NURS5270

Care of Adult &

Gerontology Populations

Course Description
This course focuses on comprehensive care of adult-gerontology (AG) populations. Examines
common acute and chronic health problems using a body system scheme and a physical, emotional,
psychosocial, spiritual, intellectual and cultural approach. Advanced pathophysiology, assessment
and diagnostic strategies, and evidence based-practice specific to common acute and chronic
conditions are emphasized. Prerequisites: NURS5100, NURS5143.

Course Objectives
Upon completion of this course the student will be able to:
• Utilize a theoretical and research base to support health promotion and health or illness
management.
• Synthesize health assessment data (including subjective, objective, radiology and laboratory
findings) in order to formulate differential diagnosis and holistic management plans (including
pharmacological and non-pharmacological management).
• Integrate preventative health services into a management of common health problems in
adults.
• Acknowledge cultural, psychosocial, and spiritual differences and influence on perception of
health promotion and participation in management of health.
• Critically analyze risk factors that influence wellness and illness states using research findings
as a basis for analysis.
• Apply principles of health promotion that support healthy behaviors and patient involvement in
decisions that affect health and well-being.

Instructor Information:

Teresa Blanc, DNP FNP ACNP-BC

FNP Graduate Faculty and AGANCP Faculty
 Graceland University, 1401 W. Truman Road,

Independence, MO 64050

twb1@graceland.edu

Communication
A variety of technologies are used to facilitate communicate among faculty, staff and peers.
Students are expected to be familiar with and able to use the following communication
technologies. Please allow 24-72 hours for a response. If a response is not received within
72 hours, contact the SON Graduate Programs Office
at songraduateprograms@graceland.edu or 816.423.4677.
 Announcements
o Posted by faculty on the course home page as needed
o Check for new announcements every time course is accessed
 Virtual Office
o Asynchronous discussion board available in Course Home
o Preferred means of communication between faculty & students enrolled in online courses
o Q & A available to all students enrolled in course
o Check frequently for updated information
 Virtual Classroom
o Synchronous online chats
o Q & A in real-time
o Attendance and participation may be required or optional
 Email
o Email communications sent from Brightspace and all official communications from the SON
are sent to your GU Outlook account
o Check your GU Outlook frequently!!
o Do NOT use a personal email account (yahoo, gmail, etc.) to send or receive messages with
GU Outlook.
 Tele/Video Conferencing
o Voicemail
o Teleconference (leading or joining a conference call for participants in multiple locations)
o Live Videoconference (Skype, Google Hangout)
o Tele/Video Conferencing
Students are expected to communicate effectively and professionally with faculty and staff to
resolve any problems or concerns encountered during the program of study. Questions or
concerns regarding academic issues should initially be discussed and preferably resolved at
the course instructor level. Course Lead Faculty and then the Specialty Track
Coordinator/Faculty Advisor may be contacted if further assistance is required. Faculty
 advisors will consult with or refer students to SON administration as needed. Staff are
available to assist with non-academic issues such as registration, enrollment, financial aid,
programs of study, withdrawals, contracts, agreements, etc.

Term and Academic Year

All semesters

Course Materials
Required Texts

Primary Care: The Art and Science for Advanced Practice Nursing 4th Edition – Dunphy

Advanced Practice Nursing in the Care of Older Adults 1st Edition

Fitzpatrick's Color Atlas and Synopsis of Clinical Dermatology, Seventh Edition (Color Atlas &
Synopsis of Clinical Dermatology (Fitzpatrick)7th Edition

Essentials of Musculoskeletal Care (Griffin) 5th Edition

Program Student Learning Outcomes

 Synthesizes research, theory and principles of scientific inquiry to support evidence-based practice
 Demonstrates advanced knowledge and skills in selected functional role
 Provides ethical, culturally sensitive care collaboratively with professionals from multiple disciplines
 Advocates for access to affordable , cost-effective, quality healthcare community resources within
scope of practice
 Communicates effectively and uses information systems/technology to evaluate programs of care
and/or facilitate learning.

Course Credit
Three Semester Hours

Place of Course in Curriculum

Fourth Semester of Full time study

Requisites and Prerequisites

NURS5440, 5100, 5193, 5194

Course Schedule
see course schedule

Estimated Learning Time

On average, students should expect to spend 3-5 clock hours (ch)/ semester hour (sh)/
week (wk) of a 15 week trimester engaged in learning activities for all graduate level nursing
courses. Learning activities and distribution of ELT may vary from course to course and
student to student.

Technology

PCs are recommended. Macintosh computers may be used, but

in some situations a Mac will not support the requirements of a
specific college course online. It is the student’s responsibility to
ensure that they can access a PC in such situations.
Recommended systems & software include Windows 2000 or XP,
64 MB RAM, 28.8 kbps modem (56K), sound card & speakers,
and Internet Explorer 6.0 or Firefox 1.x with JAVA enabled.

