Postgraduate Diploma in Emergency Nursing

Purpose

The purpose of the Postgraduate Diploma in Emergency Nursing is to equip the learner with the necessary knowledge and skills needed to be an emergency nurse in the emergency care setting.

The qualification will ensure that the emergency nurse is able to

• Address injury prevention initiatives on primary, secondary and tertiary levels in order to reduce the burden of injuries on the South African population.
• Critically reflect on practice and analyse epidemiological evidence to determine and implement injury prevention strategies, triage, and respond to the rapidly changing physiological and psychological status of emergency care patients.
• Analyse the mechanism of injury and/ or prehospital history and/ or the patient's clinical presentation to draw up a person-centred care plan.
• Take care of any foreseeable emergencies, collaborate with the multidisciplinary team to assess, diagnose, prioritise, stabilize, and transfer or discharge a patient and initiate appropriate and sensitive contact and conversations with patients, families and/ or significant others.

The competencies of this nurse specialist overlap with some of the competencies of other nursing specialisations. The emergency nurse competencies overlap with one another and should include components of:

>Intensive care/ Critical Care Nursing

• Orthopaedic Nursing and Neurological Nursing
• Medical and Surgical Nursing Care
• Paediatric and Neonatal Emergency Nursing Care
• Maternal/ Obstetrical Emergency Nursing
• Forensic Nursing
• Operating Theatre Nursing
• Community Health Nursing

Upon completion of this qualification, qualifying learners will be able to

• Practice within the ethical-legal parameters of the profession and resolves professional-ethical

dilemmas by using decision-making and moral reasoning models.

• Apply knowledge and principles of the research process applicable to specialist clinical practice.
• Render and co-ordinate comprehensive specialist nursing/ midwifery care according to the patients' needs using the scientific approach.
• Implement standards to ensure quality patients care and safety.
• Apply specialist knowledge and principles when communicating, making theoretical arguments, or developing documentation.
• Participate actively in the multi-professional team by demonstrating shared leadership and decision-making.
• Provide professional support for personnel, patients, families, and communities to promote independence and behavioural change to enhance health outcomes.
• Demonstrate scholarship of teaching and learning through evidence-based education.
• Facilitate learning in a positive learning environment to optimize competence in nursing practice.
• Implement appropriate strategies to develop self and other nurse leaders.
• Manage a health care unit and health facility based on the understanding of the roles and relationships.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)

The institution has an approved Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) policy which is applicable to equivalent qualifications for admission into the qualification. RPL will be applied to accommodate applicants who qualify. RPL thus provides alternative access and admission to qualifications, as well as advancement within qualifications. RPL may be applied for access, credits from modules and credits for or towards the qualification.

RPL for access

• Learners who do not meet the minimum entrance requirements or the required qualification that is at the same NQF level as the qualification required for admission may be considered for admission through RPL.
• To be considered for admission in the qualification based on RPL, applicants should provide evidence in the form of a portfolio that demonstrates that they have acquired the relevant knowledge, skills, and competencies through formal, non-formal and/or informal learning to cope with the qualification expectations should they be allowed entrance into the qualification.

RPL for exemption of modules

• Learners may apply for RPL to be exempted from modules that form part of the qualification. For a learner to be exempted from a module, the learner needs to provide sufficient evidence in the form of a portfolio that demonstrates that competency was achieved for the learning outcomes that are equivalent to the learning outcomes of the module.

RPL for credit

• Learners may also apply for RPL for credit for or towards the qualification, in which they must provide evidence in the form of a portfolio that demonstrates prior learning through formal, non-formal and/or informal learning to obtain credits towards the qualification.
• Credit shall be appropriate to the context in which it is awarded and accepted.

Entry Requirements

The minimum entry requirement for this qualification is

• Bachelor of Nursing, NQF Level 7.

Or

• Advanced Diploma in Critical Care Nursing, NQF Level 7.

Or

• A relevant qualification in the related field, NQF Level 7.

This qualification consists of the following compulsory modules at National Qualifications Framework Level 8 totalling 120 Credits.

