Outline

Overview

This unit of study builds on the knowledge and understanding acquired by students in the first-year unit, NURS1003 Population Health. It critically examines contemporary theories and discourses about health, illness and care in Australia. These include biomedical and social models, sick-role theory and the consumer rights movement, primary health care and community partnership models, patient empowerment and self-management. Students will analyse, in depth, the relationships between social determinants of health – socioeconomic status, race and ethnicity, gender, sexuality, culture, colonisation, climate change and place of living – and patterns of health and illness across the lifespan. With this knowledge in mind, students will explore theories and practices of cultural competence, including cultural safety and respect and develop the cultural capabilities to provide care to people from diverse social and cultural backgrounds in Australia.

Unit details and rules

Unit code	NURS2003
Academic unit	Nursing and Midwifery
Credit points	6
Prohibitions ?	None
Prerequisites ?	36 credit points of 1000 level units
Corequisites ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Horas Wong, horas.wong@sydney.edu.au
Tutor(s)	Timothy Wand, timothy.wand@sydney.edu.au
Tutor(s)	Tonia Crawford, tonia.crawford@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Assignment	Assessment 1: Weekly reflective tasks Complete a short writing task as per instructions on week 2-7, and 9-12.	10%	Multiple weeks	100-150 words for each task
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Assessment 2: Self-reflective essay A reflective essay on personal social locations and nursing practice.	35%	Week 05 Due date: 27 Mar 2022 at 23:59	1500 words
Outcomes assessed:
Presentation	Assessment 3A: Group presentation Group presentation on a chosen health issue & intra-group peer evaluation	35%	Week 13	12-minute in-class group presentation
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Assessment 3B: Individual presentation report An individual presentation report based on group discussion	20%	Week 13 Due date: 29 May 2022 at 23:59	1000 words
Outcomes assessed:
= group assignment ?

Assessment summary

This is just an overview. Please refer to Canvas for detailed information for each assessment.

Assessment 1: Weekly reflective task (10%)

Task: Complete a short reflective task as per instructions on Canvas in Week 1-4, 6-7, 9-12.

Length: 100-150 words

Due: Sundays at 11:59pm in Week 1 (27 Feb), Week 2 (March 6), Week 3 (March 13), Week 4 (March 20), Week 6 (April 3), Week 7 (April 10), Week 9 (May 1), Week 10 (May 8), Week 11 (May 15), Week 12 (22 May)

Assessment 2: Self-reflective essay (35%)

Task: Applying a social theory to reflect on how your personal experiences might have shaped your nursing practices.

Length: 1,500 words (excluding references)

Due: 11:59pm, March 27 (Sunday)

Assessment 3A & 3B: Group presentation (30% + 5% intragroup peer assessment) and individual report (20%)

Task: Students will be assigned to groups. Each group will present on a health issue and analyse its sociological aspects. Students will then need to submit an individual report.

Presentation length: 12 minutes per group

Presentation day: In-class in Week 13 tutorial (24 May or 25 May)

Individual report length: 1,000 words (excluding references)

Due: 11:59pm, May 29 (Sunday)

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a high distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

Result name	Mark range	Description
High distinction	85 - 100	Awarded when you demonstrate the learning outcomes for the unit at an exceptional standard.
Distinction	75 - 84	Awarded when you demonstrate the learning outcomes for the unit at a very high standard
Credit	65 - 74	Awarded when you demonstrate the learning outcomes for the unit at a good standard
Pass	50 - 64	Awarded when you demonstrate the learning outcomes for the unit at an acceptable standard
Fail	0 - 49	When you don’t meet the learning outcomes of the unit to a satisfactory standard.

For more information see sydney.edu.au/students/guide-to-grades.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

This unit has an exception to the standard University policy or supplementary information has been provided by the unit coordinator. This information is displayed below:

Refer to Canvas for late penalties

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

You may only use artificial intelligence and writing assistance tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator, and if you do use them, you must also acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section.