University, SON, and Course Policies

Students are responsible for information posted in the syllabus and on the course website.
Be sure to familiarize yourself with the layout and organization of the course website before
you begin working through learning activities and course requirements. Post any questions
about the syllabus in the Virtual Office under Week 1.
GRADUATE STUDENT HANDBOOK
Students are responsible for the policies and procedures posted in the Graduate Student
Handbook. This handbook is updated on a regular basis, so please refer to the online version
posted on the SON website for the most current information.

Graceland University's School of Nursing highly values academic integrity and is committed
to the fundamental value and obligation of preserving academic honesty among our faculty,
students and graduates. Students agree that by taking this course all written assignments
including research papers, case studies and discussion posts may be subject to submission,
at the discretion of the faculty member, for text comparison by Turnitin.com, a plagiarism
detection service, and other means of detecting plagiarism. All papers submitted to
Turnitin.com will be included as source documents in the Turnitin.com reference database
solely for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of future papers. Use of the Turnitin.com
service is subject to the Terms and Conditions of Use posted on www.Turnitin.com . Turnitin
is an integrated feature in Brightspace. Any assignment requiring Turnitin will automatically
be processed through Turnitin upon submission. You can follow the Turnitin Similarity
Score instructions to view the similarity report generated upon submission of the
assignment.
 ACADEMIC INTEGRITY POLICY
Academic integrity is a highly valued principle that undergirds all facets of academic life at
Graceland University. Adherence to principles of honesty is a requisite for
preparing students as competent responsible persons. Students admitted to the university
are expected to uphold standards of academic integrity, i.e. the avoidance of fraud,
plagiarism and cheating in any form.

1. FRAUD. Fraud is the act of deceit or misrepresentation.

The following list describes ways to avoid the most common forms of fraud.

a. Do not alter or falsify or misrepresent an academic document.

b. Do not help someone alter or falsify an academic document.

c. Do not communicate false information whether oral, written, electronic or nonverbal.

d. Do not forge signatures.

2. PLAGIARISM. Plagiarism is representing someone else’s work as your own.
The following list describes ways to avoid the most common forms of plagiarism.

a. Set off all direct quotations within quotation marks or within the text in a block quote form.
To fail to indicate direct quotations by one of these two methods is to commit plagiarism
even if the failure is accidental and even if you give the source of the quotation. In a speech
you must also indicate the beginning, ending and source of all direct quotations to the
audience.

b. If you derive an idea from another source, cite the source unless the idea is common
knowledge, that is, unless people familiar with the subject you are discussing are aware of
the idea.

c. Cite the source of paraphrased material and avoid excessive paraphrasing. Too much
paraphrasing minimizes your contribution.

d. Submit papers that consist substantially of your own work. Do not buy, borrow or use
complete, or nearly complete, papers from any source, electronic or otherwise.

3. CHEATING.
The following list describes ways to avoid the most common forms of cheating.

a. Do not give assistance to, or receive assistance from, another person, or use unauthorized
notes, books, etc., when an examination or assignment is supposed to be your own work.

b. Do not falsify research results or violate codes for the treatment of human or animal
subjects.
c. Do not violate the policies of proctors, preceptors or supervisors.

d. Do not use an electronic copy of another person’s work as the starting point of your own
work without the instructor’s permission.

e. On collaborative works, include the names of all participants on any copies that are
submitted for evaluation.
An instructor may assign a grade of "F" for the course in cases of fraud, plagiarism and/or
cheating. When an "F" grade is assigned, the student may not drop the course. All cases of
fraud, plagiarism and/or cheating will be reported to the respective dean or division chair,
and dean of faculty. Violation of the academic integrity policy may have additional
consequences including sanctions or dismissal from a program or from Graceland University.

STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES

Graceland University complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Students requesting
accommodations should contact Nicole Briell, Director of Disability Services (Rm 26
MSC; nbriell@graceland.edu; 641-784-5083). In order to provide appropriate
accommodations in a timely manner, students are encouraged to contact the Director of
Student Disability Services as early in the term as possible
ONLINE ASSESSMENTS
Maintaining the integrity of online assessments is a challenge and major concern for both
students and faculty working in online environments. Students enrolled in this course are
held to a professional standard and are required to comply with the following regulations.
Failure to comply with these regulations is in direct violation of the Graceland University
Academic Integrity Policy.

1. It is expressly prohibited to disclose, publish, reproduce, or transmit any part of a

quiz/test/exam or written assignment in any form, by any means, verbal or written, for any
purpose.

