Graduate Certificate in Neonatal Care

Course overview

The aim of this course is to improve neonatal clinical practice by enhancing the professional and ethical understanding, knowledge and skill of neonatal nurses and midwives, so that they are better able to provide evidence-based care, and optimise the health, growth and developmental outcomes of neonates and their families. The course is founded on the principles of cultural safety, and developmentally supportive, family centred care. The course responds to industry requirements for highly skilled neonatal clinicians capable of providing best practice in collaboration with other members of interprofessional teams and incorporates the Australian Standards for Neonatal Nurses, 4th Ed. (ACNN, 2019). Graduates may use their advanced knowledge in advanced practice roles or to pursue further tertiary education.

Learning Outcomes

On the completion of the Graduate Certificate in Neonatal Care, students will be better able to:

• demonstrate the knowledge, skills and attitudes required to provide family-centred, developmentally supportive care in the neonatal specialty context and benchmark against appropriate professional standards
• discuss the legal, ethical, social and cultural issues affecting neonates and their families
• evaluate neonatal practice against research and current literature, to identify potential areas of practice development, and support the provision of contemporary evidence based neonatal care
• develop clinical decision making and leadership skills through research, inquiry and interprofessional collaboration to enhance practice
• reflect on the advanced knowledge and skills required to maintain therapeutic relationships with neonates, their families and the interprofessional health care team

Career outcomes

A Graduate Certificate in Neonatal Care is an investment in your future and will provide you with the knowledge and skills needed to ensure better outcomes for your patients and progress your career, leading to opportunities in education, management, rural, remote nursing and midwifery as well as specialist nursing or midwifery roles.

Course Structure

The Graduate Certificate in Neonatal Care is a one year course, consisting of four 10-week terms.

Students will need to choose 1 stream – Neonatal Intensive Care or Neonatal Special Care. Students will need to complete 4 units, either 3 core and 1 specialty elective (Intensive Care stream) or 4 core units (Special Care stream). One unit is studied per term. Approximate hours of study are 12 – 15 hours per week.