ADN Nursing Education Course

Legal and ethical responsibilities of the professional nurse are introduced to the student. The roles that nurses have been involved with throughout history are explored. Special emphasis is placed on identifying workplace and personal stressors, identifying coping abilities, and developing strategies for success. Critical thinking and problem-solving skills are emphasized.

This foundational course is designed to prepare students for success in nursing school by introducing essential academic, professional, and personal skills needed for the rigorous demands of nursing education. Students will explore strategies for effective time management, critical thinking, study techniques, test-taking skills, stress management, the expectations for clinical and classroom performance, and the importance of professional behavior and communication in healthcare settings. The course also covers an introduction to nursing history and theory, ethical and legal issues in nursing, and the professional roles of the nurse. Through interactive activities, self-assessments, and guided reflection, students will develop a personalized success plan and gain confidence in navigating the nursing school experience.

This course focuses on introducing the nursing student to the systemic assessment of a client’s needs through various data collection methods. The role of the nurse in developing problem identification skills and nursing diagnoses for the adult client is addressed. Health history and physical assessment skills, along with client teaching are emphasized. Special attention is paid to communication development and strategies for conflict resolution.

This foundational course introduces students to essential pharmacologic principles and their application in nursing care. Emphasis is placed on the nursing process, clinical judgment, and safe medication administration across the lifespan. Students will explore basic concepts such as pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and drug classifications, with a focus on commonly used medication classes. The course highlights the "Rights" of medication administration, patient safety, and effective communication in patient education. Cultural, legal, and developmental considerations are integrated throughout. Students will also begin developing dosage calculation skills and practice safe administration techniques using various routes.

This course builds on basic pharmacology knowledge to explore more complex medications and patient-specific drug therapy. Students study major drug classes in greater detail, including how drugs work in the body, how they are processed, and their intended effects. Topics include side effects, drug interactions, contraindications, and nursing responsibilities. Students use critical thinking to make decisions about medication use in patients with multiple health conditions, those taking many medications, and special populations. Emphasis is placed on assessing patients, teaching about medications, and watching for both helpful and harmful effects. Dosage calculation and safe administration techniques are practiced to support safe and effective nursing care.

Foundations of Nursing Arts and Skills focuses on introducing the nursing student to concepts in the management of client care and the development of skills within the context of the nursing process. Students will learn to provide basic nursing skills to client care. Safe and effective nursing practices are emphasized. This clinical course focuses on introducing the nursing student to the healthcare environment. This course allows the student to begin to use practiced skills in the provision of client care. Importance is placed on establishing interactions with clients and obtaining client information through the healthcare assessment.

Basic pharmacology concepts related to the body system and the medications commonly prescribed for clients with various medical conditions are presented in this course. This laboratory focuses on basic pharmacology concepts, related drug actions, therapeutic and adverse effects, interactions of drugs, drug classifications, dosage calculations, and medication administration. Application of basic math concepts will be used for dosage calculations for the various routes of administration.

In this course, the student is introduced to the role of the professional nurse in meeting the care needs for the medical and surgical client by integrating nursing theory with nursing skills for multiple clients who have stable and predictable results in an acute care setting. Special emphasis is placed on continued skill development and assessment of the effectiveness of care and procedures. The laboratory component of the course focuses on advanced assessment and intravenous therapy concepts specific to the professional nurse. This clinical course focuses on skill development in applying the nursing process to the delivery of uncomplicated nursing care in a long-term care setting. Emphasis is placed on developing the nursing student’s skill base.

This course focuses on the ongoing development of the professional nursing student in a two-year nursing education program. The student is taught to use the nursing process for the development of plans of care for clients with complex and/or complicated healthcare needs. Emphasis is placed on integrating the biological, physical, and social sciences in assisting the client and family to achieve optimal functioning. Special attention is also placed on identifying legal and ethical considerations that influence care in complex settings. The use of advanced nursing skills in the provision of client care is the focus of clinical; also, there is a focus on understanding the complexity of acute and/or complex nursing interventions. Nursing students will evaluate and revise nursing care approaches based on the client’s response to the treatment.

The role of the two-year professional nursing student in the care and treatment of common clinical mental health conditions and disorders is the focus of this course. The nursing approach is on understanding psychopathology and emphasizes caring through the application of appropriate communication venues. Ethical and legal issues are analyzed as they pertain to mental illness and psychosocial implications.

The role of the nurse in the care of the childbearing family across the lifespan, with special attention to the needs of the childbearing woman and newborn, is the focus of the classroom and clinical components of this course. The nursing process is used as a framework for understanding the care required during the perinatal experience of normal and high-risk pregnant women and their families. The influence of cultural, psychosocial, and spiritual values on the childbearing family is integrated. Ethical and legal issues pertaining to pregnancy and birth are reviewed. Critical thinking skills and the use of evidence-based practices are included.

The role of the nurse in the care of the pediatric client and their family, from infancy through adolescence, in health and illness, is the focus of the classroom and clinical components of this course. Special attention is paid to growth and development and the related emotional needs of each stage. The nursing process is used as a framework for understanding the care required by these clients. Relevant family concepts, ethical and legal issues and cultural, psychosocial, and spiritual values are considered. Critical thinking skills and the use of evidence-based practices are included.

This course focuses on role transition from student nurse to practicing nurse. Emphasis is placed in preparing the student for the Capstone course and NCLEX-RN® examination. Concepts taught in Health Assessment, Pharmacology, Foundations of Nursing Arts & Skills, Basic and Advanced Medical Surgical Nursing, Mental Health Nursing, Obstetrical, and Pediatric Nursing will be reviewed. Time management, prioritization, and planning nursing care are emphasized.