The
For
those students enrolled in Shenandoah University, the MSN at Shenandoah
University takes 2 years to complete.* For these students, the first year consists of
core master’s degree courses that are taken one day a week (Thursdays) for 2
semesters and a summer session. In the
second year, the nurse-midwifery courses are offered differently and allow for
a logical sequence that provides for the theoretical and clinical experiences
needed to achieve midwifery competencies. This method of delivery also reflects
the commitment to the student living at a distance from campus and creates a unique course delivery that fits
together to create a dynamic, responsive and flexible curriculum.
Specifically,
the courses in the nurse-midwifery specialty are designed to allow students to
come to class during concentrated times (one entire week) during the third week
of the semester and then be placed with clinical preceptors for the next nine
weeks to apply what they have learned in the didactic portion of the
courses(s). Students then return to campus for 2 days (or arrange for a
proctored examination) for review and examinations. Refer to Table 1 for a
schematic representation of this process.
*For those students enrolled in
*For those students enrolled in the Post Master’s
Certificate Option, you will attend
Table 1: Schematic view of schedule of didactic and
clinical delivery of course in a 15 week semester during the nurse-midwifery
specialty period.
|
Semester Weeks |
|||||||||||||||
|
1 DE/MP* |
2 DE/MP |
3 Class |
4 Clin* |
5 Clin |
6 Clin |
7 Clin |
8 Clin |
9 Clin |
10 Clin |
11 Clin |
12 Clin |
13 Clin |
14 Clin |
15 Class |
16 Ex* |
* DE= Distance Education; MP=Module Preparation; Clin =Clinical; Ex=Exams
This
schedule of course delivery allows nurse-midwifery students to immerse totally
in their clinicals without being interrupted by scheduled class times, and
therefore “engage in the lived experience” of midwifery, sharing the
responsibility of total availability with their preceptors. Also, clinical
sites can be at a variety of places within the continental
During
their nine-week sojourn at their clinical agencies, students continue to
communicate with the nurse-midwifery faculty and fellow students via telephone
and e-mail for weekly quizzes, journal delivery and critique, and group case
studies. In addition, the nurse-midwifery faculty visits each agency and
student a minimum of once during this period.
Within
the nurse-midwifery specialty track, the courses are arranged to provide a
logical sequence in the attainment of the ACNM
Core Competencies of Basic Midwifery Practice (2002). These courses are presented in a hierarchical
fashion, beginning from Primary Care of Women (NM610) to their capstone
nurse-midwifery clinical experience, their internship, “Integrated Midwifery
Practicum” (NM650). One course, “Advanced Nurse-Midwifery Role Development”, is
a co-requisite with NM650 and is a 1 credit didactic course. See below for the sequence
of the nurse-midwifery courses.
MSN Core Courses: SU and
Midwifery Initiative
Logical Sequence of the courses of the Nurse-Midwifery Track, Full-time
Fall 
Spring
NM660,
1 credit 1
Lecture NM650,
6 credits, 6
clinical credits
Summer
Logical Sequence of the
Nurse-Midwifery Curriculum, Part-time option
|
Semester |
|
|
|||
|
Fall |
|
||||
|
Spring |
NM620: Comprehensive
Antepartal, 2 didactic, 1 clinical credit
|
||||
Summer |
NM630: Midwifery Practicum,
3 clinical credits
|
||||
Fall |
NM640: Comprehensive
Perinatal Care, 2 didactic, 1 clinical credit
|
||||
Spring |
NM650: Integrated Midwifery
Practicum, 6 clinical credits and NM660: Advanced
Nurse-Midwifery Role Development, 1 Didactic credit, Online |
||||
A more detailed description of these
nurse-midwifery courses follows:
NM610 – Primary Care of Women is a
three credit course with two didactic credits and one clinical credit and is
designed to assist the student in developing and applying knowledge, skills,
values, and meanings, related to the nurse-midwifery management process in the
primary care of women from adolescent to post-menopause. Course content
includes primary care, gynecology, contraception, well woman care.
