Children's specific clinical skills are taught throughout all years of the undergraduate CGIDP and higher diploma in children's nursing programmes. They are designed to enable the student to provide excellent evidence based nursing care to sick children and their families in the acute hospital based setting and in community settings. Each clinical skills session is based on current national and international best practice guidelines and aims to equip the student with the skills and practical guidance necessary to provide high quality nursing care to patients and their families.
Many teaching strategies are utilised during clinical skills classes, such as technological based simulation, laboratory-based simulation, role-play, problem-based learning and ward based teaching in the health service providers. The following is a list of skills that are taught, they correspond directly with child theory classes that are delivered in D'Olier St.

Over the course of their studies the general health student nurse will be taught both interpersonal/communication and physical healthcare skills.

Over the course of their studies the mental health student nurse will be taught both interpersonal / communication and physical healthcare skills.

Interpersonal/Communication Skills

Year 1

As communication is a fundamental component of all recovery orientated therapeutic interventions in mental health nursing and is essential for the delivery of quality nursing care, the clinical skills sessions (24 contact hours) focus on the application of psychotherapeutic skills drawing on Heron’s (2001) six category intervention analysis communication framework and Rogers (1961) person centered humanistic approach. The interpersonal verbal and non-verbal communication skills

taught at this level focus on active listening, displaying empathy, questioning, paraphrasing, observation and holistic, collaborative assessment.

Year 2

Through the use of scenario based critical incident analysis the students’ examine the different psychotherapeutic frameworks/approaches commonly used in mental health care when working with service users, families and groups who are experiencing mental health problems/distress.

Year 3    

Through the use of role play, students are given the opportunity to discuss the dynamics / process involved in facilitating groups and to practice group facilitation skills by means of role-play. They are also provided with opportunities for experiential learning on the hearing voices experience, and case study analysis of risk assessment, coping skills and family psychoeducation.

Postgraduate (M.Sc. in Mental Health, Psychosocial Interventions Strand)

Through the use of self assessed video recorded role play, students are given the opportunity to practice advanced interpersonal communication skills based on the Maastricht Interview guide (Escher and Romme,2000).

Teaching and Learning Methods Used

Experiential learning methods: brainstorming, paired exercises (skills rehearsal),video analysis  and role play.

Physical Care Skills Mental Health Nursing

There is a growing body of evidence that individuals with serious mental illness (SMI) suffer serious physical ill health. To provide comprehensive competent care for mental health service users, the following skills are taught: 

Student Nurse Teaching in the Practice Placement

Nurses in intellectual disability (ID) work in a broad range of services including long-stay settings, community, day-care, care of the older person, child and adolescent. Nurses in ID have a diversity of roles, on a continuum ranging from intensive physical nursing of persons with a severe degree of disability to supportive guidance in the management of children, adults and older persons. To this end and to ensure that you will have the appropriate skillset for the diverse settings and needs of people with ID, specialised skill are also part of your clinical learning. Examples of which are:

Year One

Task Analysis

Supporting individuals to become independent adults involves teaching and supporting the person to master skills of daily living. One method to this is called Task Analysis.Task analysis is the process of breaking a skill into smaller, more manageable steps in order to teach the skill. As the smaller steps are mastered, the person becomes increasingly independent in his or her ability to perform the larger skill. In year one, you will learn how to support the person in choosing a skill they may need or wish to learn. Task analysis can be used in school, home, or community settings. You will practice developing complex task analysis which are individualised to the person's needs.

Year Two

Many children/adults with intellectual disability (ID) have multiple health problems secondary to their neurological disorder. Dysphagia, which means that the person has difficulty in the oral preparation for the swallow or in moving food from their mouth to the stomach. Some of your clinical skills will focus on correct positioning of the person during mealtimes, checking the consistency of food etc. However in Year two you will learn the procedure for the introduction of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG). PEG feeding is as an effective way of providing enteral feeding to individuals, who for many reasons cannot meet their nutritional needs because of inadequate oral intake.

Year Three

In year three you will complete the multi element behavioural support model as part of your advanced skills. This approach supports individual who engage in behaviours of distress/challenging behaviours to communicate their important messages. The person may be nonverbal but  wants to say "I feel awful today" or "I am in pain" or "leave me alone" but is unable to verbalise and so may use an alternative method that others may find challenging. In this year you will learn specific skills on functional assessment, analysis and  teaching alternative communications methods to support the individual.

Discipline Specific courses include:

• MAPA (Management of Actual and Potential Aggression)
• Dementia
• Autism

Midwifery Students

In the BSc in midwifery programme, the clinical skills centre provides a vital role in bringing the theory of midwifery to clinical practice. An example of some of the midwifery skills taught in the centre include, abdominal palpation, the mechanism of birth, fetal physiology, pharmacology, venepuncture and cannulation, suturing, neonatal resuscitation, breastfeeding and recording vital signs. We have a range of midwifery models and equipment that we use to illustrate the above skills in a simulated clinical setting.

In the H.Dip. in Midwifery programme, the clinical skills centre provides a vital role in linking the theory of midwifery to clinical practice. An example of some of the skills we teach On this programme in the clinical skills centre include , abdominal palpation, the mechanism of birth, fetal physiology, venepuncture and cannulation, suturing, estimating blood loss, neonatal resuscitation and breastfeeding. We have a range of midwifery models and equipment that we use to illustrate the above skills in a simulated clinical setting.