Compulsory Modules, Level 8,120 Credits

• Praxis of Specialist Practice, 8 Credits.
• Leadership and Development in Specialist Practice, 8 Credits.
• Evidence based nursing and midwifery practice, 8 Credits.
• Principles and Processes in Emergency Nursing, 28 Credits.
• System Abnormalities: Emergency Nursing, 23 Credits.
• Specialist Emergency Nursing Practice, 45 Credits.

1. Practice and facilitate specialist nursing or midwifery, nursing education or health services management within ethical - legal parameters of the profession.
2. Apply the knowledge of and facilitate evidence-based practice, nursing education or management in the specialist field to solve contextual problems and develop policies and guidelines.
3. Demonstrate understanding of the various risk factors that impact on health and wellness within the workplace and applies strategies to care for self, peers, employees, and learners.
4. Demonstrate the use of appropriate communication skills and channels in facilitating advocacy.
5. Engage in planning, commissioning, and managing a specialist unit, an educational entity, or a health service.
6. Demonstrate knowledge of appropriate search engines and databases for review of literature to inform evidence-based practice, education, and health services management.
7. Demonstrate utilisation of comprehensive data, information, and emerging evidence pertinent to the respective specialist practice.
8. Demonstrate that knowledge and skill of rendering specialist care are in accordance with standards and protocols of the specialist field.
9. Mobilise appropriate resources to implement standards of practice relevant to the area of specialisation, to ensure quality patient care and safety.
10. Collaborate within the inter-professional team by engaging in health dialogue, shared leadership, decision-making and sound clinical judgment.
11. Apply and participate in the design, development, implementation, and evaluation of nursing policies, qualifications, and projects.
12. Develop and implement policies, protocols, and guidelines in specialisation, utilising the process of change management in improvement of quality of care.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1

• Show that personal attributes and behaviour demonstrate conformity to the relevant codes of ethics in the practice of specialist nursing or midwifery, nursing education and health service management.
• Demonstrate how critical decision making and moral reasoning models and principles are used to make clinical judgements and resolve ethical dilemmas within the specialist practice.
• Demonstrate accountability for own professional judgement, actions, outcomes of specialist care, nursing education or health service management provided, and continued competence are demonstrated.
• Identify and apply the relevant current legislation, policies, regulations, and guidelines pertaining to specialist practice or nursing education, or Health Services Management.
• Document all care activities accurately, comprehensively, and timeously taking into account the legal requirements for recordkeeping.
• Demonstrate knowledge of the nurse specialist or midwife specialist roles in the management of professional misconduct and risks taking into consideration the institutional protocols and ethical-legal framework.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 2

• Engage in specialist practice and demonstrate understanding and the process of evidence-based practice.
• Apply evidence-based specialist practice, nursing education and health services management taking into consideration the appropriate methodology of gathering evidence for practice, education, and management, for example, systematic or scoping reviews, appraisal of articles, practice based-research and publication.
• Demonstrate knowledge of evidence-based practice, nursing education and health service management, and critically analyse the various levels of evidence.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 3

• Show how leadership skills are demonstrated through application of appropriate leadership styles, principles, and theories of health services management.
• Use Continuous Professional Development (CPD) for self and others effectively to facilitate lifelong learning by creating a positive learning climate in the workplace through the processes of mentorship,

preceptorship, supervision, performance appraisal.

• Engage in performance appraisal and demonstrate understanding of the purpose and processes of the performance management and development system.
• Apply feedback gained from self-reflection, peers, learners, and management to improve effectiveness in the specialist role.
• Appraise and develop self, peers and nurse/midwife specialist learners by facilitating self-directedness/leadership and lifelong learning to maintain competence.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 4

• Demonstrate understanding and purpose of the advocacy role for a nurse or midwife specialist.
• Show that advocacy principles are used to advocate for safe and quality care in various health care settings or nursing education of health service management.
• Lobby or participate in interest groups to influence legislation and policy affecting the role performance.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 5

• Demonstrate understanding of levels and/or classification of the respective specialist units, health services or educational entities.
• Show that commissioning tasks taking into consideration the burden of diseases and priority services as determined by current events.
• Participate in the evaluation of the existing specialist unit, health or education entity demonstrates knowledge or guidelines for provisioning a specialist unit or health service or educational entity.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 6

