EMB 001 – Essential Medical Bioscience – 80 Clock Hours
Prerequisites: This course is required for admission into the Vocational Nurse Program.
This course considers the basics of general and human biology. Students examine molecular and cell biology, human anatomy, microbiology, nutrition, and biochemistry while incorporating some basic medical terminology into the course material and reviewing basic math skills preparing for drug calculations. This is a prerequisite course for entering professional education programs at Gurnick Academy of Medical Arts.
VN 100 – Fundamental of Nursing – 96 Clock Hours/9.5 Quarter Credit Hours
Prerequisites: None
This course begins with a historical perspective on nursing’s art and science and its legal and ethical aspects. The nursing tools of critical thinking, communication skills, teaching ability, and cultural sensitivity are presented and analyzed, emphasizing the nursing process, nursing diagnoses, documentation, and therapeutic nurse/client relationship exploration. The course’s core emphasizes the Licensed Vocational Nurse’s role in meeting the client’s basic physiologic needs. Normal physiologic processes are presented as a means of comprehending abnormal processes.
VN 110 – Anatomy and Physiology – 56 Clock Hours/5.5 Quarter Credit Hours
Prerequisites: Completing EMB 001 – Essential Medical Bioscience with a “C” or higher.
This course covers the body’s structure and function from the single cell through all body systems, and the interrelatedness of the body’s structure and functions are examined. Basic fluid, electrolyte, and acid/base balance concepts are included.
VN 120 – Clinical Nutrition – 32 Clock Hours/3 Quarter Credit Hours
Prerequisites: None
This course considers the basics of Human Nutrition in Health and Disease. This course focuses on Medical Nutrition Therapy, specifically nursing care in inpatient and outpatient settings.
This course teaches and prepares VN and PT students to complete basic screening, assess patients’ nutritional status, and participate in Medical Nutritional Interventions and Therapy. These include Therapeutic Diets, Mechanically-Altered Diets, Enteral and Parenteral Nutrition Support, Pre- and Postoperative Nutrition therapy, and many others.
VN 130 – Clinical Lab I – 120 Clock Hours/6 Quarter Credit Hours
Prerequisites: None
This practical skill lab course is an introduction to clinical practicum. Nursing skills are structured and covered in the following order: basic nursing skills, which include basic principles of nursing such as the role and responsibility of the nursing and team, the nursing process and nursing and psychiatric care plan, delegation, patient and resident rights, and medical asepsis. This is followed by bathing, bed making, body mechanics and exercise, measurements, normal elimination, personal hygiene and grooming, concepts of safety and restraints, and preventing and treating pressure ulcers.
Intermediate nursing skills include enteral nutrition, ostomy care, oxygenation, preoperative and postoperative nursing care, specimen collection, urinary catheter management, wound care, and suctioning. Advanced nursing skills cover managing non-parenteral medications and safe medication administration. After completing this course, students will be ready to apply their nursing skills in real-life clinical settings.
VN 200 – Medical/Surgical Nursing I – 88 Clock Hours/8.5 Quarter Credit Hours
Prerequisites: Completion of Module I courses with the required minimum passing grade. Concurrent enrollment is required with all Module II VN courses.
Corequisite: This course is paired with VN 220. Failure in one paired course equals failure in both paired courses.
The first course of the medical/surgical nursing series, through a study of theory relative to the adult client, covers basic pathology, signs, symptoms, incidence, methods of diagnosis and treatment, and medical and surgical conditions. Emphasis is placed on the effect and nursing implications of commonly used drugs, and diet modifications are explored.
The role of the practical nurse in caring for aging patients, both in the home and medical settings, is explored. Clinical experience and client-centered conferences are used to reinforce classroom theory. This course introduces students to the foundation of medical-surgical nursing, such as caring for clients with altered fluid, electrolyte, and acid-base balance, caring for clients in pain, experiencing shock, trauma, and critical illness.
The caring for clients with inflammation, infection, altered immunity, loss, grief, and end-of-life care are also covered. Disrupted respiratory, cardiovascular, hematologic, and lymphatic functions emphasize nursing and continuing care. Specific consideration is given to caring for clients with cancer and oncological care.
VN 220 – Clinical II – 278 Clock Hours/9 Quarter Credit Hours
Prerequisites: Completion of Module I courses with the required minimum passing grade. Concurrent enrollment is required with all Module II VN courses.
Corequisite: This course is paired with VN 200. Failure in one paired course equals failure in both paired courses.
This course consists of twelve weeks of externship, integrated with Medical-Surgical Nursing I. Externship schedules will vary as to the term for each student, allowing students to relate theory to practice in a supervised situation. The student’s ability to provide safe and effective nursing care to selected clients is evidenced by meeting specific behavioral objectives in each clinical area.
