Undergraduate

Reflecting on whole lives - diverse perspectives on health and illness

On this page

• What you will study
• Entry
• If you have a disability or additional requirement
• Study materials
• Teaching and assessment
• Professional recognition
• Students also studied
• Future availability

This course is the first theory module in the Adult Branch of our Pre-Registration Nursing Programme. It establishes a holistic approach to health and illness – proposing a broad-based understanding of health and ill-health from a life-course perspective. It addresses the contested nature of health and ill-health and the socio-political context in which meanings and experiences of illness emerge. The course also considers concepts and theories of ageing and disability, and ethical and policy issues related to health-care provision. You’ll explore a variety of theoretical frameworks and research evidence underpinning different approaches to the understanding of peoples’ lives and their illnesses.

Course facts

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

KYN275 is a theory course that serves the specific needs of nursing students preparing for registration on the adult branch of the professional register. From the standpoint of a social model of health, KYN275 explores the everyday lives and experiences of health of people in the context of their socio-economic environment. Students are encouraged to consider how an understanding of individual lives in context is part of what it is to be a health care professional. They are asked to develop a reflective and critical perspective to health and illness and to evaluate the capacity of health and social care services to respond to people holistically.

The study materials are made up of four study blocks, which draw heavily on existing materials from a number of courses. The content of each Block is as follows:

Block 1 Health and the life course: laying the foundations explores different perspectives on health and illness. It examines the foundations of health by adopting a life course approach. This Block focuses on early influences on future health through a study of parental health during pregnancy as well as looking at other transitions in adult life.

Block 2 The Social environment for health, takes up the story of health through life by demonstrating an understanding of the impact of the social environment on health. It explores how poverty, housing and homelessness, work and unemployment and relationships influence peoples’ health chances and relate to inequalities in health.

Block 3 Health in Later life, reflects on how health in later life is experienced. It looks at some of the cumulative effects of life on health and explores the impact of disability as well as the way in which ageism constructs the experiences of older people. The block ends by focusing on the needs and expectations of people as they age in regard to health and social care.

Block 4 Responding to health and illness, picks up the thread of health care. First it looks at how people respond to and provide for their own health needs, then it moves into the provision of health care by others. The Block examines some of the boundaries of health care provision particularly between professional care and the care provided by family and friends as well as the boundaries between so called orthodox and non-orthodox provision. It ends with an exploration of the care needs towards the end of life.

This course aims to:

• Examine the foundations of health through a life course perspective
• Weigh up the influence of psycho-social and political factors on the health, wellbeing and illness of individuals, families and communities
• Discuss the contested nature of knowledge, theoretical frameworks and research evidence which underpin diverse perspectives on health and illness
• Reflect on the interactive nature of social, psychological and biological factors that impact on health, disability and chronic disease
• Develop a framework for evaluating health care interventions
• Enhance students’ ability to search and evaluate evidence from a range of sources that could be used to inform health care

Vocational relevance

The Pre-registration Nursing Programme, to which KYN275 contributes, has been endorsed by Scotland, Northern Ireland and Jersey.

Entry

Entry to KYN275 is open only to students on the Pre-Registration Nursing Programme who are sponsored by their employer and registered as part of a group. Students will have completed the Common Foundation Programme.

Prior to entry to nurse training occupational health screening is undertaken. This is confidential to you and your employer's occupational health service. Your employer is only informed that you are fit or unfit to undertake nurse training and/or health care practice. Health records are not disclosed. If you have a particular health and/or well being issue the occupational health service will refer you to an appropriate specialist service for expert assessment.

If you have any doubt about the suitability of the course, please contact our Student Registration & Enquiry Service.

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.

Preparatory work

You will receive guidance on how to get started online in your first course mailing. 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. 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

Learning materials will be in four blocks presented in ring binders. Also included will be a study guide, an audio CD and a collection of offprint articles from a range of existing sources. 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

You are expected to have access to a CD player.

Computing requirements

This course includes online computer activities – you can access these using a web browser that can play Flash and Shockwave.

You will need internet access and a computer. If you have purchased a new 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.

Teaching and assessment

Support from your tutor

You will have a tutor who will help you with the study material and mark and comment on your written work, and whom you can ask 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. Your tutor will also organise and run a series of face-face tutorials, which are obligatory on this course. At these you will undertake practical work, but you will also have a chance to consider some of the issues that crop up in your studies and any concerns that you have, both with your tutor and with fellow students.

If you encounter difficulties, either with your understanding of ideas and concepts from the course or with your study skills, your tutor or a specialist tutor (for example, in supporting students with dyslexia) can help. If you do need extra support or arrangements to accommodate any special needs you can access the services provided by the Regional Student Support Services. These cover preparation and induction, learning skills support including examination preparation, services to students with special needs, educational and careers advice and guidance.

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.

The TMAs are worth fifty per cent.

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). This course will be mapped against the NHS Knowledge and Skills Framework.

Students also studied

Students who studied this course also studied at some time:

• Human biology (SKYN277)
• Developing adult nursing practice (KYN291)
• Refining adult nursing practice (KYN292)
• An introduction to health and social care (KYN101)
• Introducing professional practice and knowledge (KZL107)

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.

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.

Course satisfaction survey

See the satisfaction survey results for this course.

Your questions

We may have already answered it in our frequently asked questions.

Or contact an adviser in our Student Registration & Enquiry Service Email or call +44(0) 845 300 60 90+44(0) 845 366 60 35

Employers' questions

Contact Corporate Enquiries
Visit our website for employers or Email us

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