ACU develops new aged care courses

As the country’s largest educator of nurses, Australian Catholic University has stepped up its commitment to meet the growing demand for specialised aged care nurses with new courses focused on providing healthcare for older people.

The new Graduate Certificate in Aged Care Management will be available online from 2022 and complements the revamped Graduate Certificate in Gerontological Nursing which adds to the suite of ACU’s existing Clinical Nursing specialisations.

Both courses support graduates to achieve specialised theoretical and professional knowledge and skills needed to provide quality care to the aged care sector.

The recent Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety shed light on inadequacies in Australia’s approach to aged care pointing to a need for improved care and safety and highlighting the importance of supporting older people to live a meaningful life.

ACU Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Zlatko Skrbis said ACU was committed to working towards solutions to address this complex issue for the benefit of all.

“Our Catholic perspective sees human dignity as a fundamental imperative, where every person possesses an inherent worth that must be respected,” Professor Skrbis said.

“It is our responsibility to commit our skills and knowledge to ensuring that the dignity of the elderly is honoured.

“This means providing high quality and innovative education and training to the healthcare professionals who will be involved in caring for older people. It also means applying our distinctive research lens to the understanding of ageing and working with communities to develop best practice models in aged care.”

Course Coordinator Adam Burston said the new offerings specifically focused on healthcare for the older person.

“We recognise that with an ageing population, our hard-working nurses require expert qualifications to lead work in this specialty field,” Dr Burston said.

“These courses will enable graduates to apply contemporary management strategies within complex, dynamic and diverse care environments, lead the provision of evidence-based gerontological care and meet the holistic needs of older persons and their families in a transcultural context.”

Importantly, they will also support students to develop the skills to generate strategies that empower older people and their families to be active partners in the planning and delivery of safe and effective care.

Graduate Certificate in Aged Care Management

The ACU Graduate Certificate in Aged Care Management supports the development of evidence-based expert knowledge of management concepts, and specialised skills relevant to the aged care sector.

Designed to meet the needs of existing or emerging aged care managers, the course focuses on developing skills needed to implement strategic and supportive structures in both social and professional contexts.

It will offer the following three core units: Organisational Culture & Management; Quality & Safety in Healthcare; and Ageing and the Ethics of Elder Care.

Additionally, students will be able to choose one elective unit of study to further round out their personalised professional development. Elective units include Strategic Management in Digital Health Service Delivery; Ethical Leadership; and Leading Change in Health Service Delivery.

Graduate Certificate in Gerontological Nursing

The ACU Graduate Certificate in Gerontological Nursing provides a clinically focused approach to care for the older person and is designed to provide theoretical support needed for specialist clinical care in the gerontological setting.

The course will be available in an online mode or as a part of a 2×2 model to allow students to continue working while studying.

It will offer four core units: Clinical Nursing; Extended Clinical Nursing; Foundations of Specialty Practice 1 and Foundations of Specialty Practice 2.

For further information: Postgraduate programs for Nurses and other Health professionals or to register for our PG Study Webinar: Aged Care Management, Health Professional Education, Health Administration, Leadership and Management.