Nursing and Healthcare Quality Improvement at University College Cork

The online MSc in Nursing and Healthcare Quality Improvement programme is an exciting, contemporary, degree for registered Nurses, offering a flexible mode of learning while continuing to work. The programme will enable practitioners to take leadership roles in an increasingly complex healthcare environment with an emphasis on quality improvement in nursing and healthcare.  It should appeal to students from a number of clinical areas and from management positions.  Subject areas covered in the programme include designing an e-portfolio for personal and professional development, practice enhancement for quality improvement, advancing practice for patient safety, clinical leadership for quality improvement, advanced research methods applied to healthcare. Elective subject areas relate to quality improvement in gerontological nursing and health assessments. The final project on the programme will involve developing the skill set to conduct a research/evidence based project applied to practice area.

This online programme offers a flexible online approach to learning, designed to allow Registered Nurses to undertake their studies while working simultaneously. The programme is designed to allow Nurses to undertake their studies while working simultaneously with the intention to suit service, personal and academic requirements. This programme consists of seven modules to the value of 70 credits and one module to the value of 20 credits. Students have the option of exiting the programme after completing 30 credits with a Postgraduate Certificate in Nursing and Healthcare Quality Improvement.  Students have the option of exiting the programme after completing Year 1 and one 10-credit (NU6306) module in Year 2 with a Postgraduate Diploma in Nursing and Healthcare Quality Improvement.

For the 90 credits in the programme, there are six core 10 credit modules to be completed by all students, two elective 10 credit modules from which the student chooses one module, and one final 20 credit module to be completed by all students.

Why Choose This Course

This MSc in Nursing and Healthcare Quality Improvement is the only fully online, programme available in Ireland and one of the few available in the world. There is a strong emphasis on quality improvement and on advancing knowledge and skills thereby preparing students for current nursing and health service challenges and reform. The programme will not only prepare nurses to advance their practice and take leadership roles in healthcare, it will also prepare nurses for new career opportunities.

Skills and Careers Information

What can I do after I graduate with an MSc in Nursing and Healthcare Quality Improvement?

This online, MSc in Nursing and Healthcare Quality Improvement enables students to take a leadership role in clinical practice in an increasingly complex healthcare with an emphasis on quality improvement in nursing and healthcare. The programme prepares Nurses to advance nursing and patient-centred care with a specific skillset relevant to contemporary healthcare including but not limited to patient safety, practice enhancement and quality improvement, research and evidence based practice, and managing and leading change innovation. Graduates will be well positioned to engage in leadership roles relating to nurse-led services, practice development and quality improvement initiatives, and middle/senior management in their work environments as well as seeking promotional opportunities in these areas.

The additional skills provided by this programme will be the ability to:

• Develop an e-portfolio to track personal and professional activities and development.
• Change management at clinical and organisational levels incl. project management, team organisation, auditing.
• Clinical leadership.
• Proficiency at advancing patient safety in clinical practice and at organisational level e.g. communication, negotiation, problem-solving.
• Collaborative skills of engaging in research to enhance nursing and healthcare practice.
• Generating questions from clinical practice/services for research and conducting this research.  
• Others e.g. report writing, development and delivery of oral PowerPoint presentations, computer literacy and online lifelong learning.

Occupations associated with an MSc in Nursing and Healthcare Quality Improvement

Graduates from the online MSc in Nursing and Healthcare Quality Improvement will be qualified to pursue a number of exciting careers. The identified career pathways for graduates of this programme include:

• Clinical Nurse Managers
• Assistant Director of Nursing
• Director of Nursing
• Practice Development Positions
• Quality Improvement/Project Manager positions
• Clinical Research positions