Postgraduate Diploma in Nursing Education

Purpose

The purpose of the Postgraduate Diploma in Nursing Education is to strengthen and deepen the learners' knowledge and expertise in nursing education. The qualification will enable the nurse educator to function with in-depth knowledge, skills, attitudes and values to enhance professional independence. This includes preventing diseases, injury and complications. The qualification will further equip the learner with facilitation of teaching and learning including management skills at all levels of practice.

On completion of the qualification, qualifying learners will be able to

• Practice and facilitate specialist nursing or midwifery, nursing education or health services management within ethical-legal parameters of the profession.
• 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.
• Appraise and develop self, peers and nurse/midwife specialist learners by facilitating self-directedness/leadership and lifelong learning to maintain competence.
• Facilitate advocacy for the profession and provision of specialist professional support for personnel, patients or clients, families and communities.
• Engage in planning, commissioning and managing a specialist unit, an educational entity or a health service.
• Engage in scholarly activities to inform evidence-based practice, education or management.

Rationale

The qualification seeks to prepare nurse educators to be able to educate and train learner nurses to combine nursing care that provides for curative aspects of nursing care, prevention of diseases, promotion of health for individuals, families, and communities in hospitals and the community, urban and rural to affect strong primary health care.

The qualification will enable the educator to

• Educate nursing learners within the ethical-legal parameters and resolve ethical dilemmas by using decision-making and moral reasoning models.
• Render comprehensive care across all spheres of health and of life, and function as a clinically focused, service-oriented and independent registered professional nurse.
• Provide the learner with a comprehensive view of the field of nursing and the necessary skills to screen and refer patients as required; and enable him or her to work with all patients, stabilized or not, and take responsibility for health care in any context, and take responsibility for managing nursing care in a health care facility.
• Allow for a variety of learners from all spheres of life (provided they meet the admission criteria and are healthy enough), to carry out the duties required of them.

The qualification is grounded in practice, and it is intended to provide access to further academic routes, specialisation, and research. The qualification was approved by the South African Nursing Council (SANC). The qualifying learner will register with the SANC as a nurse educator.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)

The institution's recognition of prior learning policy and processes are used to increase access to qualifications by individuals through experience at the workplace, experiences through daily life or credit-bearing exemption. In the case of postgraduate diploma programmes experience must be aligned to nursing and midwifery as well as to the speciality of choice.

RPL for access

• Applicants who cannot access the programme through formal academic means can do so through recognition of prior learning (RPL), according to the RPL policy.
• In accordance with CHE guidelines, the proportion of RPL learners admitted to any programme should not exceed 10% of the total number of admitted learners on the programme.

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.
• Exemptions must be limited to not more than 50% of the modules of the qualification, subject to the applicable rules pertaining to recognition of modules passed at either the institution or elsewhere.

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.
• Recognition of credits for the purposes of transfer from one qualification to another must be guided by the equivalence setting and curriculum mapping exercise of the said qualification and the applicable General and School Rules.

Entry Requirements

The minimum entry requirement for this qualification is

• Advanced Diploma in Occupational Health Nursing, NQF Level 7.

Or

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

Or

• Bachelor of Nursing in Education and Administration, NQF Level 7.

Or

• Bachelor of Nursing, NQF Level 7.

And

• Currently registered as a Professional Nurse and Midwife with the South African Nursing Council (SANC)

And

• A minimum of two (2) years of experience (inclusive of community service) after registration with SANC as a Professional Nurse, General Nurse and Midwife.

This qualification consists of the following compulsory modules at NQF Level 8 totalling 120 Credits.

Compulsory Modules, Level 8, 120 Credits

• Ethos and professional practice, 8 Credits.
• Evidence-based practice and research, 12 Credits.
• Professional and career development, 4 Credits.
• Curriculum development and accreditation, 48 Credits.
• Nursing Education, 48 Credits.

1. Practice and facilitate nursing education within the 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. Appraise and develop self, peers and nurse/midwife specialist learners by facilitating self-directedness/leadership and lifelong learning to maintain competence.
4. Facilitate advocacy for the profession and provision of specialist professional support for personnel, patients or clients, families and communities.
5. Engage in planning, commissioning and managing a specialist unit, an educational entity or a health service.
6. Engage in scholarly activities to inform evidence-based practice, education or management.
7. Utilise, manage and communicate data to support decision-making and research.
8. Design, implement, evaluate or review a programme or curriculum for teaching and learning of nurse specialist /midwife specialists.
9. Participate in and facilitate internal and external review of the nurse/midwife specialist programme/curriculum at all levels.
10. Facilitate teaching and learning of learners, patients/clients, families and communities in conducive theoretical, simulation, online and clinical learning environments.
11. Engage in and facilitate assessment and evaluation of learning.
12. Apply the knowledge of and facilitate the management of the nursing education institution.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1

• Conform to the relevant code of ethics in the practice of nursing education
• Apply critical decision-making, and moral reasoning models and principles to make clinical judgements and resolve ethical dilemmas within the specialist practice.
• Account for own professional judgement, actions, outcomes of specialist care, nursing education or health services management provided and continued competence.
• Identify and apply relevant current legislation, policies, regulations and guidelines pertaining to specialist practice or nursing education.
• Document accurately, comprehensively and timeously all care activities considering the legal requirements for record keeping.
• Examine the role in the management of professional misconduct and risks taking into consideration the institutional protocols, protocols and ethical-legal framework.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 2

