Overview
In this unit you will have the opportunity to explore clinical governance, its application to nursing and the health care setting. You will apply a specific governance framework to your clinical setting and evaluate its effectiveness. You will also examine the use of clinical audits as part of a quality improvement cycle as a means for measuring clinical effectiveness and improving patient care.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Students must be enrolled in CL22 Master of Clinical Nursing or CL16 Graduate Certificate in Clinical Nursing to undertake this unit.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 3 - 2021
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Postgraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a pass/fail (non-graded) unit. To pass the unit, you must pass all of the individual assessment tasks shown in the table above.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback – Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
- Explain the concept of clinical governance and justify its relevance to the clinical setting and nursing practice
- Apply a framework derived from the National Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care to evaluate clinical governance in a clinical setting
- Evaluate a clinical governance infrastructure within a health service
- Explain the use of clinical audits as part of a quality improvement cycle to improve nursing practice and patient care
- Identify deviations from best practice and discuss areas for improvement.
NA
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Presentation - 0% | |||||
| 2 - Presentation - 0% | |||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Knowledge | |||||
| 2 - Communication | |||||
| 3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills | |||||
| 4 - Research | |||||
| 5 - Self-management | |||||
| 6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility | |||||
| 7 - Leadership | |||||
| 8 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||||
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | |
| 1 - Presentation - 0% | ||||||||
| 2 - Presentation - 0% | ||||||||
Textbooks
There are no required textbooks.
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: American Psychological Association 7th Edition (APA 7th edition)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
j.mulvogue@cqu.edu.au
j.m.shaw@cqu.edu.au
c.johnston-devin@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Welcome to the Unit
Self-directed Learning
Moodle site
Student Support
Something about the Unit
Chapter
Check out the Moodle site and click on all the links.
Assessment?
How do I find the Library?
What is the Academic Learning Centre?
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Weekly - date and time TBA
Activity – Access the General Discussion page and introduce yourself to your colleagues by providing your name:
1. Name
2. Where you work
3. What you hope to get out of the unit
Module/Topic
Defining Clinical Governance
- Components
- Relevant principles
Application to nursing
Chapter
Readings and activities in Moodle
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Weekly - date and time TBA
Activity – General Discussion - Describe one of your past experiences in clinical governance.
Talk with your NUM or Educator about quality, safety and governance.
Module/Topic
Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (ACSQHC)
- Broad and specific areas within the ACSQHC
Quality nursing care
- Working with specific Observation and Response Charts (ORCs)
Chapter
Readings and activities in Moodle
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Weekly - date and time TBA
Activity – Access the General Discussion. What are your thoughts on the ACSQHC?
Module/Topic
Framework definitions and uses
- conceptual framework/s,
- conceptual model/s and
- models of care
Evaluation of service using a governance framework
Chapter
Readings and activities in Moodle
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Weekly - date and time TBA
Activity – Access the General Discussion. Identify and justify what you think is the best model of care. Why do you believe so?
Discuss with your NUM and select the audit you will undertake at your place of work
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Clinical governance infrastructure
Brief analysis of the governance of the Australian Health Care System
National Priorities for safety and quality
Current issues within health services
Chapter
Readings and activities in Moodle
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Weekly - date and time TBA
Activity – Access the General Discussion. What national priorities have you addressed in your nursing careers,
Module/Topic
Australian Health Care System and funding
Detailed components of clinical governance infrastructure
Application of clinical governance principles to current issues
Chapter
Readings and activities in Moodle
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Weekly - date and time TBA
Activity – Access the General Discussion. Explain the benefits of the Australian Health System.
Undertake your selected Clinical Audit
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Background to the development of the quality improvement cycle
Quality improvement
Aims and goals of quality improvement
Principles of the quality improvement cycle
Chapter
Readings and activities in Moodle
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Weekly - date and time TBA
Activity – Access the General Discussion justify participating in a quality cycle.
Due date Assessment 1: Audit Plan. Due Friday 7th of January 2022 (Week 7) 5pm (AEST). For all students.
Assessment 1. Essay. Plan for audit presentation Due: Week 7 Friday (7 Jan 2022) 5:00 pm AEST
Module/Topic
Quality improvement
- Clinical applications
- Clinician developed quality projects
Chapter
Readings and activities in Moodle
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Weekly - date and time TBA
Activity – Access the General Discussion and identify a Quality Improvement project you would like to complete.
