THE UNIVERSITY of EDINBURGH

DEGREE REGULATIONS & PROGRAMMES OF STUDY 2024/2025

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DRPS : Course Catalogue : School of Health in Social Science : Nursing Studies

Undergraduate Course: Care of older people: relating theory and policy to practice (NUST10033)

Course Outline
SchoolSchool of Health in Social Science CollegeCollege of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
Credit level (Normal year taken)SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) AvailabilityAvailable to all students
SCQF Credits20 ECTS Credits10
SummaryThis honours option course aims to explore theory and policy surrounding the care of older people in Scottish society and to relate these theoretical understandings to the nursing care of older people.
Course description 1. Introduction to theories of ageing, social and political context.
2. Autonomy and independence
3. Autonomy and nursing care
4. Dignity
5. Long term care
6. Death and dying
7. Person centred dementia care
8. Models of understanding dementia care
9. Family nursing and older people
10. Quality in care of older people


Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations Other requirements None
Additional Costs nil
Information for Visiting Students
Pre-requisitesNone
High Demand Course? Yes
Course Delivery Information
Not being delivered
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
  1. Demonstrate a thorough and critical theoretical understanding of ageing from a range of perspectives
  2. Explore the ways in which theoretical understandings relate to policy and the organisation of health services for older people globally
  3. Examine theories of autonomy and dignity as they relate to older people.
  4. Understand the complexity of nursing older people in ways which preserve and enhance dignity
  5. Demonstrate a critical awareness of the role of the nurse in leading and providing good quality care services for older people throughout the world
Reading List
Addington-Hall, J. & Higginson, I. (2001) Palliative Care for Non Cancer Patients Oxford University Press, Oxford

Bernard, M. (1998) Backs to the future? Reflections on women, ageing and nursing, Journal of Advanced Nursing, 27(3)633-640

Bryden, C. (2005) Dancing with dementia: my story of living positively with dementia Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London.

Bury, M. (2009) The medicalization of society: on the transformation of human conditions into treatable disorders Sociology of Health & Illness, 31(1)147-148.

Carper, B.A. (1978) Fundamental patterns of knowing in nursing, Advances in Nursing Science, 1(1)13-23

Clare, L., Rowlands, J., Bruce, E., Surr, C., Downs, M. (2008) 'I don't do like I used to do': a grounded theory approach to conceptualising awareness in people with moderate to severe dementia living in long-term care, Social Science & Medicine, 66(11)2366-2377.

Cohen, D. & Eisendorfer, C. (1986 & 2002) The loss of self W.W. Norton & Co., New York

Cole, T.R. (1992) The Journey of Life: A Cultural History of Aging in America Cambridge University Press, Cambridge

Davis, D.H. (2004) Dementia: sociological and philosophical constructions, Social Science & Medicine 58(2)369-378

Department of Health (2001) National Service Framework for Older People Department of Health, London.

Department of Health (2006) A New Ambition for Old Age: Next steps for implementing the national service framework for older people Department of Health, London

Donovan, T. & Mercer, D. (2003) Onward in my journey: preparing nurses for a new age of cancer care, Cancer Nursing, 26(5)400-404.

Downs, M. (1997) The emergence of the person in dementia research. Ageing and Society 17, 597-607.
Friedell, M. (2002) Awareness: a personal memoir on the declining quality of life in Alzheimer's, Dementia, 1(3)359-366

Gallagher, A Li, S, Wainwright, P Rees Jones, I Lee, D (2008) Dignity in the care of older people - a review of the theoretical and empirical literature BMC Nursing 7, 12

Goffman, E. (1968) Stigma: notes on the management of spoiled identity Penguin, London

Golander, H. & Raz, A.E. (1996) The mask of dementia: Images of 'demented residents' in a nursing ward, Ageing and Society, 16, 269-285

Griffin-Heslin, VL (2005) An analysis of the concept dignity Accident And Emergency Nursing 13(4), 251-57

