This Postgraduate Certificate in the Art and Science of Health Care are post-registration programmes for New Zealand registered health professionals wanting to advance their clinical practice. A range of papers are offered, with a focus on advancing care, pathophysiology, pharmacology, pain, and community practice. The postgraduate diploma/certificate is able to be credited into Master programmes throughout New Zealand.
One year full-time
or two years part-time
Blended Delivery
2023 Semester 1: 08 February to 21 June. Intake has closed
2023 Semester 2: 20 July to 30 November. Closing date 07 July 2023.
This programme is eligible for the Zero Fees Scheme.
International Fees can be found here.
NZ$4,500.00 (International Students)
This Postgraduate Certificate in the Art and Science of Health Care is a post-registration programme for New Zealand registered health professionals wanting to develop advancing skills. A range of papers are offered with a focus on high acuity care, community practice and the interfaces between hospital and home.
You, as a health professional, will be able to develop skills of research, critical analysis, constructive synthesis and advanced practice in your discipline.
This programme delivered through Blended Delivery.
Applicants should have either a degree in a nursing or health related subject or proven evidence of Level 7 study.
EACH PAPER IS WORTH 30 CREDITS AT LEVEL 8 AND REQUIRES APPROXIMATELY 300 HOURS OF STUDY (I.E. APPROXIMATELY 15-20 HOURS PER WEEK)
Semester One, 2023
CLOSING DATE FOR APPLICATIONS: 12th December 2022
Orientation seminar 16/2/22 or 20/7/22 (on-line)
HS801 Clinical Diagnostic Reasoning and Health Assessment for Health Professionals
This paper enables registered nurses/registered health professionals to develop, conduct and critically reflect on advanced health assessment and diagnostic reasoning in the individual’s clinical setting.
Study days online: 15th & 16th March
Study days on-site: 15th February; 5th April; 3rd May; 1st & 2nd June (on-site assessment)
HS802 Pathophysiology for Health Professionals
This paper explores the pathophysiological basis of complex disease processes in long-term and common conditions. This paper assumes existing knowledge of normal anatomy and physiology and engenders critical understanding of altered, complex health states.
Study days (all online): 9th February; 10th March; 28th April; 19th May; 8th & 9th June
HS810 Health Professional Practice to Support Older Persons’ Health and Wellbeing
This paper enables New Zealand registered health professionals to develop knowledge which will assist in facilitating and providing evidence-based care to support older adults’ health and wellbeing.
Study days (all online): 22nd February; 15th March; 5th & 26th April; 17th May; 14th June
HS820 Health Services Management
This paper provides an opportunity for New Zealand registered health professionals to acquire knowledge and skills applied by managers and leaders in health services to ensure the achievement of improved patient outcomes.
Study days (all online): 20th February; 29th May
Semester Two, 2023
CLOSING DATE FOR APPLICATIONS: 13th June 2023
HS809 Applied Pharmacology for Health Professionals
This paper promotes the advancement of ethically robust and socio-culturally aligned pharmacological knowledge to health professionals engaged with health consumers in a variety of clinical environments
Study days (all online): 20th July; 10th & 27th August; 21st Sept; 19th October; 2nd, 16th & 23th November.
HS815 Advancing Clinical Emergency Care
This paper refines advancing practice, by enhancing New Zealand registered health professionals’ skills and expertise in assessment, diagnostic processes, interventions, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and pharmacotherapeutics using evidence-based practice in emergency clinical settings.
Study days on-site: 26th & 27th July; 16th & 17th August; 20th & 21st September; 18th & 19th October (on-site assessment)
HS816 Advanced practice to support long term conditions
This paper advances the New Zealand registered health professionals’ knowledge, utilising evidence-based practice, to provide expert levels of management of care, to health consumers with common long-term conditions across settings.
Study days (all online): 25th July; 1st, 22nd & 29th August; 19th & 26th September; 10th & 17th October.
HS818 Pain, Pain Assessment and Pain Management for Health Professionals
This paper enables New Zealand registered health professionals to develop an enhanced knowledge of acute, subacute and chronic pain, including pain assessment and the different therapeutic pain management interventions within the New Zealand context.
Study days (all on-site): 26th & 27th July; 27th & 28th September; 1st & 2nd November.
HS821 Research Paradigms for Nursing Science
This paper provides New Zealand registered health professionals with the knowledge and skills required for scholarly research at a postgraduate level, covering a range of paradigms, approaches, and techniques, with particular emphasis on the New Zealand cultural and sociopolitical context.
Study days: dates are individualised & specific to each student
*PAPERS SUBJECT TO APPROVAL
HS823 Health in Aotearoa New Zealand
This course aims to allow students to explore the implications of Te Tiriti o Waitangi for healthcare in Aotearoa New Zealand, as well as cultural and socioeconomic influences on the health of the Aotearoa New Zealand population.
MHS8.424 Global Health
This course aims to provide students with a comprehensive and critical overview of the global burden of chronic non-communicable diseases in an interdisciplinary health context. MHS8.443 Health in Aotearoa New Zealand This course aims to guide students in developing and extending knowledge and skills related to health promotion by critically examining relevant issues in a global and Aotearoa New Zealand context.
MN8.406 Advanced Practice to Support Child and Family Health
This course aims to draw on students’ developing knowledge and understanding of children (tamariki), youth (rangatahi) and families (whanau) to examine the child/youth within the family as the centre of health care from a wide range of perspectives and disciplines.
MN8.412 Advanced Practice in Critical care Nursing – not until 2025
This level 8 online course provides for specialist practice in critical care. The course explores essential theory underpinning practice that assists the registered nurse working in a critical care environment, to develop advanced practice knowledge and skills. Students will explore and critically analyze all aspects of the critical care environment that impact on patient care and professional practice. This includes clinical governance, multidisciplinary team collaboration and the legal and ethical issues related to the provision of care in a bioscience/technical situation.
Graduates of this programmes will already be a New Zealand registered health professional.
After graduation (and further work experience in some cases), possible jobs in the private and public sectors include management roles, educators in tertiary education and clinical settings as well as advancing health professional practice in primary secondary and tertiary health settings
Application by Academic Qualification
An undergraduate degree in a health profession discipline and with New Zealand registration in their health care discipline. It is expected that applicants will be in current clinical practice. 0.4 full time equivalent positions is the expected minimum. However, applicants who are unable to meet this will be assessed by the postgraduate programme manager to ensure they have appropriate clinical placements. Where an applicant does not hold an undergraduate degree in a health professional discipline, evidence of extensive professional practice and scholarly achievement to the equivalent of a Bachelor’s degree is to be presented in a curriculum vitae accompanied by a statement about advanced practice and postgraduate goals for the future.
Additional Criteria
A minimum of one-year full time post registration experience and so thus one year in practice at the discretion of the programme manager is required.
All applicants must be New Zealand Registered Health Professionals.
To be awarded the Postgraduate Certificate in the Art and Science of Health Care at SIT, the student will have been credited with two papers of choice as specified in the structure of the Postgraduate Certificate in the Art and Science of Health Care. The total credit value of the Postgraduate Certificate in the Art and Science of Health Care is 60 credits.
Please note that students failing to attend for 80% of the timetabled programme hours, may forfeit Zero Fee entitlement.
A student who has completed the Postgraduate Certificate may proceed to the Postgraduate Diploma in the Art and Science of Health Care programme with credit for those papers already completed.