Unit Outline

Safety and Quality in Medication Management will allow you to identify the clinical perspectives of therapeutic medication management. You will examine the Quality Use of Medications and the Registered Nurse Practice Standards (2016) to consider legal, professional standards, regulatory guidelines, and ethical practice. You will apply the clinical reasoning cycle and national evidence-based resources to safely administer medications and work effectively as part of a multi-disciplinary health care team. Principles and socio-political and health economic implications of medication use for patients, across the lifespan, and from a range of cultural perspectives will be considered.

Intended Learning Outcomes

As per the Assessment and Results Policy 1.3, your results will reflect your achievement against specified learning outcomes.

On completion of this unit, you will be able to:


1.	Identify the roles of the registered nurse in relation to medication management across the lifespan.
2.	Apply principles of clinical reasoning and pharmacology to safely administer medications through various routes correctly, including calculation of drug dose.
3.	Distinguish between the major groups of medications.
4.	Practice in alignment with safety and quality in medication management practices through the adherence to national standards and legislation.
5.	Demonstrate communication skills using structured evidence-informed assessment tools and adhere to academic writing skills.

Requisites


REQUISITE TYPE	REQUISITES
Pre-requisite	NUR135 Nursing Practice 1

Alterations as a result of student feedback

Assessment specific discussion forums

Weekly recorded webinars with the Unit Coordinator

Refinement of the content on MyLO

Open Lab and skill specific sessions (refer to BaRN for more details)

Alterations to the marking criteria for the OSCE assessment

How will I be Assessed?

For more detailed assessment information please see MyLO.

Assessment schedule


ASSESSMENT TASK #	ASSESSMENT TASK NAME	DATE DUE	WEIGHT	LINKS TO INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Assessment Task 1:	Medications Calculations Examination	Week 6	0 %	LO2
Assessment Task 2:	Case Study Analysis	Week 6	20 %	LO1, LO2, LO4, LO5
Assessment Task 3:	Objective Structured Clinical Examination - Practical Medication Administration	Week 11	40 %	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4, LO5
Assessment Task 4:	Final Written Examination	Exam Period	40 %	LO1, LO2, LO3, LO4

Assessment details

Assessment Task 1: Medications Calculations Examination

Task Description:

This examination evaluates your ability to accurately perform medication calculations.

Task Length:

21 questions to be completed in 30 minutes

Due Date:

Week 6

Weight:

0 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Calculate medication dosages and concentrations correctly	LO2

Assessment Task 2: Case Study Analysis

Task Description:

You are required to examine the key scope of practice, legal and ethical aspects of a case study taking into consideration relevant National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards and Nursing Standards for Practice.

Task Length:

1000 words

Due Date:

Week 6

Weight:

20 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Identify scope of practice issues that relates to the case.	LO1, LO2
2	Identify the legal aspects of each case with reference to legislation	LO4
3	Adhere to academic writing principles	LO5
4	Identify the ethical aspects of each case in relation to nursing codes and standards	LO4

Assessment Task 3: Objective Structured Clinical Examination - Practical Medication Administration

Task Description:

During the assessment session, you will be required to perform one individual skill and answer knowledge related questions related to the administration of medications

Task Length:

A maximum of 20 minutes.

Due Date:

Week 11

Weight:

40 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Apply clinical reasoning to medication administration.	LO1
2	Apply principles of pharmacology to safely administer medications through various routes correctly.	LO1, LO2, LO3
3	Adhere to national standards, including communication and documentation.	LO1, LO4, LO5
4	Demonstrate the ability to develop and apply peer evaluation skills.	LO1, LO4, LO5

Assessment Task 4: Final Written Examination

Task Description:

The final examination uses various case-based scenarios.

Task Length:

2 hours

Due Date:

Exam Period

Weight:

40 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Apply clinical reasoning to the administration of medications	LO2
2	Distinguish the characteristics of major medication groups	LO3
3	Identify the roles of the registered nurse in relation to medication administration and education across the lifespan	LO1, LO4
4	Apply principles of pharmacology to safely administer medications through various routes correctly, including calculation of drug dose	LO2

How your final result is determined

To pass this unit, you need to demonstrate your attainment of each of the Intended Learning Outcomes, achieve a final unit grade of 50% or greater, and pass both Assessment: Medications Calculations Examination and Assessment: Objective Structured Clinical Examination - Practical Medication Administration.

Submission of assignments

Where practicable, assignments should be submitted to an assignment submission folder in MYLO. You must submit assignments by the due date or receive a penalty (unless an extension of time has been approved by the Unit Coordinator). Students submitting any assignment in hard copy, or because of a practicum finalisation, must attach a student cover sheet and signed declaration for the submission to be accepted for marking.

Requests for extensions

If you are unable to submit an assessment task by the due date, you should apply for an extension.

A request for an extension should first be discussed with your Unit Coordinator or teaching support team where possible. A request for an extension must be submitted by the assessment due date, except where you can provide evidence it was not possible to do so. Typically, an application for an extension will be supported by documentary evidence: however, where it is not possible for you to provide evidence please contact your Unit Coordinator.

The Unit Coordinator must notify you of the outcome of an extension request within 3 working days of receiving the request.

Late penalties

Assignments submitted after the deadline will receive a late penalty of 5% of the original available mark for each calendar day (or part day) that the assignment is late. Late submissions will not be accepted more than 10 calendar days after the due date, or after assignments have been returned to other students on a scheduled date, whichever occurs first. Further information on Late Penalties can be found on the Assessments and Results Procedure.

Review of results and appeals

You are entitled to ask for a review of the marking and grading of your assessment task if there is an irregularity in the marking standards or an error in the process for determining the outcome of an assessment. Details on how to request a review of a mark for an assignment are outlined in the Review and Appeal of Academic Decisions Procedure.

Required Resources

Required reading materials

Bauldoff, G, Gubrud, P,Carno, M, Levett-Jones, T, Dwyer, T, Moxham, L, Reid-Searl, K, Berry, K., Carville, K, Hales, M, Knox, N, Stanley, D 2020, Lemone & Burke’s Medical-Surgical Nursing, Critical thinking for person-centred care. Pearson. Australia 

Berman, A, Snyder, S, Levett-Jones, T, Burton, P & Harvey, N 2017,  Skills in Clinical Nursing, Pearson Australia 

Berman, A, Snyder, S, Levett-Jones, T, Dwyer, T, Hales, M, Harvey, N., Langtree, Moxham, L, Parker, Reid-Searl, K, Stanley, D 2018, Kozier and Erb’s Fundamentals of Nursing; Concepts, Process and Practice, Pearson. Australia

Tiziani, A, 2022, Harvard’s guide to drugs (11th Ed.), Mosby, Sydney, NSW. 