Hall, S Longhurst, S Higginson, I (2009) Living and dying with dignity: a qualitative study of the views of older people in nursing homes Age and Ageing 38(4), 411-16
Harding, N. & Palfrey, C. (1997) The social construction of dementia Jessica Kingsley Publishers, London

Jacelon, CS Connelly, TW. Brown, R. Proulx, K. Vo, T. (2004) A concept analysis of dignity for older adults Journal of Advanced Nursing 48(1), 76-83

Jacobson, N (2009) A taxonomy of dignity: a grounded theory study, BMC International Health and Human Rights 9, 3

Kitwood, T. (1990) Dialectics of dementia, Ageing and Society, 10, 177-196.

Kitwood, T. (1993) Towards a theory of dementia care: the interpersonal process, Ageing and Society, 13(1)51-67.

Kitwood, T. (1997) Dementia Reconsidered: the person comes first Open University Press, Philadelphia.

Kitwood, T. & Bredin, K. (1992) Towards a theory of dementia care: personhood and well being, Ageing and Society, 12(3)269-287.

Koch, T. & Webb, C. (1996) The biomedical construction of ageing: implications for nursing care of older people, Journal of Advanced Nursing.23(5)954-9

Law, I. & Widdows, H. (2008) Conceptualising health: insights from the capability approach, Health Care Analysis: Journal Of Health Philosophy And Policy, 16(4)303-314

Menzies, I.E.P. (1961) The Functioning of Social Systems as a Defence against Anxiety Tavistock Publications, London

Mitchell, S.L., Kiely, D.K., Hamal, M.B. (2004) Dying with advanced dementia in the nursing home, Archives of Internal Medicine, 164(3)321-326.
Mitty, E. & Flores, S. (2008) Aging in place and negotiated risk agreements, Geriatric Nursing, 29(2)94-101

Nolan, M., Davies, S., Brown, J. (2006) Transitions in care homes: towards relationship-centred care using the 'Senses Framework', Quality in Ageing, 7(3)5-14.

Nolan, M., Davies, S., Ryan, T., Keady, J. (2008) Relationship-centred care and the 'Senses' framework, Journal of Dementia Care, 16(1)26-28

Pleschenberger, S. (2007) Dignity and the challenge of dying in nursing homes: the residents' view Age & Ageing 36(2), 197-202

Redfern, SJ Ross, FM (Eds) (2008) Nursing Older People (4th Edn), Churchill Livingstone, London

Sabat, S.R. (1994) Excess Disability and Malignant Social-Psychology A Case- Study of Alzheimers-Disease, Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 4(3)157-166

Saunders, P.A. (1998a) "My brain's on strike" -The construction of identity through memory accounts by dementia patients, Research on Aging, 20(1)65-90

Spagnolo, A.B., Murphy, A.A., Librera, L.A. (2008) Reducing stigma by meeting and learning from people with mental illness, Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, 31(3)186-193

Sweeting, H. & Gilhooley, M. (1997) Dementia and the phenomenon of social death, Sociology of Health and Illness, 19(1)93-117

Tuohy, D. (2002) Student nurse-older person communication. Nurse Education Today 23, 19-26

Wainwright, P. Gallagher, A (2008) On different types of dignity in nursing care: a critique of Nordenfelt Nursing Philosophy: An International Journal For Healthcare Professionals 9(1), 46-54.

Webster, C Bryan, K (2009) Older people's views of dignity and how it can be promoted in a hospital environment Journal of Clinical Nursing 18(12), 1784-92
Additional Information
Graduate Attributes and Skills Not entered
Keywordsnursing; older people; theory in nursing; nursing policy
Contacts
Course organiserDr Sarah Rhynas
Tel: (0131 6)50 3882
Email: Sarah.Rhynas@ed.ac.uk
Course secretaryMs Lisa Binder
Tel: (0131 6)51 3969
Email: lisa.binder@ed.ac.uk
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