Graduate Certificate in Paediatric Nursing Studies

Course overview

The Graduate Certificate in Paediatric Nursing Studies is designed to meet the educational needs of nurses working within the diverse contexts of contemporary paediatric health care.

The course aims to cultivate excellence in the provision of nursing care to sick infants, children and young adults, within a family-focussed framework. Through the exploration and integration of theoretical knowledge and clinical nursing, graduates are prepared for practice as specialist paediatric nurses within multidisciplinary health care teams.

The course is designed to foster a purposeful and child-centred approach that makes a real difference to children’s services and student career satisfaction. This course is aimed at those with an interest in pursuing paediatric studies from a variety of perspectives.

There are three specialist streams to meet the individual needs of students, allowing nurses within these areas to share a common body of knowledge, while also advancing their specialty knowledge and expertise. These streams are: General Paediatrics, Paediatric Emergency and Paediatric Intensive Care.

Learning Outcomes

Completion of this course will enable the student to:

• demonstrate the knowledge, skills and attitudes required of the paediatric nurse within their specialty context, and benchmark against appropriate professional standards
• analyse complex clinical problems using critical thinking/clinical reasoning skills, multiple modes of inquiry and a collaborative approach
• critically evaluate nursing practice against research and current literature, to identify potential areas of practice development, and support the provision of contemporary evidence based paediatric nursing care
• develop and utilise a variety of communication skills in order to establish effective interpersonal relationships with children, their families and the interdisciplinary health care team
• model the skills and abilities that provide a foundation for future leadership roles, including reflective practice, knowledge sharing and a commitment to lifelong learning
• identify and discuss the legal, ethical and cultural issues affecting paediatric patients and their families, thereby providing safe, holistic and family centred health care.

Career outcomes

A Graduate Certificate in Paediatric Nursing Studies 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 clinical education, management and specialist nursing roles.

Course Structure

The Graduate Certificate in Paediatric Nursing Studies is a one year course, consisting of four 10-week terms. Students will need to choose 1 stream – General Paediatrics, Paediatric Emergency or Paediatric Intensive Care. Students will need to complete 4 units, either 3 core and 1 elective (General stream) or 2 core, 1 specialty and 1 elective units (Emergency and Intensive Care streams). One unit is studied per term. Approximate hours of study are 12 – 15 hours per week.