Nursing

Assistant Professor Pamela Brown, MSN Program Coordinator
Assistant Professor Barbara Chumley
Assistant Professor Angela Pierson
Assistant Professor Sheila Rhodes
Assistant Professor Sonia Williamson
Assistant Professor Christine Staake
Part-time Assistant Professor Marie Lindsey
Part-time Instructor Jeri Conboy
Part-time Instructor Ann O’Sullivan

The Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) at Illinois College has two tracks: 1) the traditional prelicensure track and 2) the online RN to BSN track.

The nursing program has a Holistic Nursing Framework with five central themes essential for preparing nurses for professional practice in the 21st Century:

  • Professionalism and “Inter-professionalism”: Success in the interconnected health care environments in which nurse leaders work in the 21st Century requires the ability to collaborate effectively across health care disciplines and professions.
  • Leadership: The professional nurse must effectively lead and manage diverse teams and have the confidence and knowledge to advocate for the wellbeing of individuals and communities.
  • Communication: Nurse leaders must communicate effectively with other health care professionals, as well as a wide range of constituencies within the communities they serve.
  • Respect and Care for Diverse Populations: The effective nurse leader must have the intercultural competence to interact respectfully with individuals from diverse backgrounds and experiences.
  • Ethics: At all times, the nurse leader must make decisions and address problems based on integrity and respect for human dignity. Leaders must role model ethical comportment.

​​​The prelicensure or traditional track prepares you to be “ready” to take the National Council Licensing Examination (NCLEX) which allows you to become licensed as a Registered Professional Nurse (RN). Our traditional track requires a total of 128 credits and combines classroom instruction, and hands on practice in our nursing laboratory and various clinical sites. Students begin hands on clinical in the second semester of the sophomore year.

A sample traditional track degree plan is available. Please consult with your advisor about your individual plan for course registration and completion of program/graduation requirements.

Majors & Programs

Courses

NU 250: Nursing Fundamentals

This course introduces the student to holistic nursing theory and concepts and explains how nursing practice interacts with society. Students are introduced to basic medical-surgical nursing concepts and skills with an emphasis on adults with common health conditions. Nursing process serves as the basis for assessing, diagnosing, planning, implementing, and evaluating care in both the laboratory and clinical settings. Students address care in various settings and the privilege of becoming a professional nurse. Students are introduced to the critical role of the American Nurses Association and specialty nursing organizations in setting high standards for professional nursing practice.

NU 251: Lab: Fundamentals & Assessment

Experiences in this course correlate to theories and concepts in NU 250 and NU 252. Students are introduced to skills and techniques needed to perform a comprehensive, focused, and condensed health assessment with practice in acute, sub-acute, and non-acute care settings. The significance of normal and abnormal findings is emphasized. Other basic concepts include the fundamental aspects of communicating, caring, assessing, diagnosing, and documenting the patient's unique responses to their health condition, medical diagnoses, tests, treatments and procedures, and prognosis.

NU 252: Health Assessment

This course introduces the student to holistic head-to-toe assessment of the individual patient. In this course, students learn normal assessment findings expected for individuals across the lifespan. This provides a basis for recognizing findings that require additional assessment and monitoring. Students are introduced to physical and psychosocial assessment skills as well as the major influences of development, environment, culture, religion, socioeconomic status, and family. Emphasis is placed on the importance of assessment as the first step of the nursing process. A comprehensive approach to eliciting health histories and conducting assessments that recognize cultural and individual differences allows students to serve diverse populations and meet societal needs.

NU 253: Clinical: Fundamentals & Assessment

Experiences in this course correlate to theories and concepts in NU 250 and NU 252. Students are introduced to medical-surgical nursing in acute and sub-acute settings with an emphasis on skills needed to provide basic nursing care to adults with common health conditions. Students focus on assessment, deducting nursing diagnoses, planning, providing, and evaluating patient-centered care. Communication and documentation are key skills. Categories of independent, dependent and interdependent nursing diagnoses are also addressed.

NU 310: Pharmacology

This course brings a pathophysiological approach to pharmacology. Students use a systems approach to learning drug classifications and key drug prototypes. The principles of safe medication administration are emphasized. Students integrate knowledge from biological and physiological sciences to make connections between pharmacology, pathophysiology and the safe administration of medication therapies. Patient teaching is key to safe medication administration and students use current research to create patient teaching plans.

NU 320: Concepts of Professional Nursing and Healthcare Policy

This course addresses the skills, attributes, and role development of the successful professional nurse. Case studies examine the nurse's role in essential political, economic, and social forces affecting health care. Concepts of multidimensional care, plus skills of inquiry and analysis that inform clinical reasoning, professional judgment, and lifelong learning are integrated into personal practice. [Essentials I, V, VIII, IX]

NU 324: Maternal/Child Nursing

This course focuses on holistic nursing care related to childbearing women, neonates, infants, children and adolescents in acute, and community settings. Common acute and chronic health conditions are addressed. Contemporary issues in women's, families', infants, children's, and adolescent's health are emphasized. Emerging and evolving models of families are discussed. Students integrate concepts from genetics, growth and development, and health promotion/ disease prevention into care. Students write a scholarly paper documenting a holistic family assessment with a family centered disease prevention/health promotion plan.

