This course will focus on nursing care and the application of the nursing process in the care of the adult experiencing selected pathophysiological processes affecting body regulatory mechanisms. This course builds upon basic nursing knowledge and skills established during the first year of the program. Opportunities to apply theoretical concepts and perform nursing skills specific to adult clients are provided through faculty guided learning experiences to include:  home health/hospice programs, dialysis units, as well as direct bedside nursing care.  Training facilities utilized include but are not limited to:  the Medical/Surgical units at Rapid City Regional Hospital, Chadron, NE, and at the Pine Ridge Indian Health Services Hospital of Pine Ridge, SD.

This course will introduce the student to transcultural nursing concepts, assessment, and the role of culture in understanding annd caring for diverse clients in health care settings. Various cultures and their concepts of health and illness will be examined; special emphasis will be placed on providing health care in a Lakota context. Culture will also be defined as behavior and established norms found in diverse health care settings. Understanding the "culture of nursing" institutional norms, behaviors, and communication patterns are critical to the student's transition into the workplace. Students will gain self awareness of their racial, ethnic, and cultural background as a prerequisite for eliciting and responding to clients' needs. Cross-cultural communication will be addressed to provide the student with skills to negotiate cultural differences between clients and providers around health and illness issues.

 

3 credit course

This course will be an introduction to drug therapy with the study of specific drug classifications using the nursing process, with a focus on the general principles of pharmacology, therapeutic uses, toxicity, and mechanisms of action for each class of drugs. This course is designed to closely follow the body systems and corresponding health systems covered in N317, offered in the Fall as well as those covered in N339 in the Spring.