NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus

NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus

NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus
Student Support and Calendar Information
So you have all key information available to you off-line, it is highly recommended that you print the following items for your reference:

Syllabus, including the Course Schedule, located below as a linked PDF
Term Calendar
Student Support

Photo Credit: Steve Hix/Fuse/Getty Images
Credit Hours

5 quarter hours in 11 weeks

Walden University assigns credit hours based on the number and type of assignments that enable students to achieve the course learning objectives. In general, each semester credit equals about 42 hours of total student work and each quarter credit equals about 28 hours of total student work. This time requirement represents an approximate average for undergraduate work and the minimum expectations for graduate work. The number and kind of activities estimated to fulfill time requirements will vary by degree level and student learning style and by student familiarity with the delivery method and course content. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus.
Course Description
Psychotherapy involves giving more than “good advice.” In order for the psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) to be effective, deliberate approaches to therapy must be consistent with evidence-based practices. Learners in this course examine a variety of therapeutic techniques that can be used during psychotherapy sessions with individuals across the lifespan. Emphasis is placed on evidence-based applications of various therapeutic approaches for a wide range of psychiatric issues. Practicum experiences focus on psychotherapeutic approaches with individuals. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus.
Note: This course requires a minimum 144 practicum hours
Course Prerequisites

NURS 6630 Psychopharmacological Approaches for Treatment of Psychopathology

Course Outcomes
By the end of this course, students will:

Evaluate evidence-based psychotherapeutic counseling theories
Apply psychotherapeutic counseling techniques and tools
Assess clients presenting for psychotherapy
Develop psychiatric diagnoses for clients across the lifespan
Evaluate the use of psychopharmacological agents with clients across the lifespan
Evaluate ethical and legal implications of counseling clients presenting for psychotherapy
Analyze strategies to become a social change agent for psychiatric mental health

Click on the following link to view the Outcomes/Alignment map for NURS 6640:
Document: NURS 6640 SON Alignment of Learner Outcomes (PDF)
Course Materials
Please visit the university bookstore via your Walden student portal to ensure you are obtaining the correct version of any course texts and/or materials noted in the following section. When you receive your materials, make sure that all required items are included. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus.
Course Text
Wheeler, K. (Ed.). (2014). Psychotherapy for the advanced practice psychiatric nurse: A how-to guide for evidence-based practice. New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company.
Note: The course text will be used in additional courses in the program; therefore keep it for addition reference.
Other readings (journal articles, websites, book excerpts, etc.) are assigned throughout the course and may be found within each week. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus.
Course Readings List
The Course Readings List contains all of the required Walden Library resources for this course. Please click on the following link to access the list:
NURS 6640 Course Readings List
Media
Assigned course media elements are found within the weekly Learning Resources pages and are available via a streaming media player or a hyperlink to the individual item.
Dedicated Support for Course Media
You may use the following e-mail address and toll-free number for any questions or concerns you have about media in the course. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus
Course Assignments
Online Discussion and Clinical Supervision
The exchange of ideas between colleagues engaged in scholarly inquiry is a key aspect of graduate-level learning and is a requisite activity in this course.
Requirements: You are expected to participate at least two separate days a week in the weekly Discussion area. Discussion topics/questions are provided in the Discussion area. In addition, you are expected to respond to your fellow students’ postings. To count as participation, responses need to be thoughtful; that is, they must refer to the week’s readings, relevant issues in the news, information obtained from other sources, and/or ideas expressed in other class members’ postings. Where appropriate, you should use references to support your position. Most weeks have at least one Discussion question. The Discussion questions require a response to one other student’s posting; it should be no more than two paragraphs long. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus
All Discussion postings need to be made in each week’s Discussion area of the course, unless otherwise stated. Please do not e-mail postings to the Instructor or other students. Refer to the Discussion area for specific instructions.
Discussions will be graded according to the Discussion Rubric found in the Course Information area.
Assignments and Projects
An Assignment or Project often is a writing assignment submitted to the Instructor for evaluation. Complete Assignment or Project directions are in the Assignments or Projectsla areas, including how and where to submit the Assignment or Project and the due date. Please note that you should keep copies of your Assignments and Projects on your computer in case of any technical difficulties. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus
Information on scholarly writing may be found in the APA manual and at the Walden Writing Center website.
Please refer to the APA Guide or visit the Walden University Online Writing Center at
http://writingcenter.waldenu.edu/
Walden University expects you to act with integrity and honesty in your academic courses. Refer to the Guidelines and Policies and Academic Integrity areas for more details.
Check the Course Information area for any rubrics relating to the Assignments and Projects.
All assignments must be completed to pass the course.
Practicum Activities
The practicum experience in this course will assist your transition from the role of learner to that of scholar-practitioner. To achieve this transition, you will engage in a relationship with a clinical instructor and preceptor, focusing on roles and role functions and the achievement of individualized learning objectives. The primary objective of your practicum is to provide you with the basic skills necessary to serve as a mid-level provider of primary care to selected populations and prepare you to take the appropriate national certification exam. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus
The practicum component of the course will be graded as Satisfactory or Unsatisfactory. In order to pass the course, you must earn a grade of Satisfactory on all required practicum activities including journal entries and time logs.
At the end of the course, you must also ensure that your practicum preceptor submits an online evaluation of your performance. You will also complete an online evaluation of your practicum experience at the end of the course. These evaluations will not only provide information about the progress of individual students, but also help program leadership to continuously work on the course review and improvements. You will receive an Incomplete (I) as a grade if any of the above evaluations are not received by the posted deadlines. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus
All assignments must be completed to pass the course.
Time Logs: Students are required to keep a log of the time spent related to their practicum experience and enter every patient they see each day. Students can access their time log from the Welcome Page in their Meditrek account. Students will track time individually for each patient they work with. Students are required to continuously input their hours throughout the term. Logs are reviewed by instructors in weeks 4, 7 and 10. Please print and keep your completed Meditrek Log at the end of your clinical experiences for future use as a component of your portfolio.
Grading Criteria and Total Components of a Grade
Course grades will be based on participation (postings) and completion of assignments listed below.
Note: All assignments must be completed to pass the course.
Grading Scale
Letter grades will be assigned as follows:
90%–100% = A
80%–89% = B
70%–79% = C
70% or below = F
Please see below for the policy on Incomplete (I) grades.
Important Note: This course contains weighted grading. Assignments are weighted differently depending on their type. The total points achieved for each assignment will be weighted based on the percentage values noted in the Weighted Total (%)column of the table that follows.

Assignment
Total Points
Percentage

Discussions
Participation in Discussions*

5 @ 100 points each

500
20%

Assignments
Weeks 3, 4, 6, 7

4 @ 100 points each

400
26%

Exams

Week 6 Midterm Exam (75 points)
Week 11 Final Exam (75 points)

150
44%

Board Vitals

10 @ 20 points each

200
10%

Clinical Supervision
Participation in Clinical Supervisions*

Submitted in Weeks 8 and 10

S/U

Practicum Time Logs

Submitted in Weeks 4, 7, 10

S/U

Practicum Journal Entries

Submitted in Weeks 4, 7, 10

S/U

Practicum Assignments

Submitted in Weeks 3, 7, 10

S/U

Total
1,250
100%

*Note: Each Discussion requires that you make one initial posting and at least two response postings to colleagues. See the Formative Evaluative Criteria for Discussion Board Assignments for posting details.
Note: All assignments must be completed in order to receive a grade for the course. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus
Feedback Schedule

The Instructor will log into the course at least 3–4 times during the week to monitor the weekly Discussion area. Feedback will be provided via the Discussion area and/or the Announcements page. Requests for more specific feedback may be made in the Discussion area or in the Contact the Instructor thread.
The Instructor will respond to at least one main post each week but will usually not respond to all posts.
Timely Review and Return of Student Work. As a guideline, faculty members are expected to review and return graded student work for all coursework within 10 calendar days.
Each Instructor has a unique way of providing feedback. If you think that you are not getting enough feedback, you are strongly encouraged to contact your Instructor and ask for more. Contact information for your Instructor can be found under the Contact the Instructor area. For more information on Instructor feedback, go to the Faculty Accessibility section of Faculty and Student Guidelines for Online Courses, located in the Guidelines and Policiesarea.

