At the School of Nursing at UWC various levels of integration can be noted in the various subjects and disciplines. Within the nursing discipline connected integration is applied and various skills and aspects taught in one discipline are connected to aspects in other subjects. For instance, in midwifery students learn about a normal pregnancy. That knowledge is then
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related to the content of the module on complicated pregnancy. Similarly, in the first year students learn about wounds and wound healing in a theoretical module and later, in the clinical module, that knowledge is related to the practical module of wound care.
Sequenced integration is also noted across disciplines as, for example, the subjects taught in nursing are sequenced with the subjects in human biology and pharmacology, ensuring that (for instance) the session about homeostasis is covered in human biology at approximately the same time as homeostasis is presented in the fundamentals of nursing. Similarly, the reproductive system is covered toward the end of the second year of the nursing programme, preparing students for their third year when they learn midwifery, a discipline that relates to the female reproductive system.
With regard to core competencies related to HIV and AIDS as covered in this study, horizontal integration is applied, which means that HIV and AIDS-related core competencies are introduced in the various modules at each year level. Vertical integration is also applied, allowing for development of a thread throughout the undergraduate programme, whereby students are exposed to more complex material as they progress from one year level to the next. This integration in curriculum provides the opportunity to maintain continuity across the programme, allowing student nurses to start interacting with patients who are living with HIV and AIDS from the first year of the programme, when they develop lower levels of competency and basic skills such as communication skills and history taking, as noted by Haslegrave (2006) and as planned for in this study.
This study applies connected integration in the already existing courses, allowing for the inclusion of HIV and AIDS-related competencies, and sequencing will be maintained across disciplines. The sequencing integration, in addition to being practised in the current curriculum at the School of Nursing, provides accumulation of knowledge which in turn will facilitate the development of competencies which is incremental (Brown & Nelson, 2003).
2.23 Conclusion
This second chapter of the study presented an overview of the HIV epidemic and how it has a global impact on all sectors of life. The role of nurses was explored, highlighting the various issues that have been noted in literature, including limitations as well as the findings that when trained nurses provide care it is not inferior to the care provided by doctors.
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Philosophies and theories that relate to education were explored in detail to provide a good understanding of the philosophies that guide the practice of education and to ensure good direction in practice. With the application of the first three pillars of the COPA model, the curriculum approaches and integration models and levels were discussed. Constructivism and an outcome-based curriculum were adopted, together with experiential learning theory that can facilitate the development of HIV and AIDS competency. With vertical and horizontal integration and application of connected and sequenced integration levels, a fit to the current nursing programme at the School of Nursing at UWC can be ensured.
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3 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY
3.1 Introduction
The third chapter of the report discusses the methodology used in this study. The research paradigms are discussed and a constructivist research paradigm is adopted for the study. The Intervention Research: Design and Development (IR: D&D) approach is explained as providing the methodological framework for the study. This chapter illustrates how the first four steps of IR: D&D were applied in this study, highlighting links to the research questions and the conceptual framework. The methods followed in the three phases of the study are explained. In the first phase of the study, nominal group technique (NGT), individual interviews and systematic research synthesis (SRS) were used in collecting data that informed the HIV and AIDS nursing competencies. The data collection and analysis as well as data extraction and appraisal for the SRS are presented in this chapter. The curriculum mapping process used as part of the design step of the IR: D&D is presented as well as the activities conducted in phase 3 during validation. The validation was done through a workshop with experts and another two experts reviewed the list of HIV and AIDS nursing competencies and their mapping into the four-year undergraduate nursing programme, and provided electronic feedback. The activities and steps taken in the study to enhance the academic rigour of the study by ensuring trustworthiness are discussed, and the steps taken to ensure adherence to the ethical requirements of research are presented before moving on to the conclusion of this chapter.