NU 770 Advanced Care of Special Populations
This course is designed to enable the doctoral student to refine and expand the diagnostic and management skills necessary to care for vulnerable and disenfranchised populations. The elimination of health disparities has been identified as an area of research emphasis by the National Institute of Nursing Research. This course examines health determinants and health disparities within the United States as well as in the global community. The student will examine health disparities and the burden of disease within social, cultural, political, economic, and environmental contexts using a systematic, multidisciplinary approach. Given the complexity of care, growth of information and biomedical technology, an aging and increasingly diverse population, and worsening disparities in care, this course will prepare the student to fill the growing societal need for expert clinicians. This course focuses on the complex management of healthcare problems experienced by special populations across the lifespan. Emphasis is placed on content specific to the special populations in the areas of infectious disease, psychiatric care, and care of medically underserved populations such as the homeless, refugee populations, and the incarcerated. Case examples and clinical experiences are provided that allows students to become increasingly independent in their own clinical practice with respect to critical thinking and problem-solving. Emphasis in role development is placed on effecting change and integration of the multiple roles for advanced practice nurses in an interdisciplinary, integrated health system.