NR 509 Advanced Physical Assessment 

Hello, future nurse practitioners!! Welcome to NR 509 – Advance Physical Assessment. I am excited to have your in this course.

My name is Dr. N.B and I will serve as your instructor this session. The purpose of the Announcement is to provide an overview of the course. My primary goal in this course is to help you develop and hone your interview and exam techniques for patients across the lifespan.  In addition, you will learn to differentiate normals versus abnormal during the interview and the physical exam in various populations.  

Here are some logistical items to help start off the course:

Introduction: Let’s get to know one another. Please take a few minutes to watch my Introduction. In turn, please post an introductory video about yourself, your family, and your career journey.

Syllabus: Take some time reviewing the syllabus, especially in regard to assignments, late policy, office hours, and grading policies.

Course Overview: In order to meet the course objectives, you will practice by collecting patient histories and perform physical exams, and using advanced equipment. I recommend you practice these skills on your family members and co-workers. When I was in my Master’s program, I practiced numerous times on my children and friends. Actually, they are vested in your success, so let them be a part of the journey. You will be practicing on several “virtual” patients through the iHuman patients, which starts in Week 2.

Announcements: Throughout the session, I will post many Announcements. Some will provide further clarity into the assignments, some will inform you of upcoming exams and some will come directly from the Faculty Manager or Assistant Dean of Faculty.

Modules: In the Modules, you will find the details of each week’s learning objectives and your assignments. I recommend you devote some focused time and attention to reviewing the first 1-3 Modules. This will help you plan your schedules and organize your work and family commitments. In addition, write the due dates on your calendar(s). When I was a student, I used a large calendar so I could add extra details for important assignments.

Tips for Success: As you know, this is a fast-paced course with many demands. In order to stay on track, I recommend reading the material every day, staying in communication through emails, and reading the Announcements. Regarding technology, while this can be a definite benefit, it can be a source of frustration. I recommend you have a backup computer and a good, solid internet source. As for me, I have had to use my church or a family member’s internet many times.

Any Questions: I encourage any questions or concerns. There are several avenues to reach out to me. For instance, the Q&A Forum, Canvas email, Chamberlain email, or a direct phone call is all available to you. I set as my own goal to respond to your questions in < 12 hours.

Let’s begin this fantastic learning session together.

Course Description

This course expands the knowledge of health assessment principles specific to the role of the APN. The student will develop assessment techniques related to history and physical examination of clients across the lifespan, including psychiatric-mental health and related supportive assessment. Student will explore, analyze, apply and evaluate these principles in the classroom setting. This course includes approximately 25 hours of lab practicing physical assessment skills using both a virtual and on-ground learning environment. A remote hands-on physical examination check off will also occur in the course. The student will submit a video recording to complete this assignment. Additionally, an immersion skills lab will occur in this course. This requires the student to visit the on-ground Chamberlain designated site offering the immersion lab. The entire immersion is approximately 11 hours of lab time. If any portion of the immersion is missed, the total practice time in the course must still be at least 25 hours. The student is responsible for completing and certifying at least 25 hours practicing physical assessment skills in the course. The remote physical examination check-off and the immersion lab are graded as pass/fail and are not factored into the course GPA. Students must pass each of these in order to pass the course and progress in the program. If either are failed the course grade will revert to a failing grade (F).

Course Outcomes

Chamberlain College of Nursing courses are built to align course content with specific Course Outcomes (COs). The COs define the learning objectives that the student will be required to comprehend and demonstrate by course completion. The COs that will be covered in detail each week can be found in the Overview page in that particular week. Whenever possible, a reference will be made from a particular assignment or discussion back to the CO that it emphasizes.

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to do the following.

CO: 1

Apply advanced practice nursing knowledge to collecting health history information and physical examination findings for various patient populations. (POs 1, 2)

Week(s): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

CO: 2

Differentiate normal and abnormal health history and physical examination findings. (POs 1, 2)

Week(s): 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

CO: 3

Document health history and physical examination findings in a logical and organized sequence. (POs 1, 2)

Week(s): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

CO: 4

Adapt health history and physical examination skills to the developmental, gender-related, age-specific, and special population needs of the individual patient. (POs 1, 2)

Week(s): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

CO: 5

Conduct focused and comprehensive health histories and examinations for various patient populations. (POs 1, 2)

Week(s): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8

Late Assignment Policy 

Students are expected to submit assignments by the time they are due. Assignments submitted after the due date and time will receive a deduction of 10% of the total points possible for that assignment for each day the assignment is late. Assignments will be accepted, with penalty as described, up to a maximum of three days late, after which point a zero will be recorded for the assignment. Late assignments will not be accepted beyond the last day of the course, Saturday (end of day, 11:59 p.m. MT) of Week 8. Any assignments received after the conclusion of the course will result in a zero recorded for the assignment, unless prior arrangements are made with faculty. 
 
In the event of an emergency that prevents timely submission of an assignment, students may petition their instructor for a waiver of the late submission grade reduction. The instructor will review the student’s rationale for the request and make a determination based on the merits of the student’s appeal. Consideration of the student’s total course performance to date will be a contributing factor in the determination. Students should continue to attend class, actively participate, and complete other assignments while the appeal is pending. 

Assignment Summary