Abstract:

Traditional undergraduate nursing education involves students attending lectures for theory courses in a “bricks and mortar” university with clinical practice courses taking place in hospitals or community clinics. Our program is non-traditional. Undergraduate nursing students from across the country take theory courses online. While most clinical practice courses are offered in person, recently the mental health nursing course shifted from in person to online. Innovation in course design is the foundation for enhancing student learning.

Our students are adult learners, Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs) who are working toward a Bachelor of Nursing (BN) degree and are able to draw on past experience and quickly integrate what they are learning into their practice. Many students are new to living in Canada and English is their second language. Inclusive and accessible course design is of crucial importance. With this as context, innovation in the design of two courses, an initial theory course, “Exploration of Professional Nursing Practice” and a senior level clinical course, “Professional Practice in Mental Health Promotion” will follow.

“Exploration of Professional Nursing Practice” is the first course in our program. It was designed with the goal of creating an enhanced learning experience by welcoming students to the program and helping them understand the magnitude of transition from LPN to BN in terms of critical thinking, reflection, and practice. Thought-provoking graphics and compelling videos directly connected to a broad range of topic areas (e.g., change theory, history of nursing, professionalism, and culture) in addition to succinct captions accompanying these media, were integrated into all units. Deliberate use of graphics can increase motivation in learning, prompt perception and recall, assist in higher order thinking; video can also result in more efficient learning. Additionally, arts-based approaches (e.g., graphics, videos) facilitate the potential in learners to foster reflection and reveal insights not available in texts and discussions. Survey data following the pilot was overwhelmingly positive. Students reported that they appreciated the use of images to illustrate concepts and normalize some of the anxiety related to transition.

In response to challenges securing meaningful clinical experiences for students in mental health nursing, “Professional Practice in Mental Health Promotion” was shifted from an in person psychiatric hospital setting to online clinical practice. Skills such as a mini-mental status exam, suicide risk assessment and domestic violence screening were practiced on Adobe Connect web-conferencing platform with students alternately taking on the role the patient or the nurse. Skills practice was combined with deliberate use of graphics and videos on topics such as unearthing personal bias, mental health disorders, affective change, functional assessment, and psychopharmacology. Survey data included students reporting shifts in personal bias and beliefs about people with mental illness and increased proficiency in mental health assessment skills.

The objectives for this presentation are:
(1) to describe the context for course design in an online, non-traditional undergraduate nursing program;
(2) to connect innovations in course design with the needs of learners;
(3) to share insights and explore next steps related to innovations in course design.

Keywords:

Course design, online learning, nursing.