Analyse your audit
Module/Topic
Background to clinical audits
Clinical auditing principles
Clinical audits and auditing
- Preparation and collection of data, analysis, bench-marking and feedback
- Eleven step process to guide clinical auditing
Chapter
Readings and activities in Moodle
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Weekly - date and time TBA
Module/Topic
Specific auditing based on the national framework
Audit practices
Doing a clinical audit
The National Inpatient Medication Chart
Chapter
Readings and activities in Moodle
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Weekly - date and time TBA
Activity – Access the General Discussion
Module/Topic
Concepts relating to deviations from best practice and improvement in care
Tools for learning from deviation
Terminology and associated knowledge
Samples from clinical practice
Chapter
Readings and activities in Moodle
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom - Weekly - date and time TBA
Activity – Access the General Discussion
Due Date Assessment 2 Clinical audit report (for those students not in a partnered Graduate Program): Friday 4th February 2022 (Week 11)
Due Date: Assessment 2 Clinical audit report (for those students in a partnered graduate program): This date will be negotiated at your local health service.
Assessment 2. Clinical Audit Report Due: Week 11 Friday (4 Feb 2022) 5:00 pm AEST
Module/Topic
Deviations from best practice and improvements in care
Tools for analysis of deviations to improve care
Open disclosure principles
The clinician as second victim
Chapter
Readings and activities in Moodle
Events and Submissions/Topic
Zoom -
Activity – Access the General Discussion
Module/Topic
No exam
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Presentation
Type: Essay
Due date: 5pm (AEST) Friday 7 January 2022 (Week 7) for all students
Weighting: PASS/FAIL
Length: 1000 words
Unit Coordinator: Jen Mulvogue
Aim
The aim of this assessment is for you to demonstrate an understanding of clinical governance in the workplace by producing an audit plan that includes an explanation of clinical governance. The plan will include an overview of clinical governance, how your health service addresses clinical governance, the role of nurse audit in clinical governance, the background to the nurse practice area that you have chosen to audit, the relevant National Safety and Quality Health Service Standard (NSQHSS), and the steps you have taken to initiate your audit in your workplace. Assessment One provides the basis for Assessment Two.
Instructions
Please follow the steps below to complete your assessment task:
1. Provide an overview of clinical governance in healthcare organisations (approximately 250 words)
Your overview will be informed by current literature to provide a description and explanation of clinical governance including how clinical governance impacts clinical risk and influences safety and quality in nursing practice. Your overview needs to include how your organisation addresses clinical governance including risk and nurse audit.
2. Choose a nursing practice for audit and select the relevant National Safety and Quality Health Service Standard (NSQHSS) needed to undertake the audit. (approximately 250 words)
You will need to discuss your choice with your unit nursing leaders i.e., Nurse Unit Manager, Clinical Nurse Consultant, Nurse Educator, Service/Clinic Manager. They may be able to suggest nursing practices in your clinical area that require review by audit. After deciding what nursing practice you will audit, select the relevant National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards (2017) in which this nursing practice sits. The standards are listed below.
- Clinical Governance Standard
- Partnering with Consumers Standard
- Preventing and Controlling Healthcare-Associated Infection Standard
- Medication Safety Standard
- Comprehensive Care Standard
- Communicating for Safety Standard
- Blood Management Standard
- Recognising and Responding to Acute Deterioration Standard.
3. Select the relevant audit: (approximately 250 words)
Work with your unit nursing leaders to decide on the most relevant audit that measures compliance of the identified nursing practice with the selected Standard.
4. Describe the background of the identified nursing practice that is to be audited (approximately 250 words). To do this you will need to research current literature and your local health service policies and procedures. This background should also include the clinical risks associated with the identified nursing practice.
5. Your essay should address:
- Overview of clinical governance
- Process and systems in place to identify clinical risk in your Health Service
- A justification of the use of audit to address risk
- The nursing practice and clinical risk to be audited and associated clinical risk
- Justification of your selected relevant NSQHSS
- A rationale for auditing the selected practice and steps taken to initiate the audit
Literature and references
In this assessment use at least 7 contemporary references (<10 years) to substantiate your information. You may also use seminal scholarly literature where relevant. Suitable references include peer-reviewed journal articles as well as textbooks and credible websites. When sourcing information, consider the 5 elements of a quality reference: currency, authority, relevance, objectivity, and coverage. Grey literature sourced from the internet must be from reputable websites such as from government, university, or peak national bodies: for example, the Australian College of Nursing.
