Explore Online Nursing Courses

This course gives nurses invaluable instruction on how to ensure that medical records are complete and accurate. Specifically, students learn the purpose of medical documentation, the impact privacy laws have on how nurses document patient information and how medical records are used as evidence in court cases. In addition, this course dives into the consequences of poor documentation.

Posting the wrong thing on social media can be problematic for people in any field, but for those in the nursing profession, it can be disastrous. This course teaches about the negative ramifications that social media can have for nurses—particularly if they’re sharing information about their patients. Class topics include social media policies in health care facilities, patient use of social media and regulatory issues that can arise because of social networking activities.

Having the skills to treat a diverse range of patients is essential for nurses in today’s hospitals and health care facilities. This course starts with a basic introduction to patient care and assessing patient needs, then dives deeper into topics like therapeutic communication techniques, transcultural awareness and communication strategies for deaf, blind and non-English speaking patients.

Physical examinations are typically the first step in creating an effective and appropriate care plan for individual patients. This class teaches strategies for performing physical exams, vital sign measurement and specimen collection.

Nurses who want to use their health care expertise in legal settings can learn how to do it through this course. This class familiarizes students with the work that legal nurse consultants do and provides an understanding of their role in the judicial system. Students learn how to build a successful consulting practice as well as how to conduct legal research and prepare for trials.

Students can benefit as these courses provide a great deal of flexibility for learning for individuals who find difficulty attending a class at a particular day and time on a regular basis. Online courses provide students the opportunity to take a class and/or an entire program on a subject matter not offered at a college or university in their home area.

The courses, if taken toward earning a degree or academic certificate or continuing education units, should be offered by an institution accredited to offer that course for the required purpose.Policies are available to the learner regarding costs, registration processes, grading, faculty response time to students and software needed to accomplish the course. Also, the credentials of the faculty and his or her experience should match the focus of the learning activity. It is preferable if course offered by college or university is taught primarily by full-time faculty at the institution. There should be a syllabus or clear directions for what is expected of students to complete the objectives of the course, guidance to resources the student can use and the criteria for grading the activities.

The course or program can be on many topics, but the continuing education entity must be accredited either nationally, regionally or statewide by an official agency to offer these credits. Depending on the focus, the continuing education may be used for a license renewal, in some instances for new skills leading to salary increase or promotion, meeting a new federal or state law affecting a select profession or business entity, or providing safety for the public.