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Unit of competency details

HLTENN026 - Apply nursing practice in the perioperative setting (Release 1)

Summary

Usage recommendation:
Superseded
Mapping:
MappingNotesDate
Supersedes HLTEN612B - Practise in the perioperative nursing environmentThis version was released in HLT Health Training Package release 3.0 and meets the requirements of the 2012 Standards for Training Packages. Significant changes to the elements and performance criteria. New evidence requirements for assessment, including volume and frequency requirements. Minimal change to knowledge evidence. 07/Dec/2015
Is superseded by and equivalent to HLTENN058 - Apply nursing practice in the perioperative settingThis version was released in HLT Health Training Package Release 6.0 and meets the requirements of the 2015 Standards for Training Packages. Mapping information updated. Updated to reflect current industry practices and terminology. 29/Apr/2021

Releases:
ReleaseRelease date
1 1 (this release) 08/Dec/2015


Classifications

SchemeCodeClassification value
ASCED Module/Unit of Competency Field of Education Identifier 060301 General Nursing  

Classification history

SchemeCodeClassification valueStart dateEnd date
ASCED Module/Unit of Competency Field of Education Identifier 060301 General Nursing  29/Apr/2016 
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Unit of competency

Modification History

Release 

Comments 

Release 1

This version was released in HLT Health Training Package release 3.0 and meets the requirements of the 2012 Standards for Training Packages.

Significant changes to the elements and performance criteria. New evidence requirements for assessment, including volume and frequency requirements. Minimal change to knowledge evidence.

Supersedes HLTEN612B

Application

This unit describes the skills and knowledge required to provide person-centred care for a person during anaesthesia, surgery and recovery in the perioperative nursing environment in operating theatres, post-anaesthesia care units and day surgery centres.

Enrolled nurses working in perioperative nursing need to hold and apply specialised in-depth knowledge, effectively integrate theory and practice, and make reliable clinical assessments and judgements.

This unit applies to enrolled nurses, registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia, seeking specialisation in enrolled nurse work that is carried out in consultation and collaboration with registered nurses, and under direct or indirect supervisory arrangements aligned to the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia regulatory authority legislative requirements.

The skills in this unit must be applied in accordance with Commonwealth and State/Territory legislation, Australian/New Zealand standards and industry codes of practice.

Elements and Performance Criteria

ELEMENT 

PERFORMANCE CRITERIA 

Elements define the essential outcomes

Performance criteria describe the performance needed to demonstrate achievement of the element.

1. Work as part of an interdisciplinary health care team in the perioperative environment

1.1 Work within scope of practice to support the interdisciplinary health care team in managing the care needs of the person in the perioperative environment

1.2 Contribute to effective team work and positive group dynamics of the interdisciplinary health care team

1.3 Maintain professional communication with all members of the perioperative team

1.4 Reflect the philosophical framework for managing perioperative care in own nursing practice

2. Contribute to preparation of a person for surgical intervention

2.1 Provide holistic person-centred care taking into account the person’s physical, emotional, spiritual and cultural needs

2.2 Use contemporary perioperative assessment tools accurately and document any physiological and psychological variables in assessment and report to registered nurse and interdisciplinary team

3. Perform clinical nursing actions appropriate to care of a perioperative person

3.1 Use critical thinking and problem-solving approaches to prioritise and adapt nursing interventions to reflect changes in the person’s condition, in consultation with registered nurse

3.2 Perform nursing interventions to assist the surgical team during surgical procedure

3.3 Recognise actual and potential manual handling and environmental hazards and take a pro-active approach in reducing risk and promoting safety

3.4 Check equipment according to manufacturers’ instructions and ensure proper functioning, taking corrective action and reporting when faulty equipment or environmental hazards are detected

3.5 Apply principles of infection control to all activities and at all times in the perioperative environment in line with applicable standards and organisation policies and procedures

3.6 Identify when the acuity of a person is beyond own skills and knowledge and promptly consult with registered nurse and relevant interdisciplinary health car team members

4. Actively promote improvement and advancement of perioperative nursing care

4.1 Evaluate nursing interventions provided and consider identified outcomes against evidence-based best practice in perioperative nursing

4.2 Seek out opportunities and participate in professional development, acquiring knowledge to guide own practice and acting as a resource for colleagues

Foundation Skills

The Foundation Skills describe those required skills (language, literacy, numeracy and employment skills) that are essential to performance.