Studiosity is permitted for postgraduate units unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	Topic 1: Unit introduction: What is a sociological perspective of health and why nurses need it?	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 02	Tutorial 1	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 02	Topic 2: Becoming a nurse	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 03	Tutorial 2	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 03	Topic 3: Becoming a patient	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 04	Topic 4: Across the lifespan	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 05	Tutorial 3	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 05	Topic 5: Health inequalities	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 06	Topic 6: Gender, sexuality, and health	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 07	Topic 7: People with mental illness	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 08	No lecture - Public holiday	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 08	Tutorial 4	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 09	Tutorial 5	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 09	Topic 8: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 10	Tutorial 6	Tutorial (2 hr)
Week 10	Topic 9: Migrants and culturally and linguistically diverse populations	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 12	Topic 10: People with disabilities	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 12	Topic 11: Addiction and dependence	Lecture (2 hr)
Week 13	Tutorial 7 (Group presentation)	Tutorial (2 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

Attendance: Students undertaking this unit of study are required to attend 100% of tutorials, which are supplemented with online self-learning activities. If students are absent from designated tutorials they will need to apply for special consideration. It is expected that students will engage effectively in all components of the unit of study unless granted exemption by the Head of School.

Referencing guide: The Sydney Nursing School has adopted the American Psychological Association (APA) Referencing style, 7th Edition, as its official referencing style. This is an author-date style of referencing.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. inquire about, and reflect upon, the main theories, ideas and beliefs that have shaped, and continue to shape, contemporary discourses of health, illness and care, and the meaning of these for the provision of care, particularly nursing care.
LO2. critically evaluate the relationship between the social, cultural, historical, political, environmental and global factors that determine health outcomes across the lifespan.
LO3. identify and discuss features of nursing professional culture, clinical governance, clinical practice and service delivery, that impact the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and people of other cultural backgrounds.
LO4. critically analyze theories of cultural competence, including cultural respect and safety and patient and community partnership approaches to providing safe and comprehensive care for socially and culturally diverse populations.
LO5. search for, locate, use and critique the international literature to explore key concepts related to this unit of study.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Alignment with Competency standards

Outcomes	Competency standards
	Registered Nurses Standards for Practice - 1.1. Accesses, analyses, and uses the best available evidence, that includes research findings for safe quality practice 1.3. Respects all cultures and experiences, which includes responding to the role of family and community that underpin the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and people of other cultures 2.3. Recognises that people are the experts in the experience of their life 2.5. Advocates on behalf of people in a manner that respects the person’s autonomy and legal capacity 2.7. Actively fosters a culture of safety and learning that includes engaging with health professionals and others, to share knowledge and practice that supports person- centered care 4.3. Works in partnership to determine factors that affect, or potentially affect, the health and well being of people and populations to determine priorities for action and/or for referral 6.5. Practises in accordance with relevant nursing and health guidelines, standards, regulations and legislation
	Registered Nurses Standards for Practice - 1.1. Accesses, analyses, and uses the best available evidence, that includes research findings for safe quality practice 1.2. Develops practice through reflection on experiences, knowledge, actions, feelings and beliefs to identify how these shape practice 1.3. Respects all cultures and experiences, which includes responding to the role of family and community that underpin the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and people of other cultures 1.5. Uses ethical frameworks when making decisions 2.2. Communicates effectively, and is respectful of a person’s dignity, culture, values, beliefs and rights 2.3. Recognises that people are the experts in the experience of their life 3.3. Uses a lifelong learning approach for continuing professional development of self and others 3.5. Seeks and responds to practice review and feedback 3.7. Identifies and promotes the integral role of nursing practice and the profession in influencing better health outcomes for people 4.3. Works in partnership to determine factors that affect, or potentially affect, the health and well being of people and populations to determine priorities for action and/or for referral
	Registered Nurses Standards for Practice - 1.1. Accesses, analyses, and uses the best available evidence, that includes research findings for safe quality practice 1.2. Develops practice through reflection on experiences, knowledge, actions, feelings and beliefs to identify how these shape practice 1.3. Respects all cultures and experiences, which includes responding to the role of family and community that underpin the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and people of other cultures 1.4. Complies with legislation, common law, policies, guidelines and other standards or requirements relevant to the context of practice when making decisions 1.5. Uses ethical frameworks when making decisions 2.2. Communicates effectively, and is respectful of a person’s dignity, culture, values, beliefs and rights 2.3. Recognises that people are the experts in the experience of their life 2.7. Actively fosters a culture of safety and learning that includes engaging with health professionals and others, to share knowledge and practice that supports person- centered care 3.3. Uses a lifelong learning approach for continuing professional development of self and others 3.7. Identifies and promotes the integral role of nursing practice and the profession in influencing better health outcomes for people
	Registered Nurses Standards for Practice - 1.1. Accesses, analyses, and uses the best available evidence, that includes research findings for safe quality practice 1.2. Develops practice through reflection on experiences, knowledge, actions, feelings and beliefs to identify how these shape practice 1.3. Respects all cultures and experiences, which includes responding to the role of family and community that underpin the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and people of other cultures 2.7. Actively fosters a culture of safety and learning that includes engaging with health professionals and others, to share knowledge and practice that supports person- centered care 3.6. Actively engages with the profession
	Registered Nurses Standards for Practice - 1.1. Accesses, analyses, and uses the best available evidence, that includes research findings for safe quality practice

