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VNUR20380

Academic Year 2025/2026

Professional Practice II (VNUR20380)

Subject:
Veterinary Nursing
College:
Health & Agricultural Sciences
School:
Veterinary Medicine
Level:
2 (Intermediate)
Credits:
5
Module Coordinator:
Ms Hannah Callaghan
Trimester:
Spring
Mode of Delivery:
Blended
Internship Module:
No
How will I be graded?
Pass/Fail (GPA Neutral)

Curricular information is subject to change.

Professional Practice II builds on students’ foundational professional skills to prepare them for more complex ethical, communicative, and reflective responsibilities in clinical veterinary nursing practice. The module supports emerging professional identity, fosters resilience and self-management, and introduces essential skills such as running nursing consults, contextualised care, clinical audit processes, and managing euthanasia-related communication.

Students will engage in interactive lectures, role-play, reflective practice, and tutorials to achieve competence aligned with the Veterinary Council of Ireland (VCI) Day One Competencies and ACOVENE standards. The module supports safe, ethical, welfare-centred nursing practice and equips students with skills required to collaborate effectively within the veterinary team and engage in professional lifelong learning.

About this Module

Learning Outcomes:

Use reflective skills to identify their personal learning processes and apply them to ongoing professional and lifelong learning.
Discuss the impact of contextualised care, euthanasia, and pet bereavement on clients, patients, and members of the veterinary team.
Demonstrate the ability to run a veterinary nursing consult, including communication, client education, and common general practice topics.
Apply principles of clinical governance, including clinical audits and quality improvement processes.
Recognise and address common welfare issues in clinical practice, incorporating sustainability, ethical reasoning, and evidence-based decision-making.
Communicate effectively and empathetically with clients and colleagues, including through structured communication exercises and role-play.
Demonstrate professional behaviour, self-management, and resilience appropriate to the veterinary nursing profession.


Indicative Module Content:

Professionalism & Communication
Ethics, Welfare, Legislation, and Animal Care
Practice Organisation & Quality Assurance (via clinical governance and audit)
Personal Development & Reflective Practice

Student Effort Hours:
Student Effort Type Hours
Lectures

13

Tutorial

10

Specified Learning Activities

30

Autonomous Student Learning

70

Total

123


Approaches to Teaching and Learning:
Interactive lectures
Small-group tutorials
Client-communication role-play
Reflective writing and debriefing
Ethical case discussions
Practical application of nursing consult skills
Guided development of a clinical audit

Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.


Module Requisites and Incompatibles
Not applicable to this module.
 

Assessment Strategy
Description Timing Component Scale Must Pass Component % of Final Grade In Module Component Repeat Offered
Reflective Assignment: Bitesize Reflections:
Take two topics addressed by the module and create a brief reflection on each topic based on your learnings.
25%F each
Week 8, Week 14 Pass/Fail Grade Scale No
50
No
Assignment(Including Essay): Clinical Audit Evaluation, Review and Plan Week 15 Pass/Fail Grade Scale No
20
No
Participation in Learning Activities: Tutorial Participation:
Upload of Peer Assessment for Nursing Consults
Sustainability Activity
Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4, Week 5, Week 6, Week 7, Week 8, Week 9, Week 10, Week 11, Week 12, Week 14, Week 15 Pass/Fail Grade Scale No
30
No

Carry forward of passed components
Yes
 

Resit In Terminal Exam
Autumn No
Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 

Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Feedback individually to students, post-assessment
• Group/class feedback, post-assessment
• Peer review activities
• Self-assessment activities

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Not yet recorded.

Name Role
Dr Sandra Aungier Lecturer / Co-Lecturer
Ms Sandra Nicholson Lecturer / Co-Lecturer

Timetabling information is displayed only for guidance purposes, relates to the current Academic Year only and is subject to change.
Spring Lecture Offering 1 Week(s) - 20, 21, 22, 23 Tues 09:00 - 10:50
Spring Tutorial Offering 1 Week(s) - 24, 25, 26, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33 Tues 09:00 - 10:50