Online MSN Direct Entry
Program for Alabama Residents

This course focuses on the basic understanding of pathophysiology related to human illness with an emphasis placed on cellular alterations in organ systems as they relate to selected disease states. Opportunities will be presented that provide for the use of critical thinking processes to analyze diverse client presentations of selected illness for symptomatology, pathophysiology, and health care implications. Students will be introduced to the role of pharmacotherapeutic agents in the treatment of illness and in the promotion of wellness in patients throughout the lifespan. These concepts provide the basis for the study of drug actions, indications, side effects, nursing implications, and patient education. 

This course focuses on the concept of health assessment as the foundational step of the nursing process. Knowledge and skills necessary for the performance of comprehensive and focused health assessments will be presented. Interviewing, observation, inspection, palpation, percussion, and auscultation skills will be examined. Normal findings, variations from normal, cultural differences and appropriate equipment use will be considered. Students will be provided with opportunities to learn and develop basic competencies necessary to facilitate the optimal well-being of the patient within the healthcare setting in a safe, legal, and ethical manner. Focus is placed on the nursing process, health promotion, disease prevention, professional communication, and interdisciplinary collaboration within the context of meeting basic patient needs in a healthcare environment. Throughout the course, students demonstrate competence of fundamental principles of nursing practice which are validated through clinical skill performance assessments. 

This course provides a clinical practicum for the application of concepts learned in health assessment and fundamental nursing courses. Evidence-based practice, critical thinking, teaching/learning, professional behaviors, communication, collaboration, skills/technology, and professional development are embodied and exhibited. The student engages in the application of the nursing process in collaboration with the RN preceptor or clinical instructor, who guides the clinical experience. 

This course is designed to further develop and apply concepts related to the nursing process of acute and chronically ill patients. Teamwork and collaboration are introduced to enhance safe and quality nursing care in a variety of clinical settings. Classroom and clinical experiences integrate the concepts of caring, collaboration, communication, cultural sensitivity, community, and clinical judgment to facilitate the wellbeing of individuals and prepare the student as a provider of care. In the clinical setting, students will care for patients with select medical and/or surgical problems in various settings, state knowledge of pathophysiology and psychosocial dynamics, apply the nursing process, utilize information technology, interact with other health care professionals, and practice clinical decision making and critical inquiry while caring for culturally diverse, ill adults.

This course focuses on the role of the nurse in caring for patients with alterations in mental health. Focus is placed on the nursing process framework with emphasis on assessment, therapeutic communication, neurobiological and psychosocial theories, pharmacology, and current practices related to the care of the mentally ill. Interventions focus on aspects of care to include professional communication, patient and family teaching, review of community resources, and practical application in various clinical settings. 

This course provides a clinical practicum for the application of concepts learned in mental health and medical surgical nursing courses. Evidence-based practice, critical thinking, teaching/learning, professional behaviors, communication, collaboration, skills/technology, and professional development are embodied and exhibited. The student engages in the application of the nursing process in collaboration with the RN preceptor or clinical instructor, who guides the clinical experience. 

This course introduces the student to family-centered care and the health needs of the childbearing family. Students review concepts, skills, and techniques needed to care for culturally diverse maternal, infant, and pediatric patients and their families. The nursing process is utilized to emphasize the concepts of family-centered care, collaboration, communication, cultural competence, and community. The clinical experiences focus on concepts and skills required to provide safe and evidence-based care in a variety of clinical settings. 

This course expands on previous nursing knowledge and skills to provide care to patients that have complex health alterations in a variety of clinical settings.  Students will explore the concepts of professionalism, collaboration, communication, and cultural competency within the context of illness and their role as provider of care, educator, and patient advocate. In the clinical setting, students will care for selected patients in various settings, applying knowledge of pathophysiology and psychosocial dynamics for patients with medical and/or surgical problems. Focused on nursing care of complex patients, families, and groups in unstable situations with unpredictable outcomes. The course focuses on nursing practice that facilitates the wellbeing of individuals within the context of critical or complex illness and continues in preparing the student as a provider of care.  In the clinical setting, students care for selected patients in various settings, integrating knowledge of pathophysiology and psychosocial dynamics for patients with acute or complex medical and/or surgical problems. 

This course provides a clinical practicum for the application of concepts learned in maternity, newborn, pediatric, and advanced medical surgical nursing courses. Evidence-based practice, critical thinking, teaching/learning, professional behaviors, communication, collaboration, managing care, management/leadership, skills/technology, and professional development are embodied and exhibited. The student engages in the application of the nursing process in collaboration with the RN preceptor or clinical instructor, who guides the clinical experience.

This course provides a clinical practicum for the application of concepts learned throughout the program. Evidence-based practice, critical thinking, teaching/learning, professional behaviors, communication, collaboration, managing care, management/leadership, skills/technology, and professional development are embodied and exhibited. The student engages in the application of the nursing process in collaboration with the RN preceptor or clinical instructor, who guides the clinical experience. 

This course will provide the student with the opportunity to synthesize knowledge and skills that increase competence and confidence as a nurse. This course will utilize the components of nursing knowledge gained and translate it into development of a culminating experience with a capstone project. This course requires decision making skills, utilization of nursing science, analysis of data, evaluation and creation of new ideas to help patients. All students are required to complete a final capstone project that reflects mastery of the program outcomes. This course is part one of the capstone project.

This course is part two of the capstone project. The student will implement the proposed project and evaluate the results related to the change/plan. This is a small-scale project to encourage growth of the student nurse as they transition to a graduate nurse. This course requires decision making skills, utilization of nursing science, analysis of data, evaluation, and creation of new ideas to help patient populations. All students are required to complete a final capstone project that reflects mastery of the program outcomes.

This course focuses on current national and global trends, policies, and challenges which impact health and healthcare delivery. An overview of ethical and legal issues commonly presented to nurses and other health care providers is discussed with emphasis on the identification and analysis of legal and ethical principles underlying clinical judgment in nursing. This course examines organizations from a systems perspective, addressing the concepts of leadership, motivation, and behavior. Strategic planning, fiscal responsibility, legal and ethical issues, and performance improvement are explored. 

This course provides the student with the opportunity to evaluate his/her strengths and weaknesses in preparation for the NCLEX-RN® exam. Utilization of the nursing process and integration of all previous concepts will be emphasized through the use of case studies, integrated testing, and directed study. 

This course explores the research process and its contributions to professional nursing practice. The skills related to reading published research findings and utilizing that evidence as a basis for professional nursing practice are developed. This course will introduce, and apply research methods and designs, knowledge-based research techniques, evidence-based practice, outcome evaluation, and evaluation of research processes. Grant writing and national guidelines regarding human subject research protection will be covered. Students will be exposed to the critique of qualitative and quantitative research methods. Ethical issues in research and the value of nursing and healthcare research will be critically explored. In addition, students will be able to develop a research proposal or carry out a quality improvement project. 

This course will explore information and communication technologies and informatics processes used to provide care, gather data, drive decision making, and manage and improve the delivery of safe, high‐quality, and efficient healthcare services in accordance with best practice and professional and regulatory standards. Students will perform an information technology analysis of their practice and develop strategic planning to direct the selection and implementation of new information and communication technologies for their practice setting.

This course applies the principals of best practices, change theory, and improvement and implementation science to the development of innovative solutions for complex health systems to ensure optimal care. Course key concepts include organizational structure, including relationships among macro‐, meso‐, and microsystems across healthcare, and financial and payment models for cost management and reimbursement. Students will engage in a strategic planning initiative for a complex healthcare system which enhances value, access, quality, and cost‐effectiveness, including policy to address health equity and eliminate structural discrimination.

This course examines the healthcare delivery continuum from public health prevention to disease management of populations and describes collaborative activities with both traditional and non‐traditional partnerships from affected communities, public health, industry, academia, health care, local government entities, and others for the improvement of equitable population health outcomes. For a selected population, students will analyze health priorities and the potential for collaboration and partnerships to provide a basis for interventions, policy, advocate strategy, and emergency preparedness.