Requirements
The word count is considered from the first word of the introduction to the last word of the conclusion.
The word count excludes the reference list but includes in-text references and direct quotations.
Use the seventh edition American Psychological Association (APA) referencing style. The CQUniversity Academic Learning Centre has an online APA Referencing Style Guide.
Resources
National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards
You can use unit provided materials and other credible sources (e.g. journal articles, books) to reference your argument. The quality and credibility of your sources are important.
We recommend that you access your discipline specific Nursing Resource Guide.
For information on academic communication please go to the Academic Learning Centre Moodle site. The Academic Communication section has many helpful information for students with English as a second language.
Submit a draft before the due date to review your Turnitin Similarity Score before making a final submission. Instructions are available here.
Submission
Submit your saved PowerPoint via the Assessment portal in the unit Moodle site.
Marking Criteria
Refer to the marking rubric below for more detail on how marks will be assigned. To achieve a passing grade for this unit you are required to pass this assessment item. If you do not pass this assessment item, you may have an opportunity to re-attempt. If you are required to re-attempt you can only achieve a maximum of 50% of the available marks for this assessment.
Week 7 Friday (7 Jan 2022) 5:00 pm AEST
Submit online in Moodle using the assessment tab
Week 9 Friday (21 Jan 2022)
An email will be sent to student emails when marking is complete
Marking Rubric: Student name: ____________
To achieve a pass in this assessment students must be successful in at least 2 of the 3 major criteria.
To be successful in each of the major criteria students must be successful in one half of the given minor criteria i.e. 3/6; 4/8
|
PASS |
FAIL |
|
STRUCTURE & AUDIT PLAN |
AUDIT PLAN |
|
|
|
CONTENT |
CONTENT |
|
|
|
REFERENCING |
REFERENCING |
|
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|
ALLOCATED GRADE – PASS / FAIL MARKER |
|
- Explain the concept of clinical governance and justify its relevance to the clinical setting and nursing practice
- Apply a framework derived from the National Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care to evaluate clinical governance in a clinical setting
- Evaluate a clinical governance infrastructure within a health service
- Knowledge
- Communication
- Cognitive, technical and creative skills
- Ethical and Professional Responsibility
- Leadership
2 Presentation
Type: Presentation
Due date: Submit by 5pm Friday 4th February 2022 (Week 11)
Weighting: PASS/FAIL
Length: 5-minute oral presentation using 1 PowerPoint slide only
Unit Coordinator: Jen Mulvogue
Aim
The aim of this presentation is to demonstrate your understanding of clinical audit, and the associated quality standards, as part of the quality improvement cycle. You will identify deviations from best nursing practice in your clinical area, by conducting an audit of a selected nursing practice and explaining what you did with the audit findings.
Instructions
This presentation builds on Assessment One. Based on the National Safety and Quality Health Service Standard (NSQHSS) selected in Assessment One, and in collaboration with your local nursing team, undertake a clinical audit. You may present your findings at your local Hospital and Health Service but must also record and submit a presentation for marking. You are not required to repeat information from Assessment One, unless brief detail is required to give context to your presentation. You are to present the audit cycle: the steps that were undertaken to do the actual audit; the findings; and what was done about the findings.
Please follow the steps below to complete your assessment task:
1. Collaborate with your manager at the HHS to:
a. choose an area to audit from the selected NSQHSS in Assessment 1.
b. determine the sample size.
2. Work with your unit’s nursing leader to decide on the tools for data collection and timeframe.
3. Ensure you have the NSQHSS selected in Assessment 1 for comparison or benchmarking to achieve compliance.
4. Report on the audit through a five-minute oral presentation by recording yourself and submitting through Moodle.
a. provide one PowerPoint with a summary of the audit - data collection, findings and recommendations
b. Only ONE slide is to be used
Literature and references
In this assessment use at least 5 contemporary references (<10 years) to support your discussion. You may also use seminal scholarly literature where relevant. Suitable references include peer-reviewed journal articles as well as textbooks and credible websites. When sourcing information, consider the 5 elements of a quality reference: currency, authority, relevance, objectivity, and coverage. Grey literature sourced from the internet must be from reputable websites such as from government, university, or peak national bodies: for example, the Australian College of Nursing.