Registered Nurses Standards for Practice -

Competency code	Taught, Practiced or Assessed	Competency standard
1.1		Accesses, analyses, and uses the best available evidence, that includes research findings for safe quality practice
1.2		Develops practice through reflection on experiences, knowledge, actions, feelings and beliefs to identify how these shape practice
1.3		Respects all cultures and experiences, which includes responding to the role of family and community that underpin the health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and people of other cultures
1.5		Uses ethical frameworks when making decisions
2.1		Establishes, sustains and concludes relationships in a way that differentiates the boundaries between professional and personal relationships
2.2		Communicates effectively, and is respectful of a person’s dignity, culture, values, beliefs and rights
2.3		Recognises that people are the experts in the experience of their life
2.7		Actively fosters a culture of safety and learning that includes engaging with health professionals and others, to share knowledge and practice that supports person- centered care
2.8		Participates in and/or leads collaborative practice
3.5		Seeks and responds to practice review and feedback
3.7		Identifies and promotes the integral role of nursing practice and the profession in influencing better health outcomes for people
4.1		Conducts assessments that are holistic as well as culturally appropriate
4.3		Works in partnership to determine factors that affect, or potentially affect, the health and well being of people and populations to determine priorities for action and/or for referral
4.4		Assesses the resources available to inform planning.

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

The content and assessments of the unit have been redesigned in response to student feedback since the unit was last offered. Particularly, the redesigned lectures, tutorials and assessments aim to better bridge social theories in health and nursing practices. Changes include: 1. Lecture topics, tutorials' format and content covered 2. Attendance requirement: previously - 100% lectures and 100% tutorials. As lectures will be delivered online in this semester, attendance will only be required for tutorials.

Additional information

Sensitive materials in teaching: Please note that in this Unit of Study sensitive and potentially distressing or disturbing content will be presented and/or discussed from time to time. This may include reference to for example, of people’s experiences of health and illness and/or culturally sensitive issues. These topics are relevant to your learning in this unit of study and your knowledge and skill development for nursing practice. You will be advised before the information/topic is presented. If you are participating in the teaching session/activity online, you are advised to use headphones and ensure that anyone not participating in the session cannot see images that you may be watching on your device. If the nature of the content makes you feel uncomfortable or distressed, it is important that you contact the unit coordinator or another member of the academic team to discuss this with them.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Alignment with Competency standards

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Additional information

Additional information

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect

Current students

NURS2003: Contexts of Health and Disease

Semester 1, 2022 [Normal day] - Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Alignment with Competency standards

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Additional information

Additional information

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect