Your first year in the BSN program introduces you to the basics and fundamentals of nursing practice. While taking theory courses in Anatomy & Physiology, English, and nursing, you will also be participating in skills lab classes and gaining clinical experience in the community. 

Academic Term 1

During your first term, you will be introduced to the concept of Registered Nursing as a professional practice. Classes will focus on the British Columbia College of Nurses & Midwives (BCCNM) Professional Standards, Social Determinants of Health, conceptualizing health and illness, fundamental relational practice (including the nurse-patient relationship), and the Canadian Nurses Association (CNA) Code of Ethics. Lab classes will teach you skills in body mechanics, patient handling, vital signs, and personal care (i.e., toileting, bathing, feeding, etc.). During N180, you will have opportunities to shadow a second or third year student nurse in their current clinical setting, teach a grade 2 class the importance of hand-washing, and spend 4 weeks in the Independent Living setting where you will be forming a nurse-client relationship with an older adult. 

Academic Term 2

As you progress into your second semester, your classes will start to incorporate the concept of Registered Nursing as a scholarly discipline. Classes will focus on research ethics, nursing theories/theorists, care across the lifespan (maternity, neonatal, pediatrics, adult health, and geriatrics), and how RNs shape the future of health care through inquiry and leadership. Lab classes will focus on the assessment of individual body systems and introduction to medication administration for non-parenteral routes (i.e., oral, vaginal, rectal, transdermal, inhalational, etc.). During N181, you will have opportunities to do a basic assessment (weighing and measuring) infants in the public health setting, teach a grade 5 class the Sip-Smart program, and spend 8-10 weeks in the long-term care setting caring for older adults who require a higher level of care than those in the independent living environment. 

Consolidated Practice Experience 1

For 6 weeks from May to June, you will be in the clinical setting 3 days a week for 8 hours per day. This will allow you to practice all of the skills you have learned in Year 1 and apply them in clinical practice. Here, you will be able to implement your knowledge on head-to-toe assessments, medication administration, patient advocacy, and interprofessional practice. 

The second year of the BSN program widens your scope of practice as a student nurse. In addition to courses in pathophysiology and health care ethics, you will be learning about acute and chronic illnesses across the lifespan, relational practice in the acute practice setting, and pharmacology. During lab classes, you will learn about intravenous (IV) therapy, parenteral medication administration, and how to safely care for patients with evolving health statuses. Clinicals will be in the acute care environment at various hospitals in Victoria.

Academic Term 3

During your theory classes, you will be learning about the pathophysiology, pharmacology, and nursing care of individuals with cardiovascular, neurological, and endocrine diseases. In lab, you will (finally) get to use needles as you learn how to administer medications through the intramuscular (IM), intradermal (ID), and subcutaneous (SC) routes. You will also be learning how to set up IV fluids and use the IV pumps found in hospital settings as well as how to correctly draw up and administer insulin and care for surgical wounds. N280 will expose you to the hospital environment in general medicine units. 

Academic Term 4

In your second semester on Year 2, you will build on term 3 by learning about the pathophysiology, pharmacology, and nursing care of individuals with respiratory, gastrointestinal, genitourinary, renal, musculoskeletal, and integumentary diseases. In lab, you will learn how to administer medications via an IV using various methods (continuous, intermittent, direct), including the administration of IV heparin and insulin. You will also be learning how to care for more complex surgical wounds, the insertion and removal of nasogastric (NG) tubes, and enteral feeding. N281 will be in general medicine, general surgery, pediatrics, or maternity. 

Consolidated Practice Experience 2

For 6 weeks from May to June, you will be in clinical practice 3 days a week for 8 hours per day (those in maternity will have different hours). Your placement will be in the hospital in general medicine, general/complex surgery, pediatrics, maternity, or mental health. This will allow you to consolidate and practice all you have learned throughout your first 2 years of the BSN program and be able to apply them in your nursing practice. 

While in your third year, you will be learning more skills that will eventually cover the entire scope of practice of a Registered Nurse. Classes focus on care of patients in crisis and complexity and advanced relational practice for patients who have a rapidly changing health status.

Academic Term 5

Your term 5 coursework will be focused on crisis and complex situations (perinatal crisis, complex psychiatry, complex medicine, and trauma), and relational practice for individuals who are undergoing Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) or end-of-life/palliative care. Lab classes will teach you the remaining skills required for RN scope of practice, including: IV insertion, urinary catheterization, continuous bladder irrigation, total parenteral nutrition, blood/blood product administration, tracheostomy care, and care/removal of chest tubes. N380 will be in complex specialty care settings, including: cardiology, neurology, complex surgery, pediatrics, maternity, and mental health. This will also be your last term at Camosun before you transfer to the University of Victoria.

Academic Term 6

During your first term at UVic, you will have a break from clinical practice and be focusing on coursework. You will be completing courses in nursing research, global health, community health, nursing inquiry, and Indigenous health. Some of these courses will be in-person on the UVic campus and others may be offered asynchronously online.

Consolidated Practice Experience 3 & 4

CPE 3 (N370) will be taking place for 6 weeks from May to June and CPE 4 will be taking place for 6 weeks from June to July or July to August. Both CPE 3 and 4 will take place in the same setting. During this clinical experience, you will either be placed on a Collaborative Learning Unit (CLU) or with a preceptor (practicing RN). Typically, you will be working the same shifts as an RN (4 days per week), which consists of 2 day shifts (0700-1900) and 2 night shifts (1900-0700). Your schedule will depend on your preceptor or your unit's CLU schedule. Prior to this clinical experience, you will be asked to input your preference for clientele (e.g., child/family, adult health, med-surg, long-term care, etc.), but you will not be able to request specific units. It will be at the discretion of the UVic practicum coordinator in terms of what unit you will be placed on based on previous clinical experience. 

In your final year of the BSN program, you will be integrating your knowledge and skills from your previous 3 years and learn how to integrate nursing research and leadership into your practice. You will be preparing to graduate and transition from student nurse to new-grad RN. During this time, you will be starting to apply for RN jobs and studying to take the NCLEX in addition to coursework and final preceptorship. 

Academic Term 7

This term will be your final semester of formal coursework, including classes in statistics and nursing leadership. In addition, you will also be required to take a nursing elective from a variety of choices within the UVic School of Nursing. N456 will be in the community/public health setting where you will be in clinical practice in either schools, community agencies, or public health units in Greater Victoria. 

Academic Term 8

Your final semester of the BSN program will be entirely in clinical practice. Similar to CPE 3/4, you will be placed on either a CLU or with a preceptor, N475 (CPE 5) and N491 (Final Preceptorship) will be in the same unit and you can request preference for clientele. Shifts will also be similar to those in CPE 3/4. The focus of the final preceptorship is to gain experience in a setting you want to work in as a new-grad RN. For example, if you are wanting to apply for a pediatric RN job, the practicum coordinator will try to get you a placement in the pediatric unit at VGH. 

There is also specialty learning opportunities for fourth years through Learning Pathways in the Operating Room, Post-Anesthetic Care Unit, or Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Information for the Learning Pathways can be found here.