Clinical Sciences 2

Clinical Update Semester 1 2020

Clinical updates are concise articles designed for educational purposes on clinical issues that relate to practice. You can find some examples of clinical updates in the “My Assessments” folder. Please note these are examples only and may not meet all the requirements of this assignment. There are also some examples of previous student papers that received a HD.
This assignment is a 2000 word clinical update on one of the topics below.
Due date is Week 10, 0900hrs Monday, May 4th 2019 via Turnitin.

Topics:
Topic
Points to consider

Alzheimer’s

Aetiology, pathophysiology and incidence world / national Diagnostic methods/tests
Clinical course and prognosis
Treatment options
Public health implications

Tuberculosis
Aetiology, pathophysiology and incidence world / national
Diagnostic methods/tests
Clinical course and prognosis
Treatment options
Public health implications

Chronic Heart Failure
Aetiology, pathophysiology and incidence world / national
Diagnostic methods/tests
Clinical course and prognosis
Treatment options
Public health implications

Osteoporosis
Aetiology, pathophysiology and incidence world / national
Diagnostic methods/tests
Clinical course and prognosis
Treatment options
Public health implications

When you submit your clinical update to Turnitin, please use the link provided in Blackboard. Late submissions will be submitted through the Late Submission link provided in Blackboard. When you submit your file, please ensure your “Submission Title” on the Submit Turnitin Assignment page contains the topic title, eg.“Chronic Heart Failure” or “Tuberculosis”. Nothing else is required for the title. Please also ensure you get a receipt; no receipt means it is not submitted.

The format of your clinical update and any innovative ideas you use to present your topic is your choice, but you must include:

• Introduction:

Provide epidemiological data to illustrate relevant the topic is (Australia and worldwide), definition/explanation about the nature of the condition/disease process, objectives and scope and structure of your paper. A good introduction will get the reader’s interest.

• Aetiology & pathogenesis:

➢ Causes of the disease and risk factors
➢ Explanation of anatomy/physiology where appropriate
➢ Pathogenesis, i.e. how the disease progresses and complications
➢ Implications for public health

• Clinical manifestations:

Explain the signs and symptoms.

• Diagnostic process:

Provide information on a comprehensive diagnostic work-up with rationales

• Treatment:

➢ Implications for pharmacological management (types, action, dosage, side effects)
➢ Non-pharmacological treatment options
➢ Health promotion
➢ Provide rationales for your treatment options, based on the literature

• Conclusion:

This should include a summary of the most relevant points for the practice of a registered nurse. Do not introduce new material. This could be summarised as bullet points.

General points:
Please follow the SNM Guide to Assignment Presentation and Submission
• Only submit via TurnItIn, no hardcopy required. Don’t forget to keep your submission receipt, if you have no receipt the submission has not been finalised.

• This assignment is all about the process of researching a topic and being able to articulate your findings in a comprehensive and logical sequence using appropriate professional language.

• Make sure you use approved abbreviations and write in the third person.

• Graphs, figures, tables and flow charts are a great way of illustrating and summarising key points. Check the SNM Assignment Presentation and Submission guidelines on how to number and name these correctly.

• Your clinical update should facilitate peer learning: use an appropriate language level suitable for RNs, not mums and dads! Ensure that content is relevant to nursing practice, i.e. sufficient depth of information but not too detailed. Assume some knowledge as you are addressing RNs, e.g. no need to explain the anatomy of the heart or medical terminology.

• Support your discussion with relevant and recent literature and websites. Use peer-reviewed articles, evidence based research and best practice guidelines (Australian and international if relevant, e.g. WHO). Do not use public access medical websites designed for non-health professionals, eg. eMedicine, MayoClinic, BetterHealthChannel, GPNotes,etc.

• Read the marking criteria of the rubric; it is a good guide for how much emphasis needs to be placed on each section.

• Although the general content of the assignment is like the example clinical update articles, the formatting is still according to the SNM Presentation and Submission guidelines with regards to layout (font, spacing, margins) and referencing.