The student’s progress is documented on the student’s Clinical Progress Sheet. Lack of satisfactory performance is documented on the Counseling/Probation form. A detailed quarterly clinical evaluation is performed on each student with full faculty participation. Clinical areas for this quarter will be primarily Medical-Surgical Nursing, with some students assigned to specialty areas.
VN 230 – Pharmacology – 54 Clock Hours/5.0 Quarter Credit Hours
Prerequisites: Completion of Module I courses with the required minimum passing grade. Concurrent enrollment is required with all Module II VN courses.
The pharmacology course includes topics related to drug regulations, classification, categorization, administration methods, and metabolism. The basic concepts of pharmacokinetics and pharmacotherapy will be discussed. By the end of this course, students will also be introduced and become knowledgeable in medications affecting the body systems and drugs affecting fluid, acid-base, and electrolyte balance.
VN 300 – Medical/Surgical Nursing II – 96 Clock Hours/9.5 Quarter Credit Hours
Prerequisites: Completion of Module I and II courses with the required minimum passing grade. Concurrent enrollment is required with all Module III VN courses.
Corequisite: This course is paired with VN 320. Failure in one paired course equals failure in both paired courses.
This course covers more advanced pathology, signs, symptoms, incidence, methods of diagnosis, treatment, and medical and surgical conditions. This course examines disrupted endocrine, urinary, reproductive, neurologic, musculoskeletal, and integumentary functions.
VN 320 – Clinical III – 278 Clock Hours/9 Quarter Credit Hours
Prerequisites: Completion of Module I and II courses with the required minimum passing grade. Concurrent enrollment is required with all Module III VN courses.
Corequisite: This course is paired with VN 300. Failure in one paired course equals failure in both paired courses.
This course allows students to relate theory to practice in a supervised situation and sharpen their clinical skills. The student’s ability to provide safe and effective nursing care is evidenced by meeting specific behavioral objectives in each clinical area. The student’s progress is documented on the Counseling/Probation form. Clinical areas for this quarter will be medical, surgical, and other specialty focuses.
VN 400 – Obstetric Nursing – 40 Clock Hours/4 Quarter Credit Hours
Prerequisites: Completion of Module I, II, and III courses with the required minimum passing grade. Concurrent enrollment is required with all Module IV VN courses.
This course emphasizes the total care of the obstetrical client, including the therapeutic uses and effects of drugs during pregnancy, labor, and delivery, the immediate postpartum period, and nutrition related to pregnancy and lactation. Care for the newborn is included. The role of the family and the importance of bonding are stressed. Clinical experience and client-centered conferences reinforce classroom theory.
VN 410 – Pediatric Nursing – 40 Clock Hours/4 Quarter Credit Hours
Prerequisites: Completion of Module I, II, and III courses with the required minimum passing grade. Concurrent enrollment is required with all Module IV VN courses.
This course introduces pediatric nursing through theory. The focus is on meeting the pediatric client’s and family’s basic human needs, using critical thinking, therapeutic communication, technical skills, leadership/management skills, effective time management, and nursing. Professionalism and caring are emphasized.
The practical nurse’s role in growth and development, health promotion, and illness prevention is discussed and demonstrated. The didactic focus is on the most common illnesses and conditions the nurse will likely encounter while working with children and their families in the acute care setting.
VN 420 – Psychiatric Nursing – 32 Clock Hours/3 Quarter Credit Hours
Prerequisites: Completion of Module I and III courses with the required minimum passing grade. Concurrent enrollment is required with all Module III VN courses.
This course offers an overview of the practical nurse’s role in preventing and treating mental illness, nursing management of neurotic and psychotic clients, clients with organic brain syndrome, and suicidal clients. Clinical experience consists primarily of observation.
VN 430 – Clinical IV – 278 Clock Hours/9 Quarter Credit Hours
Prerequisites: Completion of Module I, II, and III courses with the required minimum passing grade. Concurrent enrollment is required with all Module IV VN courses.
This course allows students to relate theory to clinical practice in a supervised situation in maternity, pediatric, and psychiatric rotations. The student’s ability to provide safe and effective nursing care to selected clients with minimum supervision by the clinical instructor is evidenced by meeting specific behavioral objectives in each clinical area.
VN 450 – Capstone – 42 Clock Hours/4 Quarter Credit Hours
Prerequisites: Completion of VN 300, VN 320, and VN 420 with the required minimum passing grade.
The VN 450 Capstone course prepares students for practical implementation of the concepts of leadership and management composed of a multitude of individual projects and documents preparing the future licensed vocational nurse for professional practice. The capstone course combines the elements of a student-centered environment that is tailored to the needs of the adult learner. The course delivery maintains a flexible learning environment by offering web-based learning strategies. Students enrolled in the course will engage in self-directed learning and participate in the determination of individual learning needs, planning and implementation of the learning experiences, and the evaluation of experiences.
