If you are a registered nurse in Ontario who wants to work in the dynamic, challenging, high acuity patient setting of an Intensive Care Unit, step-down unit or PACU, you should enrol in this Ontario College Graduate Certificate program.

This program approaches theoretical and clinical fundamentals of caring for the critically ill patient from a systems perspective. Caring for high acuity patients with cardiac, respiratory and neurological problems is explored in depth. Complex health situations are addressed in the classroom and in the Health Sciences Simulation Lab. Nurses practise communication strategies that help them deal with emotionally charged situations that arise in these dynamic environments.

To qualify for this certificate, you must complete the courses within three years.

SUCCESS FACTORS

This program is well-suited for nurses who:

• Are seeking special knowledge and advanced skills to be effective caregivers.
• Possess excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Can work effectively, independently and as a member of a team.
• Are able to work effectively in high paced, technologically advanced settings and under stressful situations.
• Are able to manage changing priorities.
• Have advanced critical-thinking processes in nursing.

Pathways

Please use our Pathways tool to search for pathway options.

The graduate has reliably demonstrated the ability to:

1. Practice within the scope of professional, legal and ethical standards, organization policies and best practices in critical care nursing.
2. Establish and maintain therapeutic relationships with patients, families and/or substitute decision makers to optimize patient and family-centred critical care.
3. Assess, analyze and monitor data for patients with complex, multi-system problems in order to anticipate early deterioration in patient's condition, establish priorities and to plan interventions.
4. Plan, implement, evaluate and document specialized nursing interventions to achieve optimal patient outcomes in potential or actual life threatening illness and end-of-life situations.
5. Advocate for and deliver patient and family-centred care to patients/families experiencing potential or actual life threatening illness and end-of-life situations.
6. Collaborate with members of the inter-professional health care team in providing care for patients experiencing potential or actual life threatening illness and end-of-life situations to achieve continuity of care and optimal patient outcomes.
7. Use evidence-based research and best practice guidelines to inform and adapt critical care nursing practice.
8. Use strategies and available resources to respond to environmental, physical and psychosocial stressors affecting self and others in the critical care setting.
9. Engage in reflective practice and ongoing professional development to enhance competence in critical care nursing.
10. Identify and apply discipline-specific practices that contribute to the local and global community through social responsibility, economic commitment and environmental stewardship.

Application Information

Read this before applying:

Once you have been admitted into the program, you will complete the online courses in the scheduled sequence. There are two courses in the fall, two courses in the winter, and two courses in the spring. Once all theory courses are completed you will complete the Clinical Placements. Further information will be provided upon admission.

Program Resources

Students enrolled in the RN Critical Care Nursing Graduate Certificate complete theory courses online. Clinical Practicum is a 10 day experience in a critical care setting. Upon registration, each student is provided an Algonquin email account, ITS username and password, which is used to communicate important information about program or course events. Please activate before the first class.

Note: All theory courses must be completed prior to the start of Clinical I and II. Nurses currently working in a critical care setting may be eligible to reduce clinical hours by doing a PLAR (Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition).

Academic Planner:
The Academic Planner provides registered part-time students the ability to declare into a program of study. The Academic Planner outlines successfully completed courses to date, as well as courses that need to be completed in order to meet graduation requirements. It is therefore, essential that all part-time students declare to their program of study, allowing administrators to plan course offerings. The tool is available on ACSIS, located under 'Part-time Studies' on the left-hand toolbar.