This programme has been revised. Students who entered the programme prior to 2017/18 follow the curriculum detailed on this page. Students entering from 2018/19 onwards follow the revised curriculum detailed here.

The MSc (Nursing) (Advanced Nursing Practice) is available as a part-time programme completed over two academic years from the date of first registration for the programme (i.e. 50 credits in Year 1 and 40 credits in Year 2).

There are 2 clinical pathways to the degree of Masters in Nursing (Advanced Nursing Practice):
Pathway 1: Advanced Nursing Practice
Pathway 2: Advanced Nursing Practice with Nurse/Midwife Prescribing

With potential exit award for Pathway 2:
Postgraduate Certificate in Nursing (Nurse/Midwife Prescribing) (30 credits)

A number of modules may be offered using a blended learning approach with the majority of the content of these modules delivered in an online mode.

Applicants for the MSc in Nursing (Advanced Nursing Practice) are required to:

(a) have a minimum of an honours primary degree in Nursing,

(b) hold active registration on a division of the professional register maintained by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland or be eligible for such registration as required for individual pathways.

(c) non-EU Applicants who require to do their clinical placement in Ireland and who will be registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland will be required to demonstrate fluency (IELTS 7 or higher) in English if English is not the first language,

(d) have of a minimum of 7 years post-registration experience. This must have been gained within the past 8 years with at least 5 years in the area in which advanced nursing practice is being pursued,

(e) provide evidence of support from an employer and a completed Site Declaration Form, signed by the Director of Nursing/Public Health/ authorised Nurse Manager containing confirmation of a designated medical practitioner mentor/and or Advanced Nurse Practitioner mentor who will provide supervision, support and learning opportunities, including opportunities to practice under supervision to gain the required competencies and clinical competence to practice at an advanced level in nursing.

For Pathway 2, in addition to the above entry requirements, applicants are required to:
(f) provide nomination and confirmation of a designated medical practitioner mentor (completed Site Self-Declaration Form, signed by the Medical Practitioner/Mentor) who will provide the student with supervision, support and opportunities including shadowing opportunities to gain the required competencies for nurse prescribing in his/her practice area/organisation. Applicants must contact their Director of Nursing/Public Health to discuss the identified need for nurse prescribing in his/her practice area/organisation.

Direct Entry to Year 2
Applicants who have completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Nursing Year 1 or a relevant Higher Diploma programme may be considered for entry into Year 2 on a case by case basis. These applicants will be required to undertake NU6116 in addition to the second year modules.

Recognition of prior learning:
For Pathway 1: Applicants who have undertaken relevant studies may be exempt from particular modules. This will be at the discretion of the Head of the School of Nursing and Midwifery.

For Pathway 2: Applicants who have completed a Certificate in Nurse/Midwife Prescribing may be granted exemptions from equivalent modules on submission of a portfolio of professional development in Nurse or Midwife Prescribing. This will be at the discretion of the Head of the School of Nursing and Midwifery.

Two Year Rule
Students must pass/progress within two academic years of first registration for each year of the programme, otherwise they cannot continue in the programme. After failing a re-sit examination, students may be allowed to repeat the year. Any individual year can be repeated only once, however, a maximum of two failed years may be repeated during a student's programme of studies. Thus, students must complete their studies ordinarily within four years of registering for the MSc Nursing (Advanced Nursing Practitioner) programme.

Pathway 1: Advanced Nursing Practice (50 credits)
Students will be guided by the programme co-ordinator in their choice of modules according to their specialist area of practice.

Pathway 1
Year 1
Core modules (20 credits)
NU6124 Global Perspectives on Clinical Specialist and Advanced Practitioner Roles in Nursing or Midwifery (10 credits)
NU6005 Research Methods (10 credits)