2. Graded learning and assessment activities must be completed by the enrolled student
logged-on to the course site.

3. The completion of any course requirement on behalf of someone else is strictly prohibited.
4. You may not obtain improper access to any part of the assessment (quiz, test, exam, etc.) or
assignment (case analysis, research paper, etc.) prior to completing the activity yourself
(e.g., observing someone else complete the assessment, reviewing work previously
submitted by another student).

5. Use of course materials (books, notes) and additional resources during quizzes/texts/exams
is permitted unless specified otherwise.
 IOWA ADMINISTRATIVE CODE
2.5(5), chapter 2, nursing educational programs, curriculum: Nursing courses with a clinical
component may not be taken by a person:

a. who has been denied licensure by the board,

b. whose license is currently suspended, surrendered or revoked in any United States

jurisdiction,

c. whose license/registration is currently suspended, surrendered or revoked in another

country due to disciplinary action.
CLASS ATTENDANCE
Students are expected to attend classes regularly, be punctual, and complete all work
whether present or not. Whenever possible, the opportunity for making up coursework
missed as a result of an excused absence is to be worked out between the instructor and the
student upon the student’s initiative.
Excused absences include the following:

a. The student has contacted the faculty member prior to the absence due to a University
sponsored activity,

b. The student has contacted the faculty member prior to the absence and the faculty member
concurs that the absence is unavoidable and legitimate.

c. For Lamoni students, the Dean of Students (or faculty member) determines that the student
has missed classes/assignments due to factors beyond the student’s control (i.e. illness,
family misfortune, etc.) and the faculty member concurs.

d. For non-Lamoni students, the faculty member makes the determination and, when
appropriate, the Dean of School, or his or her designate, concurs that the absence was
unavoidable and legitimate.
All other absences are considered unexcused, in which case the instructor is not obligated to
provide an opportunity for making up coursework for credit.
FINAL EXAMINATIONS
All classes will meet during final examination week for a meaningful, educational experience,
i.e., examination, presentations, discussion, lecture, etc. Scheduled examination times will
be published in each course syllabus and the Schedule of Classes. Students having more
than two final examinations on a single day, as evidenced by the Final Examination Schedule,
should be permitted to reschedule their examinations so as not to exceed two examinations
on a single day. However, rescheduling will not be permitted for the first two exams on a
single day based on the final exam schedule. The rescheduling needs to be determined
 before the last day of classes for the semester. If arrangements cannot be made on an
informal basis, the Dean of Faculty will initiate a request for the student to be granted relief
from having to take more than two exams on a single day. Travel arrangements are not
justification for requesting changes in the final examinations schedules.

Late Assignment Policy

Assignment Guidelines:

1. Due dates for graded learning activities (participation, written assignments, quizzes/exams,
etc.) are clearly posted on the course schedule within this course.

2. Learning activities are due by midnight of the posted due date, unless otherwise indicated.
3. The time stamp in Brightspace officially documents date and time of submission. The
default time zone setting for all of our Brightspace courses is Central Time since that is
where our campus is located.

4. Submission of assignments for faculty to review prior to grading or for re-grading is not
permitted unless otherwise specified in the assignment guidelines.

5. Rubrics for evaluation are posted for each graded assignment. Feedback is provided for any
deduction of points.

6. All written assignments are to be submitted via the Assignment submission folder.
7. Students should expect feedback within 7 days of the posted due date. Faculty will notify
students of any expected delays in response time.

8. Students are expected to review feedback on graded assignments and seek clarification of
any questions within 1 week of the grade posting.

9. Ten percent (10%) per day will be deducted from the earned score for all graded learning
activities submitted past the posted due date.
Due Date Extensions:

1. Students should submit requests for due date extensions to faculty in writing at least 24
hours in advance of the specified due date. Extensions are usually only granted for a
maximum of one week.

2. Extensions are granted at the discretion of course faculty in emergency or extraordinary

circumstances such as the following:
 Medical illness: a medical certificate may be requested by faculty.
 Compassionate grounds: those situations for which compassionate leave is normally granted
in employment.
 Unexpected misadventure, hardship or trauma: documentation may be requested by faculty

3. Work or other study commitments, computer crashes or printer failures are NOT valid
reasons for an extension.
4. No penalty will apply if an extension is sought and granted by the responsible person or
delegate. If the assignment is handed in after the extension period then established
penalties will apply.

5. Students whose circumstances require extensions longer than one week are advised to meet
with faculty to discuss available options including course withdrawal or incomplete grade
assignment.

Course Methodologies
This is an on-line course. Instructional methods include required readings, graded
assignments, critiques and on-line discussions.

Learning Experiences and Evaluation

Grading Scale
A = 90% - 100%
B = 80% - 89.99%
C = 70% - 79.99%
D = < 70%

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