STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES:
· Clear communication from students to course faculty, elders, and other healthcare professionals is expected.
· As adult learners, and as life-long learners, students are responsible and accountable for their own achievement, including seeking consultation with the professor about problems related to the course. Students are encouraged to make an office appointment regarding poor progress or course concerns to allow time to review, discuss and/or problem-solve in a private setting.
· Students are responsible for all material presented in class and all required readings. Students are expected to attend all classes, participate in classroom activities, and complete all learning activities. Thus, students are required to bring course materials for each class to facilitate participation.
· Written assignments should exemplify professional appearance and communication skills. Reports and papers must be legible, follow format guidelines, and use correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation. When a written work is required in APA format, the student is to follow the APA Publication Manual (5th edition) and Student Handbook guidelines.
Confidentiality
a. Client confidentiality must be maintained at all times (e.g. not discussing family/ agency situation with another family member without permission, etc.). If questions or concerns arise, contact your clinical faculty for advice.
b. Violation of confidentiality is considered as unprofessional conduct.
UTA INFORMATION
STUDENT CODE OF ETHICS:
The University of Texas at Arlington School of Nursing supports the Student Code of Ethics Policy. Students are responsible for knowing and complying with the Code. The Code can be found in the Student Handbook.
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY:
It is the philosophy of The University of Texas at Arlington that academic dishonesty is a completely unacceptable mode of conduct and will not be tolerated in any form. All persons involved in academic dishonesty will be disciplined in accordance with University regulations and procedures. Discipline may include suspension or expulsion from the University.
"Scholastic dishonesty includes but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, collusion, the submission for credit of any work or materials that are attributable in whole or in part to another person, taking an examination for another person, any act designed to give unfair advantage to a student or the attempt to commit such acts." (Regents’ Rules and Regulations, Series 50101, Section 2.2). For additional information please refer to the Student Handbook.
STATEMENT FOR AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT:
The University of Texas at Arlington is on record as being committed to both the spirit and letter of federal equal opportunity legislation; reference Public Law 92-112 - The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. With the passage of federal legislation entitled Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), pursuant to section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, there is renewed focus on providing this population with the same opportunities enjoyed by all citizens.
As a faculty member, I am required by law to provide “reasonable accommodation” to students with disabilities, so as not to discriminate on the basis of that disability. Student responsibility primarily rests with informing faculty at the beginning of the semester and in providing authorized documentation through designated administrative channels. Information regarding specific diagnostic criteria and policies for obtaining academic accommodations can be found at www.uta.edu/disability. Also, you may visit the Office for Students with Disabilities in room 102 of University Hall or call them at (817) 272-3364.
UTA 2008-2009 UNDERGRADUATE CATALOG POLICY FOR ADDING AND DROPPING COURSES OR WITHDRAWALS
Effective Fall 2006, adds and drops may be made through late registration either on the Web at MyMav or in person in the academic department offering the course. Drops may continue in person until a point in time two-thirds of the way through the semester, session, or term. Students are responsible for adhering to the following regulations concerning adds and drops.
a. A student may not add a course after the end of the late registration period.
b. No grade is posted if a student drops a course before 5:00 p.m. CST on the Census Date of that semester/term.
c. A student entering the University for the first time in Fall 2006, or thereafter, may accrue no more than a total of 15 semester credit-hours of coursework with a grade of W during his or her enrollment at the University.
d. A student may drop a course with a grade of "W" until the two-thirds point of the semester, session, or course offering period.
e. Exceptions to this policy may be entertained because of extraordinary non-academic circumstances. Under such circumstances, approval must be received from the instructor, department chair, dean, and the Office of the Provost.
Students wanting to drop all courses for which they are enrolled must withdraw from the University for that semester/term. (Students should follow the procedure in the Withdrawal section of the UG Catalog.) Spring 2009 drop date is: April 3, 2009.
PLEASE NOTE: The aforementioned University policy describes the process and dates for traditional 15-16 week classroom courses as well as clinical courses with a 15 week clinical rotation and all RN-BSN courses. As in the past, the last date to drop the course for clinical reasons is adjusted. The adjusted date will now reflect a point two-thirds of the way through the course or clinical rotation.
Courses with adjusted drop dates in Spring 2009 are as follows:
Management, Trends, Community and Nursing of Older Adults: March 13, 2009
Capstone: May 1, 2009
STUDENT SUPPORT:
The University of Texas at Arlington supports a variety of student success programs to help you connect with the University and achieve academic success. These programs include learning assistance, developmental education, advising and mentoring, admission and transition, and federally funded programs. Students requiring assistance academically, personally, or socially should contact the Office of Student Success Programs at 817-272-6107 for more information and appropriate referrals.
Honors College Credit
Students who are members of the Honors College may wish to take this course for Honors credit. If you wish to do so, please provide the Lead Teacher (or other designated faculty member) with an Honors Credit Contract (downloaded from http://honors.uta.edu/documents/credit.pdf). You and the Lead Teacher/faculty member will together determine an appropriate supplemental assignment to justify the awarding of Honors credit. If you are not in the Honors College and would like to learn more about the benefits of membership, visit the website at http://honors.uta.edu/, where you will find an application form for electronic submission.
SCHOOL OF NURSING INFORMATION: