Master in Maternal Child Health Nursing ​(MCH)

The graduate program of maternal and child health (MCH) nursing promotes graduates to become competent MCH nurse practitioners with the emphasis on their role as nurse researchers, educators or managers by offering them advanced knowledge and skills for the development and promotion of MCH in Palestine.

Degree Objectives:

• To aid students in developing an approach and understanding towards advanced nursing scientific theories and research.
• To enhance the student’s development in management of community services offered to the mother and child.
• To develop the student knowledge, skills and attitudes as a specialized personnel in their own tract as future change agents, in Maternal Child Health Nursing.

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• A holder of a bachelor degree in Nursing or midwifery from an accredited nursing program.
• Two years’ minimum experience in Nursing or midwifery.
• Licensed to practice professional Nursing by the appropriate Authority in Palestine.
• Pass the interview with the admission program committee.

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Total: 37 required credits are distributed as follows

1. Core courses (11 credits) of which 7 credits are required and 4 elective.
2. Specially courses (26 credits) of which:
   1. 12 are theoretical, 8 clinical and 6 research for thesis option students.
   2. 18 are theoretical, 8 clinical for the non-thesis option students.

Core Courses: 11 credit hours

Required courses:  7 credits

Course Name	Course No.	Credits
Theories in Nursing	8020511	1
Issues in Nursing Ethics	8020512	1
Advanced Statistics	8020513	2
Research Methodology	8020514	3
Total credits		7

Elective courses: 4 credits (choose 2 courses)

Course Name	Course No.	credits
Palestinian Health System and the Law	8020611	2
Qualitative Research Methods	8020612	2
Issues in Social Health	8020613	2
Quality in Health Care	8020614	2
Total		8

 

Specialty courses: 26 credit hours (Non- Thesis Option)

Course name	Course No.	Credits
Child Health Issues	8022511	2
Issues in Women’s Health Care	8022512	3
Epidemiology and Communicable Diseases	8022513	2
Nursing Care of Children	8022611	2
Issues in Nursing Management	8022612	2
Health Education/ Promotion	8022613	2
Maternal Health Nursing	8022614	3
Clinical Residency I	8022631	2
Clinical Residency II	8022632	3
Clinical Residency  III	8022633	3
Research Seminar	8022650	2
Comprehensive Exam	8022660	0
Grand Total		26
Total for theoretical courses		18
Total for clinical		8

Specialty courses: 28 credit hours (Thesis Option)

Course name	Course No.	Credits
Child Health Issues	8022511	2
Issues in Women’s Health Care	8022512	3
Epidemiology and Communicable Diseases	8022513	2
Nursing Care of Children	8022611	2
Maternal Health Nursing	8022614	3
Clinical Residency I	8022631	2
Clinical Residency II	8022632	3
Clinical Residency  III	8022633	3
Thesis I and II	8022690	6
Grand Total		26
Total for theoretical courses without thesis (6 hours)		12
Total for clinical		8

Core courses (program’s required courses)

Theories in Nursing 8020511 (1 credit hour). This course focuses on the evolution and application of nursing knowledge. It involves critical analysis of nursing theory and foundations for reasoning in nursing practice. This foundation encompasses various philosophies, theories, concepts, and frameworks that give graduate students the ability to analyze situations, make decisions and solve problems and to provide quality nursing care. Links to nursing practice are emphasized; in particular, relationships of theory to clinical decision making and critical thinking are explored. The nursing process is presented as the basic working framework within which nursing theories and knowledge is applied to Palestinian nursing practice.

Issues in Nursing Ethics 8020512 (1 credit hour). This course focuses on ethical issues in the daily work of nurse managers in relation to general nursing care and or ethics in management/ administrative practice. The course introduces students to theories principles and ethical legal issues in general & discusses ethico-legal managerial issues related to Palestinian context in specific.

Advanced Statistics 8020513 (2 credit hours). This course provides overview of statistical concepts related to health & nursing.  Emphasis will be placed on the application of descriptive and inferential statistics that are commonly used in the health and nursing fields. This course will help students to learn how to effectively use data and statistical methods to make evidence based decisions. Appreciating the role of statistics in developing research and advancement on the health and nursing profession is the overarching goal of the course.

Research Methodology 8020514 (3 credit hours). This course presents an overview of the research process with specific attention to meeting research needs in nursing management. Major procedures include: developing a problem statement and hypothesis/research question, preparing a literature review, including a theoretical/conceptual/framework if appropriate, selecting a research methodology, identifying valid/reliable measuring instruments and proposing overall statistical tests for data analysis. Critique of research will be emphasized as well as initial work on the drafting of a research proposal.

 

Program’s elective courses

Palestinian Health System and the Law 8020611 (2 credit hours). This course analyzes the Palestinian National Health plan, examine health care delivery models, and develop strategies for successful implementation of quality patient care within the Palestinian health care system.

Qualitative Research Methods 8020612 (2 credit hours). This course focuses on qualitative nursing research approaches with emphasis on differentiating qualitative from quantitative methodologies to enable students to conduct qualitative research and analyzed data qualitatively. It aims to introduce students to the philosophical foundations, approaches and methods associated with qualitative research. Phenomenological, grounded theory, ethnography and historical research methods are emphasized in this course.

