Perioperative nursing foundations assessment

CNA756 Foundations of Perioperative Nursing Theory – Assessment Brief 

Unit context

CNA756 Foundations of Perioperative Nursing Theory at the University of Tasmania focuses on ethical and legal issues, infection control, professional practice, operating suite planning, and applied anatomy and pathophysiology across the perioperative continuum for general surgery and related procedures. The unit learning outcomes ask you to critically analyse legal and ethical issues, apply infection control and human factors principles for safety and efficiency, and link anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiology to person-centred perioperative care.

Assessment Task: Perioperative Case Critique, Reflection, and Safety Presentation (3-part Assignment)

Overview

This three-part assignment aligns with the 2024 CNA756 assessment structure (case critique, reflective summary, and oral case study) while integrating them into a single, coherent 2025 task sequence. Across the three parts, you will analyse legal and ethical issues, interrogate practice variation and safety risks, integrate peer feedback, and present an evidence-informed perioperative care plan grounded in contemporary perioperative standards and guidelines.

Task summary

• Part A – Written Case Critique: 1,250-word essay (Week 4, 30%).

• Part B – Reflective Integration: 1,250-word reflective paper (Week 9, 30%).

• Part C – Perioperative Case Study Presentation: 10-minute oral presentation (≈1,500 words equivalent) with visuals (Week 13, 40%).

Part A: Written Case Critique – Legal, Ethical, and Practice Variations (1,250 words)

Purpose

Part A allows you to demonstrate critical understanding of legal and ethical dimensions of perioperative nursing, including how practice variations can compromise safety and quality. The focus is on deep, structured analysis of a perioperative case using contemporary scholarly literature, ACORN standards, and organisational policies.

Task description

Select a perioperative case:

• Choose a real or de-identified patient who has undergone general surgery or an endoscopic procedure in an Australian perioperative setting.

• Ensure you can describe the case from preoperative assessment through intraoperative care to postoperative recovery and discharge planning.

Identify legal and ethical issues:

• Describe 2–3 key legal and/or ethical issues arising in the case (for example, informed consent, duty of care, documentation, privacy and confidentiality, advocacy, delegation and accountability).

• Explain how these issues relate to relevant legislation, professional codes, and perioperative standards (e.g. ACORN standards, NMBA standards and codes).

Analyse practice variations and risk:

• Identify any variations from best practice or standards in the perioperative care provided (for example, breaks in aseptic technique, poor communication in the team, inadequate verification of patient identity or procedure).

• Evaluate how these variations may affect patient safety, outcomes, or staff well-being, using contemporary evidence.

Develop evidence-informed recommendations:

• Provide clear, practical recommendations to address identified gaps in practice.

• Anchor your recommendations in current perioperative guidelines, evidence-informed literature, and organisational policies (e.g. infection control, surgical safety checklists, human factors and team communication).

Use scholarly sources:

• Support all key arguments with peer-reviewed evidence and current standards (2018–2025).

• Demonstrate use of APA style for in-text citations and reference list, as required in the unit outline.

Length and format

• Length: 1,250 words (±10%), excluding reference list.

• Structure: academic essay with introduction, logically ordered body sections, and succinct conclusion.

• Referencing: current APA style (as specified for CNA756).

Marking criteria (Part A)

Depth of legal and ethical analysis:

• Clearly identifies and explains relevant legal and ethical issues in the perioperative context, with accurate links to legislation, codes, and standards.

Evaluation of practice variation:

• Critically evaluates practice deviations and their implications for safety, quality, and person-centred care, supported by current evidence.

Quality of recommendations:

• Provides specific, feasible, evidence-informed recommendations that address identified gaps or risks.

Use of evidence:

• Integrates contemporary scholarly literature and perioperative guidelines to support analysis and recommendations.

Academic writing and APA style:

• Communicates clearly and succinctly, with logical flow and correct APA referencing as per unit expectations.

Part B: Reflective Integration – Feedback, Learning, and Practice (1,250 words)

Purpose

Part B requires you to step back from the initial critique to critically reflect on your reasoning, incorporate peer feedback, and articulate how your learning might influence your future perioperative practice. The aim is to build reflexive capacity and show how collaborative review refines clinical judgement and ethical decision-making.

Task description

Engage in peer review:

• Participate in a structured peer-review activity where you exchange a draft of Part A with at least one peer, following unit guidance.

• Provide timely, constructive feedback on your peer’s work, focusing on clarity of argument, ethical and legal reasoning, use of evidence, and alignment with standards.

Summarise received feedback:

• Briefly summarise the key points of feedback you received about your own case critique.

• Identify areas of strength and areas suggested for improvement.

Reflect on your responses:

• Explain which pieces of feedback you decided to adopt, modify, or reject, and why.

• Discuss how this process affected your understanding of the legal, ethical, and safety issues in the case.

Connect to practice and learning outcomes:

• Reflect on how your insights from the critique and feedback process could shape your future perioperative practice, including communication, advocacy, and teamwork.

• Link your reflections explicitly to unit learning outcomes (LO1–LO3) and relevant standards or professional expectations.

Maintain scholarly tone:

• Write in the first person where appropriate, but maintain a professional, analytical style.

• Support key points with selected literature on reflection, feedback, and perioperative nursing where relevant.

Length and format

• Length: 1,250 words (±10%), excluding reference list.

• Structure: reflective essay with clear sections (e.g. feedback received, decisions made, implications for practice).

• Referencing: current APA style for any literature cited.

