Overview

This unit provides mental health nurses with a greater understanding of the social, legal, political and clinical issues, including assessment and intervention skills that are required to work in forensic settings. The unit will equip students with knowledge regarding nursing interventions that are relevant to working with mental health service users in forensic settings, particularly those clients with challenging behaviours.

Requisites

Prerequisites
FBS80008 Forensic Mental Health Nursing

Rule

Admission into:

GC-FMHN Graduate Certificate in Forensic Mental Health Nursing

OR

GD-FMHN Graduate Diploma of Forensic Mental Health Nursing

OR

MA-FBS Master of Forensic Behavioural Science

OR

GD-FBS Graduate Diploma of Forensic Behavioural Science

Teaching periods
Location
Start and end dates
Last self-enrolment date
Census date
Last withdraw without fail date
Results released date
Semester 1
Location
Hawthorn
Start and end dates
03-March-2025
01-June-2025
Last self-enrolment date
16-March-2025
Census date
31-March-2025
Last withdraw without fail date
24-April-2025
Results released date
08-July-2025

Learning outcomes

Students who successfully complete this unit will be able to:

  • Apply advanced knowledge of the different settings forensic mental health nurses work in and evaluate how these settings may impact on practice
  • Critically appraise the unique factors of the forensic therapeutic relationship within an ethical framework
  • Evaluate the different nursing assessments and interventions relevant to working with forensic mental health service users
  • Analyse the unique challenges for nursing in forensic mental health settings and identify appropriate principles to work through these challenges

Teaching methods

Hawthorn Online

Type Hours per week Number of weeks Total (number of hours)
Face to Face Contact (Phasing out)
Workshop
12.00 1 week 12
Online
Directed Online Learning and Independent Learning
11.50 12 weeks 138
TOTAL150

Assessment

Type Task Weighting ULO's
Case AnalysisIndividual 35% 2,4 
PresentationIndividual 30% 1,4 
ReflectionIndividual 35% 3,4 

Content

  • The forensic mental health nursing setting
  • Mental illness and offending
  • The therapeutic relationship
  • Forensic mental health nursing assessment and intervention
  • Challenges to care in the forensic setting

Study resources

Reading materials

A list of reading materials and/or required textbooks will be available in the Unit Outline on Canvas.