Preferred Methods for Delivering Assignments
Submitting Course Postings to the Weekly Discussion Areas
Be sure that you post to the correct Discussion area each week. Do not e-mail postings to the Instructor. For all initial Discussion postings, make sure that the first sentence of your posting reads Main Question Post. For your responses to others’ postings, make sure that the first sentence of your response reads Response. These actions will ensure easily identifiable subject lines for your postings and responses.
Submitting Assignments and Projects
Assignments and Projects are submitted according to the instructions in the Assignments or Projects areas and are named according to the week in which the Assignment or Project is submitted. Directions for naming each Assignment or Project are included in each week’s Assignment or Project area. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus.
E-mailing Your Instructor
When e-mailing the Instructor, please use the following heading for your e-mail subject line: last name + your first initial + course number (e.g., RideSNURS6640) so that your Instructor will recognize and read your e-mail.
Policies on Late Assignments
Discussion and Assignment Postings
No credit will be given for Discussion and Assignment postings made after the week in which they are due unless prior arrangements are made with the Instructor. Exceptions will be made only for those rare situations that legitimately prevent a student from posting on time. Points will be deducted from late postings. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus.
Assignments
Assignments are due by Day 7 of the week in which they are assigned unless otherwise noted. Failure to meet the deadline without prior approval will result in at least a 3-point deduction per day. Any Assignment submitted after Day 4of the week following that in which it is assigned will receive zero points.
Keeping Your Coursework
You will have access to the course and your coursework from the course start date until 60 days after the course ends. After this time, you will no longer be able to access the course or related materials. For this reason, we strongly recommend that you retain copies of your completed assignments and any documents you wish to keep. The University is not responsible for lost or missing coursework.
Instructor Feedback Schedule
The Instructor will log in to the course during the week to monitor the weekly Discussion area. Feedback will be provided via the comments in the My Grades area, the Discussion area, and/or the Announcements page.
You can expect your weekly assignment grades to be posted within 10 calendar days of a due date. Instructor feedback and explanation are provided whenever full credit is not achieved. Depending on the nature of the feedback, Instructor responses may be posted to the Discussion area or included in the My Grades area. The goal of your Instructor is to act as a discussion and learning facilitator rather than a lecturer. The Instructor will not respond to every posting by every individual, so please feel free to ask your Instructor if you would like some personal feedback on a particular assignment posting or any time you have any questions regarding your assignments or your grade. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus.
Students With Disabilities
Students in this course who have a disability that might prevent them from fully demonstrating their abilities should contact the director of disability services at disability@waldenu.edu or at 1-800-925-3368, ext. 312-1205 and +1-612-925-3368 or http://www.waldenu.edu/contact for international toll-free numbers as soon as possible to initiate disability verification and discuss accommodations that may be necessary to ensure full participation in the successful completion of course requirements. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus.
Classroom Participation
In accordance with US Department of Education guidance regarding class participation, Walden University requires that all students submit their required Week 1 assignments within each course(s) during the first 7 calendar days of class. The first calendar day of class is the official start date of the course as posted on your myWalden academic page.
Assignments submitted prior to the official start date will not count toward your participation.
Financial Aid cannot be released without class participation as defined above.
Students who have already taken, and successfully completed, at least one or more class(es) with Walden will be dropped ONLY from any class(es) in which they are not participating if they do not complete their assignments by the end of the 7th day. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus.
Students who are taking their first class with Walden, and do not complete their assignments by the end of the 7thday, will be administratively withdrawn from the university.
If you have any questions about your assignments, or you are unable to complete your assignments, please contact your faculty member.

Checklist
The weekly course checklist below outlines the assignments due for the course.
All assignments are due by 11:59 p.m. Mountain Time (MT) on the day assigned (which is 1:59 a.m. Eastern Time (ET) the next day). The time stamp in the classroom will reflect Eastern Time (ET), regardless of your time zone. As long as your submission time stamp is no later than 1:59 a.m. Eastern Time (ET), you have submitted on time. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus.
To View the Calendar
To view the Course Calendar:
Course Calendar
To View a Printable Course Schedule
For full assignment details and directions, refer to each week of the course.
Click on the NURS 6640 Course Schedule (PDF) link to access the Course Schedule.
Document: NURS 6640: Course Schedule (PDF)
Checklist

Week
Assignment
Title

Week 1
Foundations of Psychotherapy

Learning Resources
Required Readings
Required Media

Discussion
Does Psychotherapy Have a Biological Basis?

Practicum
Week 1 Journal Entry

Looking Ahead
– Practicum Assignments
– Didactic Assignments

Week 2
Assessment and Diagnosis in Psychotherapy

Learning Resources
Required Readings
Required Media

Discussion
Assessment Tools

Practicum
Week 2 Journal Entry

Board Vitals
Board Vitals

Week 3
Psychodynamic Psychotherapy

Learning Resources
Required Readings
Required Media
Optional Readings

Assignment
Applying Current Literature to Clinical Practice

Practicum
Assessing Clients
Practicum Reminder

Board Vitals
Board Vitals

Week 4
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Learning Resources
Required Readings
Required Media
Optional Readings

Assignment
NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus
Cognitive Behavioral Theory versus Rational Emotive Behavioral Theory

Practicum
Week 1 Journal Entry
Week 2 Journal Entry
Week 4 Journal Entry

Board Vitals
Board Vitals

Week 5
Psychotherapy with Trauma

Learning Resources
Required Readings
Required Media
Optional Readings

Discussion
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Practicum
Week 5 Journal Entry

Board Vitals
Board Vitals

Week 6
Psychotherapy for Addictive Disorders

Learning Resources
Required Readings
Required Media
Optional Readings

Assignment
Assessing Clients with Addictive Disorders

Exam
Midterm Exam

Practicum
Week 6 Journal Entry

Board Vitals
Board Vitals

Week 7
Supportive and Interpersonal Psychotherapy

Learning Resources
Required Readings
Required Media

Assignment
Supportive Psychotherapy versus Interpersonal Psychotherapy

Practicum
– Assessing Client Progress
– Week 5 Journal Entry
– Week 6 Journal Entry
– Practicum Reminder

Board Vitals
Board Vitals

Looking Ahead
Week 8 Clinical Supervision Discussion

Week 8
Existential–Humanistic Therapy

Learning Resources
Required Readings
Required Media
Optional Readings

Discussion
Clinical Supervision

Practicum
Week 8 Journal Entry

Board Vitals
Board Vitals

Week 9
Existential–Humanistic Therapy

Learning Resources. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus
Required Readings
Required Media
Optional Readings

Discussion
Counseling Adolescents

Practicum
Week 9 Journal Entry

Board Vitals
Board Vitals

Looking Ahead
Week 10 Clinical Supervision Discussion

Week 10
Psychotherapy with Older Adults

Learning Resources
Required Readings

Discussion
Clinical Supervision

Practicum
– Client Termination Summary
– Week 8 Journal Entry
– Week 9 Journal Entry
– Week 10 Journal Entry

Board Vitals
Board Vitals

Week 11
Psychotherapy with Personality Disorders

Learning Resources
Required Readings
Required Media
Optional Readings

Discussion
Therapy for Clients with Personality Disorders

Board Vitals
Board Vitals

Exam
Final Exam

Course Evaluation

Bibliography
The bibliography contains the references for all learning materials in the course. For your convenience, a link has been provided to download and save the bibliography. NURS 6640 – Psychotherapy with Individuals – Syllabus.