An introduction to health and social care
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This broad introduction to health and social care is part of the Common Foundation Programme of our Nursing curriculum. It helps you develop practical caring skills and the learning skills required for successful study. You’ll explore many facets of care in our diverse and changing society – drawing on your own ideas and experience and entering the lives of care workers and service users through in-depth case studies. The course uses the latest techniques of interactive DVD as well as books and online resources. It is written in a clear, thought-provoking style, with frequent activities to set you thinking.
Fees 2012
See fees and funding options for study from September 2012.
Course facts
An undergraduate course in Health and Social Care.
| About this course: | |
|---|---|
| Course code | KYN101 |
| Credits | 60 |
| OU Level | 1 |
| SCQF level | 7 |
| FHEQ level | 4 |
| Course work includes: |
|---|
| 6 Tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) |
| 5 Interactive computer-marked assignments (iCMAs) |
| Examination |
| No residential school |
Register for the course
This course is available for study in the countries shown. Fees and financial support may vary by country.
What you will study
KYN101 and its sibling course Introducing professional practice and knowledge (KYN107) make up the Common Foundation Programme (CFP) of the Nursing curriculum. Together they provide a broad foundation for your development as a practitioner and lead you towards becoming a registered nurse. These courses are about what you need to learn to become a ‘knowledgeable doer’ and a confident learner. They also begin to prepare you to be confident and competent in your continuing professional development (CPD) activities and lifelong learning throughout your nursing career.
Through KYN101 and KYN107 you will begin to get to grips with practice issues and knowledge in the changing environment in which you work and come to see that coping with and embracing change is part of effective practice.
If you want to share your ideas, you can join online forums for dialogue with other students and your tutor. But you don’t have to be a computer geek – the course teaches you, quickly and simply, all you need to know about using the latest learning aids.
Block 1: Who cares? paints a broad picture of care in the UK, ranging from caring within families, to primary health care, acute care in hospitals and social care in the community. You will explore the diversity and sensitivity of care situations, the wide variety of modern care services, the intricate interconnections between them and what it is like to care and to receive care.
Block 2: Working with life experience explores the impact of care needs and care services on people’s sense of identity and self-worth. Care can make deep inroads into personal lives and life narratives, so it is essential that care workers are sensitive to this and provide appropriate support. They need skills in communication and in ways of group working, so that lives are enhanced by care, rather than damaged.
Block 3: Diverse communities and resources for care asks how a community can respond to the needs of different groups of people. An in-depth case study of a neighbourhood renewal programme enables you to assess whether such schemes can improve people’s health and well-being. You will also examine the work of services, agencies and carers against a background of rapid and continuing social change across the UK.
Block 4: People and places: contexts of care explores the settings where care takes place and is managed. You visit a wide variety of care environments, from domestic homes, to residential and hospital settings, exploring their physical, social and psychological impact and the extent to which they are enabling or disabling. You also consider how people become attached to places and what happens when they have to leave them.
Block 5: Making care safer? examines how care can go wrong and what individuals can do to try to prevent this. You explore the crucial role of record keeping and the challenges of preserving confidentiality in a busy workplace. You consider the pressure on care workers to be accountable, and you explore the roles of research evidence and protocols in ensuring high standards of care.
Block 6: The shaping of care services in the UK examines care policies at the national level. It looks at the founding of the Welfare State and considers how health and social care services have developed and changed in subsequent decades. It also explores social trends and how care services might develop in the future.
The Pre-Registration Nursing Programme, to which KYN101 contributes, has been approved by HLSP on behalf of the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) for presentation in England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the States of Jersey.
You will learn
This course is a compulsory element of all OU professional programmes in health and social care. It is designed to provide a broad foundation of essential knowledge and skills for studies in the care field. It provides a thorough and supported programme to develop the skills of independent learning that all students require, particularly the skill of communicating effectively in writing.
Vocational relevance
If you successfully complete KYN101 you can claim a Certificate in Health and Social Care, which is widely recognised by employers.
You can also opt to register for a Level 3 vocational qualification in health and social care alongside your academic studies – regarded as the ‘gold standard’ for carer competence in adult care practice. The programme enables you to reap a second harvest from the work you’ve done for KYN101 that contributes directly to your VQ. There will be an additional cost for this.
An alternative integrated VQ Level 3 Diploma in Health and Social Care specifically related to the care of children and young people is also available.
