Graduate Certificate in Gerontology and Palliative Care - Interprofessional Practice Georgian College - Orangeville Campus, Canada

This program is designed to assist Internationally Educated Nurses (IENs) to work as part of an inter-professional healthcare team in geriatric and palliative care settings. Students acquire the knowledge and expertise to enhance an individual’s quality of living and dying as part of an end of life process.  To meet the individual needs of the client during this transitional phase of their life, students examine current theories and explore best practices to build skills in assessment, planning, intervention, and evaluation. Through a combination of classroom instruction and lab, students focus on the importance of communication, spirituality, ethics, law and culturally responsive nursing care for an aging or end-of-life population.  Students will have an opportunity to consolidate their classroom learning with one practicum placement in a variety of settings that may include hospital, community, home care or long term care.   

Program Learning Outcomes
The graduate has reliably demonstrated the ability to:

• Identify and apply strategies that promote self-esteem, dignity, and independence of geriatric and palliative clients and family to support health, aging, and/or dying and death;
• Communicate effectively to strengthen interprofessional collaborative practice in the delivery of person and family-centred care;
• Provide holistic and culturally responsive care to geriatric and palliative clients and families to ease the stress of aging and/or dying an death;
• Comply with legislation, regulations and ethical standards in the provision of care for geriatric and palliative clients within the health care context;
• Apply an evidence-based perspective to inform care plans, programs and services for geriatric and palliative clients;
• Develop and use personal/professional strategies and plans for professional growth and to improve job performance in a Canadian health care operations context;
• Evaluate the efficacy of care measures delivered to geriatric and palliative clients to manage their symptoms and ensure comfort.