| CODE | NUR3600 | ||||||||||||
| TITLE | Dissertation in Nursing Studies | ||||||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 03 - Years 2, 3, 4 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 6 | ||||||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 10 | ||||||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Nursing | ||||||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | Students will select one of the options offered as described in the study-unit aims. Their work will be supervised by an academic supervisor. Their work will be presented as their dissertation according to the University of Malta guidelines and APA 7th ed referencing and editing style. Study-unit Aims: The aim of the study-unit is to build on the material covered in Evidence-Based Practice in Nursing (NUR2150) and to provide the students with an opportunity to engage in an independent research exercise under the supervision of an academic supervisor. Examples of research exercises would include: carrying out a literature review; preparing a research proposal; carrying out and reporting an empirical study; preparing a paper for publication in a peer reviewed journal. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to develop an understanding of the research process, namely an understanding of: - the meaning of empirical and systematic research; - the role of the nurse researcher; - the purpose of reviewing the literature; - research methodological designs and their respective methods of data collection; - comparison of the quality of evidence from studies of diverse research methods; - appraisal of a variety of research articles using tools and methods established in the literature; - issues related to validity and reliability of empirical findings; - ethical concerns in health care research; - identifying strengths and limitations of an empirical study; and - articulating a communication strategy for the dissemination of research outcomes. 2. Skills By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - conduct a literature search and review; - critically appraising a wide range of scientific evidence relevant to a set research question; - identify gaps in current knowledge; - formulate an overall purpose, aims and objectives towards an empirical and systematic research study; - select the most appropriate method/s of data collection and apply them accordingly; - synthesise findings to construct recommendations for management, practice, & education; - prepare a research proposal considering all concerns and factors related to health care research, particularly ethical concerns; - analyse data qualitatively/quantitatively accordingly; - construct a discussion and develop - inferences from the findings; - demonstrate strong academic reading and writing skills; - identify strengths and limitations of the study; - collate an article publishable in a peer-reviewed journal. Recommended Reading and References: Main Texts - Melnyk, B. and Fineout-Overholt, E. (2023). Evidence-based practice in nursing and healthcare: A guide to best practice (5th ed.). Wolters Kluwer. - Polit, D. and Beck, C. (2021). Essentials of nursing research: Appraising evidence for nursing practice (10th ed.), Wolters Kluwer. Supplementary Readings - Craig, J. and Dowding, D. (2019). Evidence-Based Practice in Nursing (4th ed.). Elsevier. - Ellis, P. (2019). Evidence-based practice in nursing (4th ed.). Sage. - Grove, S. and Gray, J. (2022). Understanding Nursing Research: Building Evidence-Based Practice (8th ed.). Elsevier. - Macnee, C. L. and McCabe, S. (2008) Understanding nursing research: reading and using research in evidence-based practice (2nd ed.) Useful websites and databases CINAHL DYNAMED MEDLINE PUBMED www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?db=pubmed Health Technology Assessments http://highwire.stanford.edu/ http://ejournals.ebsco.com/Home.asp www.ingentaconnect.com www3.interscience.wiley.com http://heapro.oxfordjournals.org www.cochrane.org www.sciencedirect.com Critical Appraisal Skills Programme: CASP The Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Critical Appraisal tools. |
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| RULES/CONDITIONS | Before TAKING THIS UNIT YOU MUST TAKE NUR2150 | ||||||||||||
| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Dissertation | ||||||||||||
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2025/6. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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