Requirements
1. Use a conventional legible font.
2. Use the seventh edition American Psychological Association (APA) referencing style. The CQUniversity Academic Learning Centre has an online 2. APA Referencing Style Guide. Resources
3. National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards
4. You can use unit provided materials and other credible sources (e.g. journal articles, books) to reference your argument. The quality and credibility of your sources are important.
5. We recommend that you access your discipline specific Nursing Resource Guide
6. For information on academic communication please go to the Academic Learning Centre Moodle site. The Academic Communication section has many helpful resources including information for students with English as a second language. There are also Oral Presentation resources.
7. For information on using PowerPoint please go to the Academic Learning Centre Computing section – How to use PowerPoint.
8. Submit a draft before the due date to review your Turnitin Similarity Score before making a final submission. Instructions are available here.
Submission
i) Students will submit a five-minute recording of their presentation with one slide and save it as a PowerPoint or an MP4 to submit.
ii) Submit via the Assessment Portal of the unit Moodle site.
Marking Criteria
Refer to the marking rubric below for more detail on how marks will be assigned. To achieve a passing grade for this unit you are required to pass this assessment item. If you do not pass this assessment item, you may have an opportunity to re-attempt. If you are required to re-attempt you can only achieve a maximum of 50% of the available marks for this assessment.
Week 11 Friday (4 Feb 2022) 5:00 pm AEST
Submit online on Moodle using the assessment tab
Exam Week Friday (18 Feb 2022)
An email will be sent to student emails when marking is complete
To achieve a pass in this assessment students must be successful in at least 2 of the 4 major criteria.
To be successful in each of the major criteria students must be successful in one half of the given minor criteria i.e., 2/4; 3/6
| PASS | FAIL |
| SLIDE PRESENTATION | SLIDE PRESENTATION |
| · the slide is aesthetically pleasing and holds the viewer’s attention · slide is well balanced · figures, photos, and writing are well balanced in the slide · font size and type enhance the readability of the slide | · the slide is not aesthetically pleasing and does not hold the viewer’s attention · slide is not well balanced · figures, photos, and writing are not well balanced in the slide · font size and font do not enhance the readability of the slide |
| CONTENT (PowerPoint and oral presentation) | CONTENT (PowerPoint and oral presentation) |
| · provides clear purpose and subject of presentation · identifies type of audit and audit tools · outlines audit process including working with local team & timeframe · provides pertinent examples, facts, and/or statistics · explains the selected National Safety and Quality Health Service Standard for comparison · reports findings clearly · reports recommendations that are relevant and practicable · demonstrates knowledge of the information presented | · does not provide clear purpose or subject of presentation · does not identify type of audit and audit tools · does not outline audit process including working with local team & timeframe · does not provide pertinent examples, facts, and/or statistics · does not explain the selected National Safety and Quality Health Service Standard for comparison · does not report findings/findings are unclear or not relevant · does not report recommendations or recommendations are not practicable or relevant |
| REFERENCING | REFERENCING |
| · presentation is substantiated with peer reviewed literature using the American Psychological Association 7th edn (APA7 referencing style) · the literature cited is current i.e., published in the last 10 years · there are less than three different errors with in-text APA7 referencing · there are less than three different errors in the APA7 reference list | · the presentation is not substantiated with peer reviewed literature using the American Psychological Association 7th edn (APA7) referencing style · the literature cited is not current i.e., not published within the last 10 years · there are more than three different errors with in-text APA7 referencing · there are more than three different errors in the APA7 reference list |
| ORAL PRESENTATION | ORAL PRESENTATION |
| · one slide used · adheres to time limit · speaks with fluctuation in volume and inflection to maintain audience interest · seldom looks at notes · emphasises key points · demonstrates enthusiasm about topic during presentation | · more than one slide used · does not adhere to time limit · does not hold attention of audience · does not speak with fluctuations in volume and inflections · consistently looks at notes · does not emphasise key points · does not demonstrate enthusiasm about topic during presentation |
| ALLOCATED GRADE PASS/FAIL | MARKER: |
- Explain the use of clinical audits as part of a quality improvement cycle to improve nursing practice and patient care
- Identify deviations from best practice and discuss areas for improvement.
- Knowledge
- Communication
- Cognitive, technical and creative skills
- Research
- Self-management
- Ethical and Professional Responsibility
- Leadership
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