NU 325: Clinical: Maternal/Child Nursing

Experiences in this course relate to the theories and concepts in NU 324. Students focus on providing care for the childbearing woman, neonate, and family in various settings and throughout the perinatal process. Common acute and chronic health conditions of mother and neonate are addressed. Students also focus on providing care for the infant, toddler, child, adolescent and family with acute and chronic health conditions in various settings. Growth and development and health promotion/disease prevention are emphasized.

NU 330: Mental Health Nursing

This course focuses on holistic nursing theory and concepts related to managing care for persons with acute and chronic psychiatric/mental health needs/conditions in acute and community settings. A developmental lifespan approach is used to situate mental health within the wellness-illness continuum. Emphasis is on establishing therapeutic relationships, therapeutic communications, interdisciplinary collaboration and on applying psychopharmacologic and therapeutic treatment principles.

NU 331: Clinical: Mental Health Nursing

Experiences in this course relate to theory and concepts in NU 330. Students focus on providing nursing care for persons with acute and chronic psychiatric/mental health conditions across the lifespan. Using therapeutic communication skills and establishing therapeutic relationships are key components of students participating in an interdisciplinary team approach in a variety of settings. Additional fees are applied.

NU 334: Adult & Geriatric Nursing

This course focuses on holistic nursing theory and concepts related to managing care for young, middle, and older adults with acute and chronic health conditions. Gender aspects of biological, epidemiological, psychological, and sociological health are considered. Growth and development and health promotion/disease prevention are emphasized. Attitudes about the aged, historical perspectives, transcultural concepts, growing old, and end-of-life issues are addressed.

NU 335: Laboratory/Clinical: Adult & Geriatric Nursing

Experiences in this course relate to the theory and concepts in NU 334. Students focus on the care of young, middle, and older adults with acute and chronic health conditions in a variety of settings. End-of -life issues, growth and development, and health promotion/disease prevention are emphasized. Additional fees are applied.

NU 340: Advanced Health Assessment

This course focuses on the theoretical and practical skills necessary to perform comprehensive physical, psychosocial, and cultural assessments of individuals, families, and groups. Gathering of specific data, across the lifespan and in vulnerable populations, is used to address common health problems. [Essential I; II; VI; VIII]

NU 360: Pathophysiology in Disease Management and Health Promotion

This course provides an in-depth study of human pathological processes and their effects on homeostasis. The focus is on interrelationships among organ systems in deviations from homeostasis. Etiology, physical signs and symptoms, prognosis, and complications of commonly occurring diseases, their management, and preventive measures inform management of nursing care. [Essentials I; IV VII; IX]

NU 400: Nursing Research & Evidence-Based Practice

This course focuses on the fundamental competencies the student needs in order to effectively use and communicate the process of scientific inquiry as the basis for professional nursing practice. Opportunities are provided for the student to apply evidence-based practice and the research process to critically read and analyze nursing research studies. A general understanding of and appreciation for research is provided. In this course the students will be exposed to an overview of evidence-based practice and research, consider ethical aspects related to the conduct of research, and explore processes related to qualitative and quantitative research.

NU 410: Ethical Leadership and Management in Nursing

Current theories of management, ethical leadership, and change theories are examined. Students use self-assessment and reflection drawing from ethical principles and virtues, moral theorists, caring and empathy to share how complex ethical decisions are made. Case studies are used to address how leaders manage common ethical issues within healthcare. [Essentials II; IV; VI; VIII]

NU 420: Community and Population Health Nursing

This course focuses on caring for vulnerable and other populations in community settings. Central themes include promoting and protecting the health of the public using health promotion, risk reduction, and disease management and control strategies related to vulnerable populations. Evidence based practice is guided by community assessments, epidemiologic data, environmental data, change, political action, and case management frameworks. [Essential VII; IX]

NU 424: Public, Community & Population Health Nursing

This course focuses on theories and concepts related to managing care for vulnerable and other populations in community settings. Central themes include promoting and protecting the health of the public using health promotion, risk reduction and disease management, and strategies related to vulnerable populations. Evidence-based practice is guided by community assessments, epidemiologic data, environmental data, change, political action, and case management frameworks. Concepts of social justice, disparities in health and health care, and vulnerable and culturally diverse populations are addressed within a global context.

NU 430: Nursing Research and Statistical Analysis

This course provides an opportunity for students to continue to develop skills related to nursing research. Research skills include appraisal of literature, research design, measurement and statistical analysis, as well as scientific inquiry. Students discuss the philosophy underpinning qualitative versus quantitative, versus mixed methods research, and how to evaluate such studies. Students analyze evidence-based literature related to directly or indirectly improving patient-centered care, and classify the quality of evidence to design a 'best'' practice. [Essentials II; III; IX]

NU 440: High Acuity Nursing

This course emphasizes holistic nursing theory and concepts related to the care of patients with multisystem, unpredictable and complex health conditions. Students practice across settings, from high-skill home care to long-term care to specialized critical care units. Students focus on the relationship between pathophysiology, disease management, and evidence-based holistic care, to further develop clinical reasoning skills that lead to optimal decision making in high-acuity situations.