NM620 – Comprehensive Antepartal Care is a three
credit course with two didactic credits and one clinical credit and is designed
to assist the student in developing and applying knowledge, skills, values, and
meanings of the nurse-midwifery management process in the comprehensive
antepartal care of women. Course content
includes all social, economical, and practical components of prenatal care.
NM630
– Midwifery Practicum is a three credit clinical course that builds on NM610
and NM620 and further assists the student in applying knowledge, skills,
values, and meanings of the nurse-midwifery management process in primary care
and comprehensive antepartal care.
NM640
– Comprehensive Perinatal Care is a three credit course with two didactic
credits and one clinical credit and is designed to assist the student in
developing knowledge, skills, values, and meanings of the nurse-midwifery
management process in comprehensive perinatal care. Course content includes
intrapartal, postpartal and neonatal care.
NM650 – Integrated Midwifery Practicum
is a six credit clinical course to assist the student to integrate and
influence the knowledge, skills, values, and meanings related to
nurse-midwifery management process in primary care, comprehensive antepartal
care, and comprehensive perinatal care.
NM660 – Advanced Practice Role
Development is a one credit didactic course designed to assist the student in
acquiring and applying the knowledge, skills, values, and meanings of the
professional behaviors associated with the practice of advanced/specialized
nursing. Course content includes contract development and financial management
of a nurse-midwifery service. Table 2 outlines the didactic/clinical credit
structure of each course taken within the nurse midwifery specialty track:
Table 2: Didactic/Clinical
Credit Structure of Courses in the Nurse-Midwifery Track
|
Course |
Total
Credits (Didactic/Clinical) |
Clinical
Clock Hours/week* (Semester)** |
Didactic
Hours One 5 day week period and online |
|
NM610 |
3 (2/1) |
6.6
(60) |
25 class + 5 online |
|
NM620 |
3 (2/1) |
6.6
(60) |
25 class + 5 online |
|
NM630 |
3 (0/3) |
20
(180) |
0 |
|
NM640 |
3 (2/1) |
6.6
(60 minimum) Competency based |
25 class + 5 online |
|
NM650 |
6 (0/6) |
40
(360 minimum) Competency based |
0 |
|
NM660 |
1 (0/1) |
0
(0) |
15 online |
|
Totals |
19 |
600
(minimum) |
|
*Based on a 9 week
clinical period per semester
** Based on a 1:4
clinical hour/clock hour ratio, NM640
and NM650 begin competency based experiences therefore hour requirement is
secondary to numbers of experiences and competency attainment
*** Based on 5 days
of course delivery in one week period per semester + 5 online lecture hours
during the remainder of the semester
It is important to
note that the numbers of clinical hours should be sufficient to meet the
learning needs of students in these courses.
However, because of the nature of the practice, nurse-midwifery students
may require additional hours to gain the experiences to successfully meet the ACNM Core Competencies of Basic Midwifery
Practice (2002). Students are informed of this unique nature of
nurse-midwifery in their course outlines.
In
summary, NM610 and NM620, both combined didactic and clinical courses, focus
their nurse-midwifery management skills into well women and prenatal areas,
respectively. NM630, a three credit clinical course, allows the student ample
opportunity to practice these skills on the clinical area while also taking
NM640, the comprehensive perinatal course. NM650, their final integrated
midwifery practicum, is a 6 credit clinical course designed to build on their
experiences in NM610, NM620, NM630, and NM640. NM660, their one credit didactic
Advanced Practice Role Development, is a co-requisite with NM650, and is their
experience of learning to be a member of the profession and a
manager/coordinator of care.
In
conclusion, the coordination of the nurse-midwifery curriculum in such a manner
allows the graduate nursing student to build on the core courses to improve
quality health practices and to collaborate with other health care providers to
meet the emerging health care needs of citizens in a changing society. Within the nurse-midwifery specialty program,
students continue to learn advanced skills in leadership, client education,
advocacy, clinical care, fiduciary responsibility, and political activism to
become excellent advanced practice nurses.