NSN830 Leadership in Nursing


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Unit Outline: Semester 1 2026, Kelvin Grove, Internal

Unit code:NSN830
Credit points:12
Coordinator:Amanda Fox | a.fox@qut.edu.au
Disclaimer - Offer of some units is subject to viability, and information in these Unit Outlines is subject to change prior to commencement of the teaching period.

Overview

This core unit provides students with an opportunity to explore the influence that global and national health trends have on nursing practice and leadership. You will expand your knowledge of the principles of leadership and leadership styles, and learn skills that can be applied in situations relevant to your workplace and role as a nurse leader within intra- and interprofessional teams.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:

  1. Critically analyse the influence of global, national and local health issues on nursing practice and leadership
  2. Integrate evidence-based leadership strategies that adhere to regulatory requirements to deliver flexible nursing services
  3. Utilise leadership knowledge and techniques to advocate for legal, ethical, and culturally safe professional practice
  4. Adapt and justify your communication approach including digitally enhanced techniques to suit a given context
  5. Evaluate individual performance and provide constructive feedback to peers to inform sustainable practice change

Content

The modules and activities in this unit will cover:

  • Principles of leadership  -  styles, theories and entrepreneurial thinking
  • Roles of a leader – managing difficult conversations - eg. performance management, conflict resolution, discussing errors 
  • Essential leadership attributes (emotional intelligence, cultural safety and digital literacy)   
  • Promoting nursing influence in interprofessional interactions, and
  • Operational and nursing practice leadership.

Learning Approaches

In this unit, you will learn through engaging in the following: 

  • Tutorials (online and/or face-to-face) to support knowledge development and academic literacy skills
  • Online self-directed learning
  • Peer review/feedback
  • Individual research and readings, and
  • Collaborative activities.

Feedback on Learning and Assessment

Feedback in this unit is provided to you through the following: 

  • Formative feedback through student engagement in workshops and activities
  • Comments and grading via rubrics on summative assessment 
  • Feedback from peers.

Assessment

Overview

There are two summative assessments in this unit. 

Unit Grading Scheme

7- point scale

Assessment Tasks

Assessment: Problem solving task

You will identify a small practice change or quality improvement initiative that you would like to implement in your workplace (or where you have previously worked). You will use relevant contemporary literature to explain and justify the change you are proposing and use an evidence-based framework to plan and justify your approach to address the concern. 

Weight: 50
Length: 1500 words
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): Week 7
Related Unit learning outcomes: 1, 2, 3

Assessment: Difficult conversations/role play

This assessment consists of 2 parts, firstly a recorded interaction managing a difficult conversation and a peer review of a difficult conversation.

You will be provided with a hypothetical scenario of a difficult conversation. You will be asked to role play the scenario with a colleague or peer to address the key concerns.  The interaction will be audio-visually recorded and uploaded to Canvas for marking.   

You will then review and provide constructive feedback based on a matrix and free text to another student using 'Feedback Fruits' online. 

Scenarios may include  

  • performance management
  • conflict resolution
  • interdepartmental interactions  
  • advocating in an interprofessional group  

You will demonstrate the ability to

  • use knowledge of principles and or theory of leadership to address a concern 
  • use cultural safe principles while reaching an effective solution or resolution to a problem
  • effectively support people of diverse cultural backgrounds  
  • use legislation and policies to support safe nursing practice 
Weight: 50
Length: ~ 8 mins (no more than 10 mins) audiovisual performance and 300 word peer feedback
Individual/Group: Individual
Due (indicative): Part 1 - week 11, Part 2 - week 13
Related Unit learning outcomes: 2, 3, 4, 5

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a commitment to undertaking academic work and assessment in a manner that is ethical, fair, honest, respectful and accountable.

The Academic Integrity Policy sets out the range of conduct that can be a failure to maintain the standards of academic integrity. This includes, cheating in exams, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion and contract cheating. It also includes providing fraudulent or altered documentation in support of an academic concession application, for example an assignment extension or a deferred exam.

You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.

Breaching QUT’s Academic Integrity Policy or engaging in conduct that may defeat or compromise the purpose of assessment can lead to a finding of student misconduct (Code of Conduct – Student) and result in the imposition of penalties under the Management of Student Misconduct Policy, ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.

Risk Assessment Statement

There are no out-of-the-ordinary risks associated with the general conduct of this unit.

Course Learning Outcomes

This unit is designed to support your development of the following course/study area learning outcomes.

NS32 Graduate Certificate in Nursing

  1. Demonstrate and apply advanced health care knowledge and skills in a specialist nursing area.
    Relates to: Difficult conversations/role play
  2. Critically analyse, evaluate, and reflect on specialist nursing knowledge, evidence and practice to improve patient care and health outcomes. 
    Relates to: Problem solving task, Difficult conversations/role play
  3. Use evidence-based theories and frameworks to inform emerging leadership practice in nursing and interprofessional collaborations. 
    Relates to: Problem solving task, Difficult conversations/role play
  4. Communicate complex evidence-based knowledge through education, professional communication, and a range of digital technologies.
    Relates to: Difficult conversations/role play
  5. Reflect on ethical, sustainable and culturally safe practices that embed Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and diverse perspectives to improve person-centred care. 
    Relates to: Problem solving task, Difficult conversations/role play

NS60 Graduate Diploma in Nursing

  1. Apply advanced health care knowledge and skills including digital literacy in a specialist nursing area.
    Relates to: Difficult conversations/role play
  2. Critically analyse evidence and apply theories and frameworks to inform decision-making in advanced nursing practice.
    Relates to: Problem solving task, Difficult conversations/role play
  3. Communicate complex evidence-based knowledge through education, professional communication and a range of digital technologies.
    Relates to: Problem solving task, Difficult conversations/role play
  4. Reflect on ethical, sustainable and culturally safe practices that embed Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and diverse perspectives to improve person-centred care.
    Relates to: Problem solving task, Difficult conversations/role play

NS95 Master of Nursing

  1. Apply advanced knowledge and skills to manage and improve nursing practices across diverse and complex contexts to improve health outcomes and service provision.
    Relates to: Difficult conversations/role play
  2. Critically analyse evidence to inform decision-making in advanced nursing and interprofessional care contexts. 
    Relates to: Problem solving task, Difficult conversations/role play
  3. Communicate complex evidence-based findings through professional dissemination using a range of digital technologies. 
    Relates to: Difficult conversations/role play
  4. Initiate, lead and reflect on collaborative practice that advocates for ethically and culturally safe care enabling sustainable health service delivery that embeds a range of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and diverse perspectives.
    Relates to: Problem solving task, Difficult conversations/role play