Marking criteria (Part B)

Integration of peer feedback:

• Demonstrates thoughtful engagement with peer feedback and recognises the value of collaborative review in improving academic and clinical work.

Rationale for decisions:

• Provides a reasoned explanation for incorporating, modifying, or rejecting specific feedback.

Depth of reflection:

• Moves beyond description to critically examine personal assumptions, reasoning, and learning in relation to perioperative legal, ethical, and safety issues.

Connection to learning outcomes and practice:

• Explicitly links reflection to unit learning outcomes, perioperative standards, and future professional practice.

Communication and APA style:

• Uses clear, coherent writing with appropriate structure and accurate APA referencing.

Part C: Perioperative Patient Safety Case Presentation (10 minutes, ≈1,500 words equivalent)

Purpose

Part C asks you to synthesise learning from Parts A and B by presenting a perioperative case focused on patient safety across the perioperative continuum. You will demonstrate your ability to connect pathophysiology, human factors, infection control, and ethical and legal considerations to evidence-informed perioperative nursing care.

Task description

Select or extend a case:

• Use the same case from Part A or, with approval, a related general surgery or endoscopic case.

• Ensure you have enough detail to map the patient’s journey from admission through surgery to discharge.

Describe the perioperative journey:

• Briefly outline the patient’s history, presenting problem, planned procedure, and relevant co-morbidities.

• Summarise key events and decisions across preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative phases.

Analyse patient safety issues:

• Identify and analyse key actual or potential patient safety issues (e.g. medication errors, communication breakdowns, surgical site infection risks, positioning injuries, airway or haemodynamic compromise).

• Discuss contributing factors, including human factors, team communication, systems issues, and environmental constraints.

Link to pathophysiology and perioperative care:

• Explain the underlying anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiology relevant to the patient’s condition and procedure.

• Rationalise the nursing interventions provided in each phase of care, linking them to the patient’s pathophysiological status and current guidelines.

Apply standards and evidence:

• Demonstrate alignment with ACORN standards, local policies, and evidence-informed guidelines for safe perioperative care.

• Use current scholarly literature to support key safety and care decisions.

Presentation delivery:

• Prepare a 10-minute presentation (≈1,500 words equivalent) using slides or another approved visual format.

• Ensure content is logically structured, visually clear, and accessible to a multidisciplinary perioperative audience.

Length and format

• Presentation duration: 10 minutes (plus time for brief questions if required).

• Format: narrated slide presentation, live or recorded, as directed by the unit coordinator.

• References: include in-slide citations (APA) and a final reference slide with full APA reference list.

Marking criteria (Part C)

Analysis of patient safety:

• Clearly identifies and analyses key safety risks and incidents in the perioperative journey, supported by contemporary literature and guidelines.

Pathophysiological reasoning:

• Accurately links anatomy, physiology, and pathophysiology to assessment findings, risks, and nursing interventions.

Application of standards and evidence:

• Demonstrates explicit use of ACORN standards, professional codes, and evidence-informed guidelines to justify care.

Organisation and clarity:

• Presents information in a logical, coherent sequence with clear visual support and time management.

Professional communication:

• Uses clear, concise spoken language appropriate to perioperative professionals, with correct APA referencing on slides.

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Assessment conditions, submission, and grading

Submission and late penalties

• Submit written components via the designated MyLO assignment folders by the due dates specified (Weeks 4 and 9).

• Apply for extensions before the due date where possible; documentation may be required following the UTAS Assessment and Results Procedure.

• Late submissions attract a 5% penalty per calendar day up to 10 days; work is not accepted after that or after marked work is returned.

Passing the unit

You must demonstrate achievement of all relevant learning outcomes across the three parts and achieve a final unit grade of at least 50% to pass CNA756.

Assessment criteria are designed to align directly with LO1 (legal and ethical analysis), LO2 (infection control and human factors), and LO3 (pathophysiology and person-centred perioperative care).

This CNA756 Foundations of Perioperative Nursing Theory assessment brief gives postgraduate nursing students a clear guide to writing case critiques, reflective summaries, and perioperative safety presentations for University of Tasmania standards. Use this structured rubric to plan high-quality perioperative nursing assignments that meet ACORN standards, demonstrate legal and ethical reasoning, and showcase safe, evidence-informed perioperative care across the surgical continuum.

Peer-reviewed references

Gillespie, BM, Harbeck, E, Lavin, J, Gardiner, T & Withers, TK 2018, ‘Participation of the circulating nurse in time out for wrong-site surgery prevention’, Journal of PeriAnesthesia Nursing, vol. 33, no. 4, pp. 451–459, doi:10.1016/j.jopan.2017.05.013.

Mitchell, BG, Gardner, A, Stone, PW, Hall, L & Pogorzelska-Maziarz, M 2019, ‘Infection prevention and control: a narrative review of perioperative practice’, American Journal of Infection Control, vol. 47, no. 11, pp. 1382–1390, doi:10.1016/j.ajic.2019.05.017.

Australian College of Perioperative Nurses (ACORN) 2023, Standards for Safe and Quality Care in the Perioperative Environment (SSQCPE) for Organisations, ACORN, Adelaide, available via University of Tasmania Library Reading List for CNA756.

Sutherland-Fraser, S, Davies, M, Gillespie, BM & Lockwood, B 2021, Perioperative Nursing: An Introduction, 3rd edn, Elsevier, Chatswood.

Rothrock, JC (ed.) 2018, Alexander’s Care of the Patient in Surgery, 16th edn, Elsevier, St Louis.