*Elective Modules (subject to availability) to the value of 30 credits from the following:
MH6099 Introduction to End-of-Life Decision Making (5 credits)
MH6101 Ethical Governance (5 credits)
MH6102 Ethics of Cure and Care (10 credits)
MH6112 Ethical Controversies in End-of-Life Care (10 credits)
NU6027 Emergency Nursing I (10 credits)
NU6028 Emergency Nursing II (10 Credits)
NU6030 Cardiac Nursing (10 credits)
NU6031 Intensive Care Nursing (10 credits)
NU6042 Children, Young People and Families (10 credits)
NU6043 Adults and Older People in the Community (5 credits)
NU6044 Health and Health Promotion: Concepts and Principles (5 credits)
NU6053 Ethics for Specialist Practice (5 credits)
NU6054 Maternal and Child Health Nursing (10 credits)
NU6070 Practice Enhancement for Nursing and Midwifery (10 credits)
NU6074 Nursing and Midwifery Management and Development (10 Credits)
NU6075 Innovations in Clinical Practice (10 credits)
NU6078 Ageing and Older People: Bio Psychosocial Perspectives (10 credits)
NU6079 Contemporary Issues in Gerontological Nursing (5 credits)
NU6080 Practice Development in Specialist Mental Health Nursing (10 credits)
NU6081 Principles and Practices of Recovery (Working in Partnership with the Person) (15 credits)
NU6083 Critical Issues in Mental Health Care (5 credits)
NU6084 Clinical Examination Skills (10 credits)
NU6085 Wound Care for Healthcare Professionals (5 credits)
NU6086 Perioperative Specialist Nursing (15 credits)
NU6089 Transitional Care and Nursing Management of Neonates (15 credits)
NU6090 Therapeutic Communication Skills for Palliative Practice (5 credits)
NU6091 Medical and Surgical Nursing of Individuals with Respiratory Problems (5 credits)
NU6092 Medical and Surgical Nursing of Individuals with Cardiovascular Problems (5 credits)
NU6093 Medical and Surgical Nursing of Individuals with Renal Problems (5 credits)
NU6095 Primary Health Care Services in the Community (5 Credits)
NU6096 Nursing in the Community in Primary Health Care 1 (10 Credits)
NU6097 Nursing in the Community in Primary Health Care 2 (10 Credits)
NU6107 Medical and Surgical Nursing of Individuals with Gastrointestinal Problems (5 credits)
NU6117 Contemporary Approaches to Dementia across the Continuum of Care (10 credits)
NU6123 Independent Study in Advanced Nursing or Midwifery Practice (5 credits)
NU6126 Physical Assessment for Nursing Practice (5 credits)
NU6132 Communication Strategies for People with an Intellectual Disability (10 credits)
NU6133 Mental Health Need of People with an Intellectual Disability (5 credits)

*Alternatively students may take up to a maximum of 10 credits relevant to their specialist area of nursing practice (unidisciplinary or interdisciplinary) from designated courses in UCC, subject to timetabling restraints, in lieu of 10 credits above. This will be decided in consultation with the programme co-ordinator.

Pathway 2: MSc (Nursing) (Advanced Nursing Practice) with Nurse/Midwife Prescribing (50 credits)

Year 1
GP6002 Systematic Approach to Assessing and Evaluating Patients (10 credits)
NU5048 Professional, Ethical and Legal Practice, Communication and Clinical Aspects of Nurse/Midwife Prescribing (10 credits)
NU6005 Research Methods (10 credits)
NU6124 Global Perspectives on Clinical Specialist and Advanced Practitioner Roles in Nursing or Midwifery (10 credits)
PF6011 Drug Action and Prescribing (10 credits)

Module Semester Information may be found here. Module Descriptions may be found here.

Year 2 - Core Modules both pathways (40 credits)
MH6014 Advanced Research Methods for Healthcare Professionals (10 credits)
NU6073 Dissertation in Nursing (20 credits)
NU6116 Advanced Practice in Nursing (10 credits)

Module Semester Information may be found here. Module Descriptions may be found here.

Examinations
Full details and regulations governing Examinations for each programme will be contained in the Marks and Standards 2018/2019 Book and for each module in the Book of Modules 2018/2019.

Postgraduate Certificate in Nursing (Nurse/Midwife Prescribing) exit award (from Pathway 2 only)
Where a student has completed and passed First Year modules to the value of 50 credits they may choose to exit the programme and be awarded a Postgraduate Certificate in Nursing (Nurse/Midwife Prescribing). A student who subsequently wishes to continue progression to the degree of MSc Nursing (ANP) must complete the programme (40 credits) within 5 academic years from the date of successful completion of the First Year of the MSc Nursing (ANP) programme.