For further information, visit the NVQ website or email the VQ team and include KYN101 in your message header. Please note that VQs are not always recognised in nations outside of the UK and that all students seeking this option must be working in the sector, either paid or voluntarily.
Entry
This course is offered only as part of the Pre-Registration Nursing Programme and, as such, is only open to students sponsored by their employers. Therefore, no individual course fee applies.
It is an ideal place to start your degree studies if you want to draw on your experience of caring, no matter how informal. Level 1 courses provide core subject knowledge and study skills needed for both higher education and distance learning, which help you to progress to courses at Level 2.
If you have any doubt about the suitability of the course, please contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service. They can also tell you about materials and courses that can help you to gain confidence and study skills before you start. The course itself will give you a lot of practice and support for your study skills.
Preparatory work
In your first course mailing you will receive guidance of how to get started online. This will provide you with information on using your computer for OU study and working with the Computing Guide. For example, it explains how to access and use your website and online discussion forums. If you have time before the course starts, you can work through this and explore all the online services available to you.
If you have a disability or additional requirement
Written transcripts of any audio components and Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) versions of printed material are available. Some Adobe PDF components may not be available or fully accessible using a screen reader. The printed study materials are available in the DAISY Digital Talking Book format. Other alternative formats of the study materials may be available in the future. Our Services for disabled students website has the latest information about availability.
If you are a new student, or new to courses using a computer or the internet, you will need to inform us of your particular needs as soon as possible, as some of our support services may take several weeks to arrange. Details of how to do this and our range of support services are described in our publication Meeting Your Needs.
You can also find information about accessible study materials, financial support and the Disabled Students' Allowance, equipment and other services, on our Services for disabled students website. It also includes our contact details for advice and support both before you register and while you are studying.
Study materials
What's included
Course books, other printed materials, DVD, audio DVD-ROM.
You will have access to a website through which teaching and Library resources are available. Electronic versions of most of the printed study materials are provided on the website.
You will need
A DVD player.
The audiovisual components of this course are delivered on a DVD that will play on a standard DVD player and television. If you want to view this on a computer, it will need a DVD-ROM drive and software for viewing DVDs.
Computing requirements
This course includes online computer activities – you can access these using a web browser that can play Flash and Shockwave. Some of your course software will be provided on disk.
You will need internet access and a computer with Microsoft Office installed. The software on this module has some advanced features that only work in the proprietary versions of Microsoft Office. If you don't already have Microsoft Office, you can take advantage of a special educational offer.
If you have purchased a new Windows computer since 2005 it should meet your course computing requirements. Check our Technical Requirements section if your computer is older than this or is otherwise unusual. Please note that you cannot use an Apple Mac or Linux computer unless it is running Windows using Boot Camp or similar dual-boot system.
Teaching and assessment
Support from your tutor
You will have a tutor who will help you with the study material. They will also mark and comment on your written work, and you can ask them for advice and guidance. Part of your tuition is delivered online so some of the contact with your tutor will be through email and online discussion forums, although phone communication may also be used. If you are new to the OU, you will find that your tutor is particularly concerned to help you with your study methods. We may also be able to offer day schools that you are obliged to attend. Where these are held will depend on the distribution of students taking the course. Contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service if you want to know more about study with The Open University before you register.
Assessment
The assessment details for this course can be found in the facts box above.
You will be expected to submit your tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) online through the eTMA system unless there are some difficulties which prevent you from doing so. In these circumstances, you must negotiate with your tutor to get their agreement to submit your assignment on paper.
Professional recognition
This is one of a set of courses that together constitute an approved programme that leads to the professional qualification of Registered Nurse (Part 1: NMC Register 2004).
The VQ competences within this course (see Vocational relevance above) are clearly mapped to the NHS Knowledge and Skills Framework.
Students also studied
Students who studied this course also studied at some time:
Future availability
The details given here are for the course that starts in October 2012. We expect it to be available once a year.
Fees 2012
See fees and funding options for study from September 2012.
Course facts
An undergraduate course in Health and Social Care.
| About this course: | |
|---|---|
| Course code | KYN101 |
| Credits | 60 |
| OU Level | 1 |
| SCQF level | 7 |
| FHEQ level | 4 |
| Course work includes: |
|---|
| 6 Tutor-marked assignments (TMAs) |
| 5 Interactive computer-marked assignments (iCMAs) |
| Examination |
| No residential school |
Study explained
- Financial support
- - find out if you qualify for support with your fees with our eligibility checker.
- Study explained
- - all you need to know about distance learning with the OU.
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