Welcome to  Online Pathophysiology/Pharmacology
Take a Look at the Course

                                 
This pathophysiology/pharmacolgoy course for the RN nursing student, is a distance learning course that will allow you to learn "where" you want, "when" you want and for as "long" as you want, in order to meet your particular learning needs.   It is a 3 credit course.
I am the instructor. My name is Mary Stephens.  

If you have not already taken an on-line self assessment, it is strongly suggested that you click on one of the  links below to take a private assessment that will help you determine if On-Line learning is a good match for you. It will take only about 5 minutes to complete.
 

Index
What will I learn?
How does it all work?
Frequently Asked Questions
Advice from the experts

What will I learn?  (Course Outcomes)

The course outcomes are integrated with our IHCC/Century nursing framework.

Specific topics :
Topics in this course include holistic nursing care for patients experiencing:
1) Alterations in the: Stress Response, Inflammatory Response, Immune Response .
2) Neurological, Respiratory, Cardiac, Shock, Liver, and Renal Disease
3) Alterations in Cellular proliferation
4) Related pharmacology is threaded throughout this course 

Course  Outcomes:
At the completion of the course the student will be able to:

1.      Examine levels of prevention as they relate to the leading causes of morbidity and mortality.

2.      Explain the associate degree nursing roles of teacher, advocate, and critical thinker when analyzing the concepts of disease.

3.      Explain the role of the professional nurse as critical thinker and teacher while administering drugs for various categories of disease.

4.      Explain the importance of life long learning in the profession of nursing.

5.      Discuss ethical issues involved in selected disease states.

6.      Discuss the use of therapeutic communication while caring for persons in selected disease states.

7.      Promote healthy lifestyles based on the knowledge of how a person’s environment impacts health and wellness.

8.      Examine the use of holistic nursing assessments and therapeutic nursing interventions for patients across the lifespan that are experiencing acute illness or disease.

9.      Demonstrate collaboration with other healthcare disciplines when providing holistic nursing care for patients experiencing acute illness or disease.

10.   Examine current trends in healthcare and healthcare delivery as they relate to patients experiencing acute illness or disease.

11. .  Demonstrate cultural sensitivity related to the needs of patients experiencing acute illness and disease.

12.   Examine the nursing practice roles for the associate degree nurse when promoting the health of the community.  

The course is divided into modules, which will be presented over a 16 week period in the school year and a 10 week period in the summer. You will be able to pace yourself to some extent, but you will be expected to be ready to turn in assignments and take the  main exams (in a  campus  classroom) on the specified dates. If you are taking this course from a great distance such as in a different state. arrangements can  be made for you to take the 3  exams in a monitored setting near your home. The rest of the course is easily accomplished online.

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HOW DOES IT ALL WORK ???

The course has many components to facilitate your learning. They are as follows.
 

1) CONTENT PAGES 
You will need to read your text books while you work through the class content on the web. You might also choose to access some suggested sites on the WWW to enhance the information in your textbook.

2) CASE STUDY RESPONSES
After you have completed the content modules, you will be required several times during the semester,  to complete a case study online and submit it to your instructor via the D2L drop box.  Answers to the case studies will be posted after the due date. Once answers are posted, case studies can no longer be accepted.  You can work ahead on these case studies, but you will lose all case study points if you fall behind. Alternate projects may be assigned in place of some case studies.

3) SELF ASSESSMENT
 The third activity will include various self assessments that will be available on D2L on the content page. Answer these questions right on the WWW and you will receive  feedback as to the correct answer and correct rationale. No one sees your answers except yourself. You may take the self assessment quiz as often as your like. No grades are given for self assessment quizzes. These questions will be presented to make sure that you are exploring the major course concepts correctly. Questions on the major exams will be more in depth than the self assess quizzes and will require deeper critical thinking skills.

4) ONLINE DISCUSSION
 The forth component is likely to be the most exciting part for all involved in the course. You will be required to participate in an "online discussion" on D2L that is specifically for this course. This will also be a major method of communicating with your peers and instructor during the course. The "on line discussion" will involve critical thinking questions and an exchange of ideas that reaches beyond your text. You will be divided into small groups and  graded for your contributions to this discussion component of the course. You will be encouraged to read all of the discussion group postings. Most students find this exchange of ideas to be very interesting.  RN's need  to 'speak up' in roles such as teaching and advocacy. You will have a chance to practice such roles via the discussion group. Some test questions will relate to these discussion groups.

5) QUIZZES TAKEN AT HOME
You May be asked to take some quizzes from home. These will be short.

       EVALUATION / GRADING
 I believe that learning can occur in different ways . I believe that students have different learning styles. Thus grading will be determined in a variety of ways in this course.

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Can I use 'any ole' pathophysiology book as my text?
Probably not. The course content will follow the suggested text. Since you will be learning in a more independent style, you will probably benefit from seeing how the content on the web pages is integrated with your text.
The current text is:  Understanding Pathophysiology by Heuther and McCance.(4d Ed)  The big leap in this course is that the student should be motivated to seek out several diverse sources of information. If you can’t find an answer to your question in your suggested text, go to another text or journal, check out a WWW source, or ask a peer, RN, physician or pharmacist. You could also post a question on the online discussion board, or E Mail your instructor. Remember, you are in the drivers seat! You are the one to decide how much you want to learn in this course. Enjoy the journey. It is beginning now, but will last throughout your entire nursing career.

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Advice from the Experts!

What do previous distance learning students have to say about distance learning?

Sean says: "Plan a study schedule and stick to it. Don’t give in to the temptation of waiting to study the modules until test time. Procrastination is the pathway to failure."

Romelle says: "Read your text book. I repeat… read your textbook. The information in the modules was very helpful as a guide, but the real knowledge came from the reading I did in my textbook and other resources."

Susan says: "The first few weeks were a real challenge (like frustrating!) as I worked to become familiar with all of this online technology. By the fourth week, I had it all figured out and then I really began to enjoy this way of learning. The flexibility offered by this course turned out to be a real bonus." I really like learning on my own time schedule.

Blanca says: "Don’t wait if you are having trouble with the course. I waited too long before asking for help. Once I called my instructor, she helped me work out a few problems and hooked me up with a study buddy. That’s the point where the course turned around for me, but it was almost too late. If you need help, speak up !"

Michael says: "Besides all the pathophysiology and pharmacology that I learned, I realized that I was quite proud of myself for all the new computer technology that I had learned. I had tried to avoid the Internet in the past but now its fun and I am better able to handle all of those computerized machines that I see in the clinical sites.!"

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Thanks for  exploring this new way of learning. If you have further questions, contact Mary Stephens at:

mstephe@inverhills.edu    or              Office phone: 651 450 8603