Programme Learning Outcomes for MSc (Nursing) (Advanced Nursing Practice) (NFQ Level 9, Major Award)
On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

• Practice as a learned member of the multidisciplinary team in the delivery of quality healthcare for individuals and families across a variety of contexts with greater insights into the research-base, ethical, and professional underpinnings of nursing and healthcare;
• Promote excellence in assessment and implementation of research based practice, within agreed inter-disciplinary protocols in specialist areas of nursing practice;
• Demonstrate the knowledge and skills to assess patients/clients identify their health and social issues/needs and manage identified issues/needs at an advanced level within their practice area or identified scope of practice;
• Demonstrate expert practice in the domains of nursing as set out in the record and assessment of competency booklet;
• Exercise professional and clinical leadership, accountability and autonomy within the clinical and professional boundaries of the role of nursing advanced practice;
• Conduct and lead quality assurance reviews and audits of practice and engage in knowledge translation through research and scholarly activities for advanced nursing practice;
• Demonstrate high levels of judgement in the practice of nursing through the generation of knowledge for innovative nursing practice;
• Teach others from a broad and in-depth knowledge base, derived from critical reflection on practice and the development of critical inquiry of disciplinary knowledge base in nursing;
• Demonstrate a global perspective on knowledge at an advanced level.

Additional Learning Outcomes for MSc (Nursing) (Advanced Nursing Practice with Nurse/Midwife Prescribing) (NFQ Level 9, Major Award)
On successful completion of this programme, students should be able to:

• Practice as a learned member of the multidisciplinary team in the delivery of quality healthcare for individuals and families across a variety of contexts with greater insights into the research-base, ethical, and professional underpinnings of nursing and healthcare;
• Promote excellence in assessment and implementation of research based practice, within agreed inter-disciplinary protocols in specialist areas of nursing practice;
• Demonstrate the knowledge and skills to assess patients/clients identify their health and social issues/needs and manage identified issues/needs at an advanced level within their practice area or identified scope of practice;
• Demonstrate expert practice in the domains of nursing as set out in the record and assessment of competency booklet;
• Exercise professional and clinical leadership, accountability and autonomy within the clinical and professional boundaries of the role of nursing advanced practice;
• Conduct and lead quality assurance reviews and audits of practice and engage in knowledge translation through research and scholarly activities for advanced nursing practice;
• Demonstrate high levels of judgement in the practice of nursing through the generation of knowledge for innovative nursing practice;
• Teach others from a broad and in-depth knowledge base, derived from critical reflection on practice and the development of critical inquiry of disciplinary knowledge base in nursing;
• Demonstrate a global perspective on knowledge at an advanced level;
• Critically appraise, use sources of knowledge and information and knowledge and decision support systems in prescribing practice;
• Demonstrate and apply a detailed knowledge of medications within a defined formulary including appropriate parameters and effects of medication for safe, appropriate and cost effective administration;
• Exercise appropriate judgment in prescribing safely and effectively within one's scope of professional practice and legislative framework;
• Demonstrate knowledge of the role of the multi-disciplinary team and effective communication involved in safe medication management including the limitations of use of nurse/midwife prescribing in relation to professional accountability;
• Demonstrate ability to exercise initiative and appropriate decision-making skills through evaluation of client needs to achieve a holistic approach to patient/client care in the prescribing of medicinal products;
• Conduct and lead quality assurance reviews and audits of practice to ensure best prescribing practice is adhered to.

Programme Learning Outcomes for Postgraduate Certificate in Nursing (Nurse/Midwife Prescribing) (NFQ Level 9, Minor Award)
On successful completion of these programme pathways, students should be able to:

• Critically appraise, use sources of knowledge and information and knowledge and decision support systems in prescribing practice;
• Demonstrate and apply a detailed knowledge of medications within a defined formulary including appropriate parameters and effects of medication for safe, appropriate and cost effective administration;
• Exercise appropriate judgment in prescribing safely and effectively within one's scope of professional practice and legislative framework;
• Demonstrate knowledge of the role of the multi-disciplinary team and effective communication involved in safe medication management including the limitations of use of nurse/midwife prescribing in relation to professional accountability;
• Demonstrate ability to exercise initiative and appropriate decision-making skills through evaluation of client needs to achieve a holistic approach to patient/client care in the prescribing of medicinal products;
• Conduct and lead quality assurance reviews and audits of practice to ensure best prescribing practice is adhered to.