• Show that appropriate methods are used to generate evidence for utilisation in specialist practice, education, and health services management.
• Demonstrate awareness of the peer-reviewed journals to use for sharing of evidence.
• Show that activities in the specialist practice, education and health services management are based on scientifically proven evidence.
• Actively participate in inter-professional dialogues/debates/discourses in quality improvement.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 7

• Record all data/information gathered in the context of the specialist practice, education and health services for utilisation and storage in accordance with the set standards.
• Show that problem identification, diagnoses and opportunities for improvement are based on gathered and critically analysed assessment data from the patients/clients, families, communities, learners, or employees including current scientific evidence.
• Demonstrate that documentation shows respect for intellectual property and is without plagiarism.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 8

• Demonstrate understanding of the position of own specialist service within the health care system.
• Show that the nurse or midwife specialist is conversant with the full range of services within the specialist area of practice.
• Render specialist care that integrates promotive, preventive, curative, rehabilitative and palliative care in a continuum.
• Show that formulated nursing or midwifery diagnoses are congruent with the patient's/client's clinical manifestations/data and are based on accurate analysis and interpretation of data obtained from scientific, laboratory, diagnostic, technological and psycho-sociocultural assessment including consultation of relevant/current literature/evidence.
• Show that planned nursing or midwifery interventions are individualised considering patient's/client's needs, values, beliefs, preferences, culture and contextual variables, for example, disease burden, health risks, national priorities, etc.
• Show that planned nursing or midwifery interventions are based on formulated nursing diagnoses, and application of specialised knowledge and skills (competencies) including advanced pharmacology in collaboration with the inter-professional team.
• Show that planned nursing or midwifery interventions are implemented timeously, accurately, safely, and effectively in accordance with set standards, guidelines, protocols, algorithms, bundles, etc. specific for the specialist field.
• Show that health care interventions are planned in collaboration with the patient,

family, and relevant members of the health care team.

• Show that nursing interventions include preparation of patients/clients, families, and nurses in the lower-level care for continued care in the hospital and community in accordance with the health status and health

literacy of the patient/client.

• Nursing or midwifery interventions are documented and revised timeously and effectively based in critical analysis of the monitoring and evaluation data and reaching a sound judgement.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 9

• Demonstrate understanding of the infrastructure and equipment needed in the specific area of specialisation.
• Render specialist care that demonstrates the ability to operate and monitor the equipment used in the specialist area.
• Indicate that asset management principles are employed to ensure appropriate, adequate, well maintained and up to date equipment.
• Demonstrate that the assignment of staff to nursing care takes into consideration the specialist qualification and its competencies, experience, standard nurse-patient ratios for the area of specialisation, job description and skill mix.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 10

• Indicate that practice problems in the specialist area are identified, shared, and collaboratively solved by informed decisions and sound clinical judgement.
• Show that consultation is sought and provided appropriately and timeously in the provision of holistic care in a continuum through awareness of one's competence.
• Show that patient referral is carried out appropriately and timeously as dictated by the patient's condition and in accordance with the referral guidelines.
• Participate in the inter-professional team and is visible and recognised by the members of the team.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 11

• Demonstrate understanding of the steps in and or levels of the development of policies, qualifications, and projects through participation in the development of policies, qualifications, and projects.
• Show that participation in project and policy development demonstrates knowledge of own role and responsibilities within the inter-professional policy/project team.
• Show that participation in policy, qualification and project development demonstrates advocacy for the nursing profession and patients/clients, families, and communities in the specialist area.
• Provide evidence that participation in project and development includes appropriate communication (negotiation, bargaining, assertive, persuasive, etc.).
• Provide evidence that timely and adequate feedback to relevant stakeholder is provided as necessary.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 12

• Demonstrate knowledge of the process and or steps of development of policies, standards, guidelines and protocols.
• Show understanding of the process of development of policies, standards, protocols and guidelines involves the relevant and predetermined stakeholders.
• Indicate that the process of development and evaluation or testing of guidelines and protocols uses the appropriate methods.
• Implement new policies, protocols and guidelines to the specialist area that demonstrate understanding and application of the change process.
• Develop policies, protocols, and guidelines, and revise at appropriate intervals and signed as per the institutional policy for the specialist area.