A CLINICAL COMPETENCY PORTFOLIO weighted at 0%. A WRITTEN ASSIGNMENT weighted at 100%.

Summative assessment:

Written assignment, 3000 words (contributes to LO's 3 and 4)

Completion of competencies and Clinical Portfolio – PASS/FAIL (contributes to LO's 1 and 2)

All elements of the summative assessments must be passed in order to complete the module successfully.

Formative assessment / feedback:
Classroom presentation – 30 minutes
All students will have tutorial support and will receive formative feedback following this. In addition, all candidates will have a clinical mentor who will meet regularly with the student to discuss progress

The aim of the module is to enable experienced nurses, responsible for the care of neonates requiring surgery of the GI and renal tract to develop their knowledge base and skills within the speciality of surgical nursing.


- Principles of neonatal surgical nursing care, pain management, recognition of the need for surgery
- Fluid management, thermoregulation, decompression, coagulation, specific disease-related needs
- Anatomy, physiology of gastrointestinal and urinary tracts
- Pathophysiology and aetiology of gastrointestinal and urinary conditions that require surgery in the neonatal period.
- Pathophysiology of surgical intervention, anaesthesia, iatrogenic effects, tissue / visceral injury, disease specific.
- Assessment, recognition of the need for surgery, deterioration in health state, applying early warning assessment models (e.g.'PEWS', and 'STABLE'), pain assessment.
- General principles of pre, intra and post operative care
- Caring for the family, communication, teaching parents nursing skills, supportive interventions
- Establishment of intestinal function; nutrition, dietetics, establishing normal growth
- Stoma care
- Administering oral and intravenous fluids and medication in the surgical setting
- Recognition of vulnerable infant and initiate child protection procedures appropriately
- Transferring the surgical patient to another neonatal unit
- Receiving surgical patient (admitting)
- Recognizing appropriate setting to discharge to
- Discharging surgical patient to home
- Ethical debates, consent, parent information, communication, professional responsibilities, 'safe guarding' issues

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities: (47 hours)
45 hours classroom based
2 hours tutorials

Guided Independent Study: (253 hours) this can include:-
Reading
Portfolio preparation
Learning and utilising information retrieving skills for obtaining relevant articles from journals/websites

Clinical Placement (113 hours):
113 hours clinical practice with mentor in Neonatal Surgical Unit at BCH

Library, internet, neonatal surgical guidelines, Moodle

Nurse/midwife with current Nursing and Midwifery Council registration.
Candidates must be currently working in a neonatal setting, (either medical or surgical) or a children's hospital or ward where neonates are nursed.
Students must have access to an identified, suitably qualified, clinical mentor(s).

Burge D M., Griffiths D M., Steinbrecher H. A. & Wheeler R A (Eds) (2006) Paediatric Surgery. (2nd Ed.) London: Hodder Arnold Publishers
Davenport M. And Agostino P. (Eds.) (2009) Oxford Specialist Handbooks- Paediatric Surgery. Oxford: Oxford University Press

Hutson J.M., O Brien M., Woodward A.A, & Beasley SW. (Eds) (2008) Jones' Clinical Paediatric Surgery: Diagnosis and Management (6th Edition) Oxford: Blackwell Publishing

Puri, P (ed) (2011) Newborn Surgery, (3rd Edition). London: Hodden and Arnold