NU 441: Laboratory/Clinical: High Acuity Nursing

Experiences in this course relate to theory and concepts in NU 440. Students focus on providing care to persons with multisystem, unpredictable, and complex health conditions across the lifespan and in a variety of settings. Professionalism, communication, and conflict management skills are imperative to becoming part of an interdisciplinary team collaborating to deliver safe quality patient-centered care in chaotic and high stress situations. Additional fees are applied.

NU 450: Leadership & Health Policy in Nursing Practice

This course emphasizes theories and concepts related to leadership, management and the nurse's role in the political process and health policy. Students focus on concepts of leadership, management, power politics, delegation, budgeting, and conflict management. Students are expected to apply concepts of professional practice models, professionalism, and interpersonal communication skills to foster positive work environments. Students engage with interdisciplinary teams to effect change that improves patient-centered care. The role of the nurse in the political process and health policy is examined, and students interact with legislators to inform and influence change in health care and the nursing profession.

NU 451: Clinical: Leadership & Health Policy in Nursing Practice

Experiences in this course relate to theories and concepts in NU 450. Students focus on managing safe quality care for groups of patients in a variety of settings. Students are expected to apply leadership and management principles and use healthcare informatics, and explore the nurse's role in the political/legislative process to improve patient-centered care and facilitate change in nursing practice. Additional fees are applied.

NU 460: Nursing Capstone

Students examine the research process, evaluate published nursing and other related research and write and present in a scholarly and professional manner. The student is expected to critically appraise qualitative and quantitative research, engage in evidence-informed clinical decision making and practice, including quality improvement activities and projects. The capstone project includes students researching and writing a scholarly paper and creating an artful engaging narrated PowerPoint presentation. Students identify a clinical issue that warrants a systematic appraisal of the relevant literature with the purpose of informing clinicians, critically evaluating the evidence, and translating findings into recommendations for interdisciplinary care teams.

NU 510: Nursing Philosophy/Theories

Analysis of philosophy and theoretical models, and mid-range theories in nursing. Students conduct concept analysis and develop a testable mid-range theory relevant to directly or indirectly improving health promotion and patient care.

NU 512: Advanced Assessment, Pathophysiology and Pharmacology

Students examine assessment findings, pathophysiological processes and pharmacological therapies related to common health conditions encountered in nursing practice settings. Students focus on analyzing health histories, assessment findings, test results, and medical treatments to design nursing care for a variety of patient populations.

NU 514: Evidence-Based Research in Advanced Nursing Practice

Students explore theories related to the generation and evaluation of evidence, research utilization, and evidence-based practice. Issues from nursing practice are identified, developed and refined into an evidence-based researchable project based on testing a mid-range theory.

NU 516: Healthcare Policy & Advocacy

This course explores health policy development and implementation and its impact on healthcare regulation, delivery, and finance. There is a focus on wellness and promotion of health for local, national, and worldwide health initiatives. Students will define healthcare provider roles in health promotion, healthcare delivery, and quality improvement through activities related to health policy reform and finance.

NU 610: Nursing Leadership and Healthcare Finance

This course focuses on theories, concepts, and principles from nursing and related disciplines to form a foundation for nursing leadership and administration. Theories of change, role, adaptation, need and leadership are investigated in relationship to advanced nursing practice. Students complete a 60-hour practicum, related to their change project, within a faculty approved health care agency or system.

NU 612: Organizational Behavior in Healthcare

This course explores human behavior at the individual, interpersonal and group levels, examines the effects of organizational structure on behavior in multi-cultural organizations, and studies practices and methods within the organization that promote or hinder a healthy work environment. Key concepts include ethical management and leadership, and the history and evolution of management and leadership in the United States.

NU 614: Leadership in Healthcare Systems: Advanced Roles in Nursing

This course focuses on leadership theory and the role of advanced practice nurses in leadership/ management, and as a colleague and/or consultant in health care systems. An emphasis is placed on transformational leadership and the leaders' responsibility to create a healthy work environment, develop staff, and ensure safe, quality patient-centered care while complying with regulatory, legal and ethical standards.

NU 630: Curriculum Development and Evaluation

This course provides an introduction to curriculum development in nursing education. Core processes of curriculum development, scholarship in curriculum work, organization of curriculum, and ongoing evaluation for continuous improvement are emphasized. Examples of nursing curricula are available to students.

NU 632: Innovative Teaching Strategies in Nursing

This course focuses on theories of teaching/learning and various approaches to classroom, clinical, and virtual learning. Key concepts include culture and diversity in the classroom, learning styles, socializing professional behaviors; strategies for innovation in teaching, action-focused thinking use of technology and other media.

NU 634: Evaluation and Testing in Nursing Education

This course focuses on evaluation of student performance, evaluation of aggregates and evaluation of the nursing program. Key concepts include significance of giving and receiving feedback, formative and summative assessments, grading policies, perspectives on program evaluation, frameworks for program evaluation, and standards and processes of program evaluation.