Bachelor of Nursing
Health Sciences and Social Services - Curative Health
Purpose and Rationale
Qualification Overview
Purpose
The purpose of the qualification is to prepare clinically focused and service-orientated independent nurse professionals who will be able to render holistic and emancipatory general nursing and midwifery health care. They should be competent to function within a wide range of health services settings in the health system. The qualification aims to:
- Produce competent Professional Nurse and Midwife practitioners for a wide range of health service settings.
- Provide graduates with skills, knowledge, and attitudes to make a sustained contribution to health services.
- Equip graduates with a sense of equity, justice, and service ethics.
- Offer transferable skills applicable to other professions and disciplines.
Outcomes
- Enables learners to function as clinically focused, service-oriented, independent, registered professional nurses across all health spheres.
- Encourages the application of evidence-based research to enhance nursing practice.
- Eligibility for registration with the South African Nursing Council as a Professional Nurse and Midwife.
Rationale
- Addresses the nursing personnel shortage in South Africa.
- Responds to changing disease profiles and healthcare demands.
- Contributes to national and global strategies for increased nursing personnel production.
- Addresses the demand for undergraduate nursing education nationally.
- Equips learners to work as professional nurse and midwife practitioners, providing care in various settings.
- Includes a research component to improve healthcare quality through best practices.
- Enables independent practice opportunities as a private nurse practitioner.
- Allows for articulation with relevant cognate qualifications upon completion.
This qualification aims to address critical healthcare needs, produce competent nursing professionals, and contribute to elevating healthcare standards in South Africa.
Outcomes
- Demonstrate the ability to identify and address ethical and legal issues based on critical reflection on the suitability of different ethical value (and legal) systems to the nursing and midwifery practice within the legal framework.
- Apply knowledge of biological and natural sciences, psycho-social sciences, and pharmacology in the provision of safe nursing and midwifery care, throughout the life span, in a variety of health care settings and communities in response to population needs.
- Manage a health care unit and health facility based on the understanding of the roles and relationships within the multidisciplinary team.
- Access, produce and manage information effectively to a range of audiences, including health information systems
- Conduct research in investigating nursing and health-related problems to improve the quality of care.
- Apply learning strategies effectively to address own and others' professional and personal ongoing learning needs in a self-critical manner.
- Apply knowledge of theories, methods, and techniques in the practice of safe clinical nursing that is responsive to the needs of the individual, the family, and the community, in accordance with national legislative and policy frameworks at all levels of health care.
- Provide safe and quality midwifery and neonatal care in a scientific, integrated and evidence-based approach in all health care settings.
Assessment Criteria
Integrated Assessment
Integrated Assessment at the level of the qualification provides an opportunity for learners to show that they can integrate concepts, ideas, and actions across this qualification to achieve competence that is grounded and coherent with the purpose of this qualification. Integrated assessment will show how already demonstrated competence in individual areas can be linked and applied for the achievement of a holistic outcome as described in the Exit Level Outcomes.
Integrated Assessment will judge the quality of the observable performance, and the quality of the reasoning that lies behind it. Assessments tools will encourage learners to give an account of the thinking and decision-making that underpin their demonstrated performance. Learning and assessment shall be integrated. The scheme of work includes tests and assignments, clinical laboratory work and competency assessment of clinical skills. A variety of assessment strategies and approaches will be used.
Formative Assessment
Several modules especially clinical modules will use continuous assessment. Continuous Assessment is governed by the principles of assessment as outlined in the institution's assessment policy. In line with this policy, a variety of assessment instruments to assess the various components of learning within the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains will be conducted at regular intervals over the course of each module and will be premised on a developmental approach. Consistency will be ensured regarding the types, number, and weighting of assessments as well as re-assessments.
Formative assessment will include but not limited to:
- Tests
- Assignments
- Projects
- Demonstrations and/or clinical assessments
- Objective Structured Clinical Evaluation
- Continuous Clinical Assessment
- Workbooks
- Logbooks
Summative Assessment
Summative assessment will take the form of oral, written, and practical examinations as per the institution's assessments policy. Learners will prepare portfolio exit levels of evidence in the form of a workbook (record of cases) and logbook (record of clinical hours). Summative assessments for theory modules will be externally moderated and that for all other clinical modules will be internally moderated. A minimal pass mark of 50% shall be required for both Theoretical and Practical Assessments.
Examinations will be written for selected theory modules. The number and types of assessments will be determined by the learning outcomes for both theoretical and clinical learning. Formative and summative assessments will be developed based on one formative assessment for every four (4) credits allocated for both theory and clinical modules. In addition, one summative assessment will be conducted. For continuous assessments minimum 60% of the assessments will be moderated.
Work Integrated Learning (WIL)/Clinical Modules Assessment
Clinical assessments for work-integrated learning (WIL) will be competency-based using a range of assessment types, carried out at various clinical learning sites such as skills laboratories, health units and communities. Clinical assessments will include a mix of simulated (skills laboratory) and actual (real) clinical practice or care settings.
Qualification Details
- Type
- National First Degree(Min 480)
- NQF Level
- 08
- Min. Credits
- 480
- SAQA Source
- More Information
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This page includes information from the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) . Builtneat Pty Ltd trading as Study Start, has modified all or some of this information. SAQA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.