Issues in Social Health 8020613 (2 credit hours). The course introduces concepts of socio-cultural health emphasizing population dynamics and population characteristics as well as the social determinants of health. It examines contextual health within the modern economy and the political dynamics involved in the provisions of health care as well as cross-cultural aspects of health. Furthermore, the course examines the social issues of illness and disability including the Palestinian culture. The course will also examine how different cultures develop their own health care systems

Quality Health Care 8020614 (2 credit hours). The course is designed to familiarize participants with concepts of quality improvement in health care. It is based upon the teaching of total Quality management as applied to health, it is designed for senior health care profession undergoing graduate training program. The course aims at providing knowledge & skill in quality management for senior leadership in health care.

 

Specialty courses:

Child Health Issues 8022511 (2 credit hours). The course is designed to promote the MCH graduate to build the theoretical background concerning child health in Palestine and to develop the skills required to be applied at the community level. The students will be exposed to explore her/his roles as an educator and promoter of health of the new born, infants and children. The student as well, will be able to assess & evaluate health services provided to children within the Palestinian community.

Issues in Women’s Health 8022512 (3 credit hours). This course enables students to identify the health needs of well women through the span of their life cycle. The course promotes them to develop skills to assess the physical, social, physiological and cultural needs of the Palestinian well women highlighting on her promotion and development towards a positive change within the society.

Epidemiology and Communicable Disease 8022513 (2 credit hours). The course is designed to promote the student’s knowledge about the purpose’ identification methods & control in epidemiology. The importance of epidemiological attributes and obtaining of data is studied with the context of its application in MCH to improve and enhance a holistic approach towards its promotion based on epidemiological studies and research. This course also tackles common infectious diseases in children and mother with the emphasis on its etiology sign symptoms management and the role of the MCH nurse in prevention and promotion of health in relation to the covered disease. Local parasitic illnesses are also discussed and immunizations are thoroughly covered. The plan is to provide students with an in-depth understanding of clinical, pathophysiological and epidemiological features as well as public policy aspects of childhood communicable disease.

Nursing Care of Children 8022611 (2 credit hours). Nursing care of children with acute and chronic illnesses provides the graduate students an in-depth knowledge about the most common acute and chronic diseases and disorders that affect the child during early child hood period. Definition, pathophysiology of the acute and chronic conditions, common symptoms, and management of them, are integrated into the course utilizing the nursing process as a plan of action at the clinical setting. The course emphasizes the role of the nurse as a care giver, health planner and health promoter at the community level.

Issues in Nursing Management 8022612 (2 credit hours) non-thesis option. This course provides a basic knowledge in management and focuses on the role of the nurse manager at middle management level within the health care environment. The course aims to develop student skills in managing personnel and processes related to the individual work areas. The work of the nurse manager is viewed within a dynamic framework of decision making in the interest of effective, efficient and economical health care provision.

Health Education/ Promotion 8022613 (2 credit hours) non-thesis option. This course is designed to provide students with a general orientation to health education as a process and profession within the context of public health. The course builds on socio-behavioral theories that are widely used in health education practice. Attention to the role of health educators, and maternal – child health nurses and their responsibilities as change agents in various setting will be emphasized. Emphasis will also be on developing educational strategies in the community, groups and individuals with special attention guarded towards maternal and child health related behaviors at risk.

Maternal Health Nursing 8022614 (3 credit hours). This course develops the graduates’ students, skills and attitudes needed to promote maternal health in Palestine. it will discuss the normal physiological  and psychological changes during pregnancy, minor discomforts, and antenatal care during  pregnancy. it also introduces the disorders associated with pregnancy.

Clinical Residency I 8022631 (2 credit hours).This course enables the MCH student to be exposed to the major health needs, social and psychological problems that encounter Palestinian children in their communities. She will work with decision makers in different health sectors so that she will be exposed to aspects of health problems at the primary level. She will also visit institutions dealing with social, psychological and disabilities which will enhance her understanding of the rooted health problems in our societies.

Clinical Residency II  8022632 (3 credit hours). The training of this course will be in hospitals and clinics where the student will learn how to deal with children who have acute and chronic diseases. This enables the student to develop her skills and knowledge concerning childhood diseases and conditions.

Clinical Residency III 8022633 (3 credit hours). The maternal clinical residency will teach mainly the MCH student how to deal with the reproductive aged woman and it will focus on the female from preconception until old age. The student will practice in different setups which provide maternal services. She will visit different institutions whether they are at the decision– making level or deliver services to well women or with special needs. This will help the MCH student to develop her skills, knowledge and insight so that in the future she will have the ability to take decisions and be a leader in this field.

Research Seminar 8022650 (2 credit hours) non-thesis option. The student has to finish a small field research in the field of maternal child health nursing during this course. This course aims at strengthening students’ abilities in conducting research even if they are not registered for a thesis. The students will be supervised by an academic supervisor. By the end of this course, students are expected to finish data collection, prepare for data analysis, finalize their small project or research and prepare for their defense to the graduate committee by the end of the semester. The students are not allowed to sit for the comprehensive exam before finishing Research Seminar. The student is given “pass” or “fail” grade for this course.

Thesis I & II 8022690 (6 credit hours). This course represents a scholarly written research report. It synthesizes the components of a research project and normally builds on information gained in the course Research methodology per-requisites include, research methodology, statistics and fourth study period standing.