Foundation skills essential to performance are explicit in the performance criteria of this unit of competency.

Unit Mapping Information

No equivalent unit.

Links

Companion Volume implementation guides are found in VETNet - https://vetnet.gov.au/Pages/TrainingDocs.aspx?q=ced1390f-48d9-4ab0-bd50-b015e5485705

 

Assessment requirements

Modification History

Release 

Comments 

Release 1

This version was released in HLT Health Training Package release 3.0 and meets the requirements of the 2012 Standards for Training Packages.

Significant changes to the elements and performance criteria. New evidence requirements for assessment, including volume and frequency requirements. Minimal change to knowledge evidence.

Supersedes HLTEN612B

Performance Evidence

The candidate must show evidence of the ability to complete tasks outlined in elements and performance criteria of this unit, manage tasks and manage contingencies in the context of the job role. There must be evidence that the candidate has:

  • undertaken nursing work in accordance with Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia professional practice standards, codes and guidelines
  • applied specialised clinical nursing skills for 3 people during anaesthesia, surgery and recovery in perioperative nursing environment, including:
  • preparing and positioning the person for a surgical procedure
  • performing intra-operative observations and supporting scrub nurse with monitoring materials
  • maintaining the person’s airway before and after surgery
  • using oral suctioning techniques intra-operatively
  • collecting specimens for pathology.

Knowledge Evidence

The candidate must be able to demonstrate essential knowledge required to effectively complete tasks outlined in elements and performance criteria of this unit, manage tasks and manage contingencies in the context of the work role. This includes knowledge of:

  • Australian College of Operating Room Nurses (ACORN) Standards for Perioperative Nursing
  • Australian Standards relating to hazards in the perioperative environment including electrical hazards, radiation hazards and sharps disposal
  • complications of surgical procedures and their management, including how to provide emergency and first aid treatment
  • complications associated with anaesthesia, including emergency treatment, infection control practices and organisation policies and procedures specific to perioperative environment
  • legal and ethical considerations (national, State/Territory, local) relevant to the nursing profession and how these are applied in nursing practice
  • policy statements, literature and guidelines from professional bodies associated with perioperative care and management, including ACORN
  • medical terminology associated with perioperative care
  • risk of falls post-surgery
  • philosophical framework for perioperative nursing
  • anaesthetic pharmacology
  • positioning of a person for specific surgical procedures, including potential for post-operative pressure injury from incorrect position during surgery
  • use of complex technologies including:
  • anaesthetic machines
  • lasers
  • cavitron ultrasonic surgical aspirator (CUSA)
  • endoscopic equipment
  • actual and potential problems relating to perioperative care including:
  • electrolyte imbalance
  • fluid overload
  • reduced carbon dioxide
  • hypoxia/hypoxaemia
  • sepsis
  • haemorrhage
  • neurovascular damage
  • cerebral vascular accident
  • arrhythmia.

Assessment Conditions

Skills must have been demonstrated in the workplace or in a simulated environment that reflects workplace conditions. The following conditions must be met for this unit:

  • use of suitable facilities, equipment and resources in line with the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Accreditation Council’s Standards
  • modelling of industry operating conditions including access to real people for simulations and scenarios in enrolled nursing work.

Assessors must satisfy the Standards for Registered Training Organisations (RTOs) 2015/AQTF mandatory competency requirements for assessors.

In addition, assessors must hold current registration as a registered nurse with Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia.

Links

Companion Volume implementation guides are found in VETNet - https://vetnet.gov.au/Pages/TrainingDocs.aspx?q=ced1390f-48d9-4ab0-bd50-b015e5485705