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PGCert

Acute and Critical Care

Develop a more rounded and focused appreciation of your clinical practice when dealing with acutely unwell or critically ill patients

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Key Course Details

  • Start Date

    September

  • Location

    Pontypridd

  • Campus Code

    A

Fees

  • Home students

    £885*

  • Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits.
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The Acute and Critical Care course will provide you with the knowledge, skills and understanding to assess, care for and manage patients using current evidence-based practice and applied physiology, while drawing on the legal and professional aspects that impact upon your role and responsibilities

DESIGNED FOR

This part-time BSc (Hons) Acute and Critical Care degree is for Paramedics, ODPs and nurses who wish to advance their knowledge of acutely unwell or critically ill patients.

Career Paths

  • ICU Nurse
  • Theatre Assistant
  • Medical / Surgical Assessment Unit Nurse

Skils Taught

  • Problem solving
  • Assessment skills
  • Research
  • Academic writing
  • Critical analysis

We make a difference in practice, not just on paper. Our courses are designed by people who offer jobs - and taught by people who have real work experience.

A student nurse checking the Human Patient Simulator's pupil reactions
Two paramedics wheeling in simulated patient into the ambulance simulator in the clinical simulation centre
Student nurse listening to lecturer whilst treating a dummy in the clinical simulation centre
A group of nursing students observing a lecturer who is treating a mannequin in a simulated nursing environment as part of a lecture.

Course Highlights

Enhance Evidence Based Practice

Increase your theoretical knowledge by engaging in a variety of learning activities.

Outstanding Facilities

Our state of the art Clinical Simulation Centre replicates an acute care NHS environment.

Become A Proficient Practitioner

Learn and practice new skills in a safe environment.

Increase Practical Application

Apply new knowledge in your area of work.

Module Overview

Applied Physiology of Acute and Critical Illness
This module looks at critically analysing the impact of pathophysiology on acute and critically ill adult patients and to understand altered physiology. You will explore the consequences of acute and critical illness on homeostasis using a wide knowledge base of normal and altered physiology to understand key treatments. The module will also focus on cardio-respiratory physiology, neurological control and acute medical conditions.

Legal and Professional Issues in Caring for the Acute and Critically Ill
In this module you will undertake a critical evaluation of service delivery systems from legal and professional perspectives. This includes the right to health care; upholding human rights; duty and standards of care; professional negligence and the application of these to professional practice in acute and critical care contexts. Topics such as life and death, euthanasia, legal definitions of death, organ and tissue donation are also considered in terms of the implications on practitioners caring for acute and critically ill patients.

Care and Management of the Acute and Critically Ill
You will critically evaluate the complexity of care issues in relation to acutely and critically ill adult patients and analyse the context of that care. The effectiveness of care implementation across a range of patient presentations will be analysed with consideration given to the processes of assessment, monitoring and intervention.

Course Highlights

How you'll learn

You will study through a mixture of lectures, group work, patient scenarios, interactive tutorials and seminar presentations.

You will need to attend University one day a week, currently our students are taught on Fridays at 9am-5pm.

Modules are assessed through multiple-choice questions, viva voce (oral examination), assignments, Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCE) and written evidence of personal and professional development.

Teaching staff

  • Bridie Jones
  • Dr Ray Higginson
  • Meirion Williams

Facilities

Our state of the art Clinical Simulation Centre replicates an acute care NHS environment, providing realistic clinical facilities for our nursing and midwifery students and qualified healthcare professionals.

Careers and Employability

Possible career paths

This one-year critical care course is suitable if you work in ICU, CCU, HDU, A&E, theatres, medical/surgical assessment units (MAU/SAU), pre-hospital care and general acute wards.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

Typical qualification requirements:

Applicants need to be registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), or the HCPC (Health Care Professions Council) and have a relevant Honours degree.

 

 

 

Alternative Leave Permissions

Applicants with leave to remain in the UK, may be considered for this course depending on the type and duration of your leave. Please email [email protected] to obtain confirmation of how to proceed.

Unfortunately, this course is not currently open to international applicants who require a Graduate Route visa due to visa restrictions.

Contextual offers

We may make you a lower offer based on a range of factors, including your background (where you live and the school or college that you attended, for example), your experiences and individual circumstances (as a care leaver, for example). This is referred to as a contextual offer, and we receive data from UCAS to support us in making these decisions.

USW prides itself on its student experience and we support our students to achieve their goals and become a successful graduate. This approach helps us to support students who have the potential to succeed and who may have faced barriers that make it more difficult to access university.

 

We're here to help

Whether you a have a question about your course, fees and funding, the application process or anything else, there are plenty of ways you can get in touch, and we'd love to talk to you. You can contact our friendly admissions team by phone, email or chat to us online.

 

Fees and Funding

UK Part-time Fee

£885

per 20 credits*

Further Information

Studying at university is one of the most significant investments you'll ever make. Whilst you’re studying, you’ll have two main financial obligations – tuition fees and living costs. There’s lots of financial help available from the University of South Wales and external funding sources, that may provide loans (which have to be paid back) and grants, scholarships and bursaries (that don't).

*Full-time fees are per year. Part-time fees are per 20 credits. Once enrolled, the fee is anticipated to remain at the same rate throughout the duration of your study on this course except as described below.

Please be aware that we may increase the maximum fee for home students on full-time undergraduate courses only where the Welsh Government increases the permitted level of inflation of fees. Fees for all students (including part-time, postgraduate and international students) may be amended in accordance with our applicable Fees and Debt Management Policy.  We will ensure that students are given clear, intelligible, unambiguous and timely information about our courses and costs in good time, ahead of the next academic year.

 

Fees and Funding Scholarships and Busaries Alumni Discount

Additional Costs 

As a student of USW, you’ll have access to lots of free resources to support your study and learning, such as textbooks, publications, online journals, laptops, and plenty of remote-access resources. Whilst in most cases these resources are more than sufficient in supporting you with completing your course, additional costs, both obligatory and optional, may be required or requested for the likes of travel, memberships, experience days, stationery, printing, or equipment.

University Quality Assurance

At USW, we regularly review our courses in response to changing patterns of employment and skills demand to ensure we offer learning designed to reflect today’s student needs and tomorrow’s employer demands.

If during a review process course content is significantly changed, we’ll write to inform you and talk you through the changes for the coming year. But whatever the outcome, we aim to equip our students with the skillset and the mindset to succeed whatever tomorrow may bring. Your future, future-proofed.

Studying at USW

Our courses are designed with industry leaders and provide the practical skills and experiences industry demands. Our flexible courses reflect the need for life-long learning. If you value education in practice, not just in theory, then USW is for you.

Two people studying together at a table, surrounded by books and papers.
Postgraduate fees and funding
Close up shot of the front of the Alfred Russell wallace building.
Pontypridd Campus, Glyntaff
A member of staff is smiling and chatting with an open evening visitor.
Postgraduate Open Events

How to apply

There is an online application process for this course. Please choose the application form for your preferred start date and mode of study (i.e. full-time or part-time).

International admissions

Please see our international admissions advice for further information about how to apply as a prospective international student.

Related Courses

Acute and Critical Care - BSc (Hons) Learn more

Next Steps

How to Apply
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