Unit rationale, description and aim
This unit is designed for registered nurses seeking to advance their clinical practice in diverse healthcare settings. It focuses on the clinical management of Australia’s National Health Priority Areas (NHPA), offering a broad foundation for understanding and responding to complex health conditions. The unit integrates advanced bioscience knowledge with evidence-based nursing and medical practice to support the development of critical thinking, clinical reasoning, and people-centred care. Students will explore the role and scope of the registered nurse in enhancing patient outcomes, integrating evidence-based practice and bioscience concepts to guide clinical decision-making.
This unit aims to equip students with the advanced knowledge, principles, and clinical reasoning skills required to manage complex conditions in diverse healthcare settings. Through scaffolded oral and written assessments, students will analyse their role as a registered nurse in improving patient outcomes, apply advanced bioscientific knowledge, analyse the impact of illness and comorbidities on individuals and their families, analyse approaches to the management of complex conditions and apply advanced clinical reasoning when designing, justifying and evaluating evidence-based, people-centred care, strengthening their ability to deliver safe, ethical, and evidence-informed nursing practice.
Learning outcomes
To successfully complete this unit you will be able to demonstrate you have achieved the learning outcomes (LO) detailed in the below table.
Each outcome is informed by a number of graduate capabilities (GC) to ensure your work in this, and every unit, is part of a larger goal of graduating from ACU with the attributes of insight, empathy, imagination and impact.
Explore the graduate capabilities.
Critically apply advanced knowledge of bioscience ...
Learning Outcome 01
Critically reflect on the role and scope of the ad...
Learning Outcome 02
Analyse the physical, psychosocial, and cultural i...
Learning Outcome 03
Analyse evidence-based approaches to preventative,...
Learning Outcome 04
Apply advanced clinical reasoning to design, justi...
Learning Outcome 05
Content
Topics will include:
- Professional Identity of the Nurse in Advanced Practice
- What is practising at an advanced level in clinical nursing
- Clinical decision making and accountability
- Professional standards and frameworks
- Principles of family-, people-centred care and culturally responsive care
- Cardiovascular Health
- Applied bioscience (physiology, pathophysiology, molecular/cellular, cardiology, biochemical & hormonal regulation)
- Clinical management & evidence-based practice (Risk assessment, pharmacological interventions, lifestyle modification, secondary prevention)
- Support patient and families
- Cancer
- Applied bioscience (cell cycle, oncogenesis, tumour biology)
- Clinical management & evidence-based practice (screening, stating, treatment modalities, symptom and side-effect management)
- Diabetes and Obesity
- Applied bioscience (endocrine regulation, insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome)
- Clinical management & evidence-based practice (glycemic control, weight management, lifestyle interventions, patient education)
- Mental health and Dementia
- Applied bioscience (neurobiology of mental illness and neurodegeneration, neurotransmitters)
- Clinical management & evidence-based practice (pharmacotherapy, psychosocial interventions, dementia care, carer support)
- Asthma and Chronic respiratory conditions
- Applied bioscience (respiratory anatomy, immune response, inflammation, gas exchange)
- Clinical management & evidence-based practice (pharmacotherapy, asthma action plans, COPD management, pulmonary rehab)
- Arthritis and Musculoskeletal conditions
- Applied bioscience (joint physiology, inflammation, autoimmune mechanism)
- Clinical management & evidence-based practice (Pain management, mobility aids, pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapies)
- Injury prevention and Control
- Applied bioscience (trauma physiology, wound healing, neurovascular compromise)
- Clinical management & evidence-based practice (falls prevention, trauma care, rehabilitation, public health strategies)
- Emerging Health Priorities
- applied bioscience
- Clinical management & evidence-based practice (infection control, public health response, digital health innovations)
Assessment strategy and rationale
To pass the unit, students must demonstrate achievement of every unit learning outcome and obtain a minimum mark of 50% in graded units.
The assessment strategy is designed to scaffold learning and progressively build students’ advanced knowledge and application of clinical and evidence-based practice with a focus on the clinical management of Australia’s ten National Health Priority Areas, offering a broad foundation for understanding and responding to complex health conditions.
Through the undertaking of two assessment tasks, students will critically reflect their role as an advanced clinical nurse in improving patient outcomes, apply advanced bioscientific knowledge of complex health conditions and demonstrate clinical reasoning while applying holistic care principle. The second assessment task requires students to independently produce original work that integrates advanced bioscience knowledge, evidence-based practice, and patient-centred clinical decision-making. Both assessment tasks promote analytical thinking, reflection, and evaluation of people-centred care.
Overview of assessments
Assessment Task 1: Digital Presentation The stud...
Assessment Task 1: Digital Presentation
The student will critically reflect on their role as an advanced clinical nurse in improving patient outcomes across diverse healthcare settings, demonstrating the ability to critically apply advanced bioscience knowledge and evaluate evidence-based practice to inform clinical decision-making.
30%
Assessment Task 2: Written Assignment Enables st...
Assessment Task 2: Written Assignment
Enables students to critically apply advanced knowledge and clinical reasoning through analysis and evaluation of the evidence-based, people-centred care provided to a case study patient with a complex condition and variation in health status and demonstrate critical reflection on their role as an advanced clinical nurse.
70%
Learning and teaching strategy and rationale
This unit equips advanced clinical nurses with advanced bioscience knowledge, clinical reasoning, and evidence-based skills to deliver person-centred care across diverse range of healthcare settings. Learning activities align with Australia’s National Health Priority Areas, ensuring relevance to contemporary national health needs. By exploring the evolving role of the advanced clinical nurse and the physical, psychosocial, and cultural impacts of illness, students develop the capacity to make informed clinical decisions, optimise patient outcomes, and contribute effectively to interdisciplinary care.
Delivered fully online, the unit uses an active and collaborative learning approach to support critical analysis and evaluation of evidence-based strategies for caring for complex patients. Learning activities include guided readings, reflective exercises and structured online discussions that promote critical thinking and peer engagement. Students collaborate in a supportive virtual environment, with access to e-learning resources and electronic readings to extend and consolidate knowledge.
Synchronous webinar sessions provide opportunities for real-time discussion, clarification of concepts, and academic support. The flexible delivery mode enables students to balance study with professional commitments while maintaining meaningful engagement. Overall, the unit fosters integration of theory and practice, preparing nurses to deliver safe, evidence-informed, and high-quality care in in a range of healthcare environments.