• Engage in the process of evidence-based specialist practice.
• Apply evidence-based specialist practice, nursing education and health services management considering 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.
• Use 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

• Apply appropriate leadership styles, principles and theories of nursing education management.
• Effectively facilitate Continuous Professional Development (CPD) for self and others as well as for lifelong learning.
• Create a positive learning climate in the workplace through the processes of mentorship, preceptorship, supervision and performance appraisal.
• Conduct the performance appraisal as part of the performance management and development system processes.
• Utilise the feedback gained from self-reflection, peers, learners, management and other relevant stakeholders to improve effectiveness in the specialist role.
• Examine various risk factors that impact health and wellness within the workplace and apply strategies to care for self, peers, employees and learners.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 4

• Discuss the purpose of the advocacy role for a nurse specialist or nursing education specialist practice.
• Apply advocacy principles to ensure safe and quality care in various healthcare settings or nursing education.
• Use appropriate communication skills and channels in facilitating advocacy.
• Lobby and/or participate in interest groups to influence legislation and policy affecting the role performance.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 5

• Analyse the levels and or classification of the respective specialist units, health services or nursing education entities.
• Commission tasks considering 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 and demonstrate knowledge of guidelines for provisioning a specialist unit/ nursing education entity.
• Explore the role and responsibilities in the planning and commissioning task within the inter and intra-professional team.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 6

• Apply appropriate search engines and databases for review of literature to inform evidence-based practice, nursing education and health services management.
• Use appropriate methods to generate evidence for utilization in specialist practice (e.g. research, systematic reviews etc.) nursing education and health services management.
• Base specialist practice activities, education and health services management on scientifically proven evidence.
• Actively participate in inter and intra-professional dialogues, debates or discourses in quality improvement.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 7

• Document all data/information gathered in the context of the specialist practice, education and health services for utilization and storage in accordance with the set standards.
• Utilise comprehensive data, information and emerging evidence pertinent to the respective specialist practice.
• Identify and diagnose problems and opportunities for improvement based on gathered and critically analysed assessment data from the patients/clients, families, communities, learners or employees including current scientific evidence.
• Respect intellectual property in documentation and avoid plagiarism.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 8

• Design and review the determinants of a curriculum, for example, health and education legislation, regulation or policies, health determinants (biological, physical, socioeconomic, cultural, lifestyle, community, demographic patterns), health and disease burden, professional opportunities for the development of new roles, etc.).
• Apply relevant national and professional legislation and regulations including institutional standards to evaluate the management of an educational programme.
• Align curriculum design with the mission, vision and philosophy of the Nursing Education Institution (NEI) and the context in which it is operating.
• Design or review the accreditation components and criteria used to assess a curriculum
• Consider the specialist roles and competencies in the curriculum design.
• Regularly review and revise the curriculum according to the changes in the context.
• Collaborate with inter- and intra-professionals and engage relevant stakeholders, for example, the clinical counterparts in curriculum design and revision.
• Consider the availability of all other relevant elements/ features e.g. legal frameworks, budget, human resources corporate services and culture in programme/curriculum implementation.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 9

• Conduct regular internal and external reviews of the curriculum or programme and raise awareness of the institutional, professional and national standards and criteria for accreditation and evaluation of a programme.
• Engage relevant stakeholders to ensure diverse views and inclusiveness in curriculum and programme reviews.
• Disseminate the reviewed and utilised data of the curriculum to relevant stakeholders to revise and update the curriculum in the highly dynamic healthcare environment.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 10

• Critically analyse different knowledge taxonomies and align them to learning outcomes, teaching and learning approaches and assessment accordingly.
• Facilitate critical and reflective thinking to create opportunities for teaching and learning.
• Plan and structure all teaching and learning activities to allow flexibility such as learner learning styles and capabilities.
• Appropriately utilise relevant learning resources to teach and empower learners.
• Apply personal attributes such as integrity, confidence, flexibility and mastery of subject matter appropriate to teaching practice to facilitate learning.
• Utilise teaching and learning media/resources to facilitate teaching and learning.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 11

• Apply various methods and principles of learning in the assessment and evaluation of learning.
• Consider the level of study of learners in the assessment and evaluation of learning
• Apply the curriculum approach, e.g. problem or case-based approach in the assessment of learning and evaluation.
• Plan, develop, execute, monitor and evaluate integrated assessments.
• Apply the principles of assessment and predetermined assessment criteria in the development of assessment tasks and tools as well as the execution of assessments.
• Utilise assessment and evaluation data to enhance the teaching and learning process through the provision of timely, constructive and thoughtful feedback to learners.
• Apply assessment principles in the setting, invigilation, marking and moderation to facilitate all assessment and moderation.
• Apply security measures to protect the integrity and publication of the assessments.

Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 12

• Apply the knowledge and facilitate the management of the nursing education institution.
• Coordinate and align all teaching and learning activities to the strategic plan of the NEI and the whole Higher Education Institution.
• Mobilise and utilise appropriate teaching and learning infrastructure and resources within the available budget to optimize teaching and learning practices.
• Develop, maintain and update resources to keep the teaching and learning in line with changes in the professional and contextual trends.
• Participate in the governance structures of the Higher education institution and earn recognition for nursing education.
• Critically analyse and implement different dimensions of quality assurance and improvement to ensure accepted educational standards and integrity of the programme.
• Coordinate and align the teaching and learning activities programmes to the national, regulatory and institutional requirements of the programme.