Overview

As many critical care units have introduced new roles or extended the scope of practice for nurses, technicians, physiotherapists and clinical pharmacists, this module offers you the opportunity to enhance your existing clinical knowledge and skills as an Advanced Critical Care Practitioner (ACCP). You will explore an engaging mix of generic module topics and specialist elements to enable you to transfer to individual units within critical care.  

Topics you will explore in this module include: full systems anatomy, physiology, pathophysiology, investigations, interpretation of investigations, management and treatment of common conditions. This will be achieved through face to face teaching, enquiry based learning, simulation and guided learning alongside an expectation of self directed study for each individual to achieve the necessary assessments.

The module is also aligned with the MSc Advanced Clinical Practice which will enable you to start your ACCP journey, undertaking physical assessment and non-medical prescribing prior to undertaking the ACCP module. This would be undertaken alongside other core modules to achieve a post graduate diploma or furthermore a full postgraduate MSc degree.

Module aims

The aim of this module is to enable you as a trainee ACCP to achieve the Higher Education Institute (HEI) competencies identified in the Faculty of Intensive Care (FICM) (2015) ‘Curriculum for Training For Advanced Critical Care Practitioners: syllabus. Students who successfully complete this module will be able to: 

• apply advanced knowledge in the anatomy, physiology, pathology and pharmacology of critical illness
• critically appraise clinical governance, policies and procedures of independent practice in relation to advanced critical care practice
• demonstrate advanced knowledge and skills in critical care and provide a direct contribution to the assessment, treatment and planning of care, and evaluation of patients with critical illness
• function as part of the critical care team and work within a defined scope of practice and to clinical standards agreed nationally and applied within the local clinical setting
• demonstrate a high degree of autonomy and authority to make clinical decisions, supervised by a medical consultant in critical care

Entry requirements

You must be currently appointed as a trainee Advanced Critical Care Practitioner - with service agreement for undertaking this module. Normally, you will have completed a recognised independent and supplementary prescribing programme and a health assessment module (can be Level 6).

Module content

Aligning to ACCP curriculum Part 111 (FICM, 2019), the module will cover the following topics:

• Core anatomy, physiology and pathophysiology history taking and examination
• Core radiology
• Principles of microbiology
• Principles of laboratory medicine
• Clinical reasoning
• Principles of pharmacology and prescribing technology in critical care
• Discharge planning and rehabilitation
• End of life care
• Organ/tissue donation
• Patient safety, risk management and clinical governance
• Clinical leadership and management within the context of the multidisciplinary team learning and teaching
• Communication
• Surgical procedures - related to post-operative management and recognition of complications
• Ethical and legal issues
• Evidence Based Practice

Teaching and assessment

Teaching

You will explore blended learning approaches, including face to face and flexible digital education which may include:

• Online learning resources
• Collaborative analysis
• Seminar or lecture content as online broadcasts
• Content capture
• Co-production through enquiry based learning
• Formative assessments
• Co-production of learning/peer sharing

Assessment 

By the end of the module, there is a robust assessment process which may consist of:

• VIVA
• OSCE
• Portfolio of achievements of FICM syllabus.

Once successfully achieved, alongside clinical competencies, the final Annual Review of Competency (ARCP) will take place. Following successful completion of this the trainee ACCP can apply for FICM membership.