PGDip Specialist Practitioner Qualification (Community Children's Nursing)

Course Overview

Community children’s nurses provide a vital role assessing, and reacting to, the health needs of children in the community – including those with very complex needs. Approved by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), this postgraduate diploma gives you the in-depth grounding to take your career forward in this dynamic area of nursing.

Gain specialist skills and knowledge

Community children’s nursing is rewarding and challenging work that requires different skills and knowledge to those needed in a hospital. Studying at specialist practitioner level will hone your critical thinking and leadership capabilities, so that you become highly skilled at caring for children in their own homes, and leading large teams of nurses in this area of practice.

Take your learning to a deeper level

Learning about the main aspects of contemporary community children’s nursing practice, you will study topics such as mental health across the lifespan, safeguarding and effective caseload management. Developing strong leadership, critical thinking and research skills, you will also learn to take a more strategic view of the way children’s healthcare is delivered in the community, drawing on the latest research, ideas and policy.

Who is it for?

This course is for qualified nurses with a degree. You will be sponsored by a health organisation or trust and achieve a postgraduate diploma, while gaining advanced skills and knowledge in an area of community nursing you want to specialise in.

Course Details

This course covers all the areas needed to meet the NMC professional requirements for community children’s nurses.

By the end of the course, you will be able to:

• Understand the complexities of working in a community setting
• Better appreciate strategic influences on policy
• Take a critical approach to nursing care in the community, with a strong emphasis on providing holistic, evidence-based care to children in their homes
• Analyse how decisions about care are made, drawing on relevant research
• Work at the forefront of caring for children with a range of healthcare needs.

Flexible, practice-based learning

The course makes use of a range of flexible learning and assessment approaches, to ensure you learn in the way that suits you best. We will be looking, in particular, at how well you apply the theory to your own nursing and leadership practice. You will benefit from strong support throughout, with personal and link tutors at the university, and a practice teacher supporting you to learn in your trust.