The Master’s Degree in Rehabilitation Nursing considers the new sociodemographic and health issues arising from the population aging, the high incidence and prevalence of acute and chronic diseases and associated consequences, which are related to unhealthy lifestyles/behaviors, road traffic accidents, and work-related accidents. These circumstances, responsible for a significant number of hospitalizations, with longer or shorter lengths of stay, are the cause for disability or special needs in innumerous people, and have a strong impact at the individual, family, professional, social and economic levels. Thus, in order to comply with the Regulation of Specific Competences of the Specialist Nurse in Rehabilitation Nursing, approved by the Specialty Professional College Assembly, on September 18th, 2010, this degree is based on the following aspects:
-Rehabilitation comprises a set of specific knowledge and procedures that allows helping people with chronic or acute diseases or their consequences in order to promote their independence and maximize their functional potential and personal fulfilment, thus maintaining their self-esteem.
-Rehabilitation Nursing interventions promote the early diagnosis and preventive actions, so as to ensure the maintenance of the patients’ functional capabilities, the prevention of complications and disabilities, as well the implementation of therapeutic interventions. These interventions allow improving the patients’ residual functions, maintaining or recovering the independence in their activities of daily living, and minimizing the impact of the existing disability (caused either by disease or accident), namely at the neurological, respiratory, cardiac and orthopedic levels, and other impairments or disabilities. Therefore, Specialist Nurses in Rehabilitation use specific rehabilitation techniques and intervene within the education of the patients and significant persons, in medical discharge planning, the continuity of care, and the patient’s reintegration in the family and community environment, thus advocating for the patient’s right to dignity and quality of life.
In this sense, the specialized training in Rehabilitation Nursing aims at the professional development and practice, providing a strong technical, scientific, cultural and humane training which focuses on lifelong learning and allows for the acquisition of skills and knowledge for problem-solving in new or complex settings within its area of intervention.
General objectives of the study cycle:
The objective of this Master’s Degree is to train Specialist Nurses in Rehabilitation Nursing.
According to the European Quality Assurance Reference Framework in Higher Education, the National Framework Qualifications and the Ordem dos Enfermeiros, after completing the Master’s Degree, students should be able:
-To demonstrate in-depth knowledge and know how to apply it in research and in understanding and solving problems in new situations and in broad contexts related to the area of Rehabilitation Nursing;
-To demonstrate the ability to integrate knowledge, deal with complex issues, develop solutions and make decisions in situations where information is limited. They should be able to reflect on the ethical and social implications and responsibilities which stem from or constrain these solutions and decisions;
-To know how to clearly and unequivocally communicate findings and the corresponding reasoning;
-To develop the competencies that enable them to self-directed and autonomous lifelong learning.
Learning objectives:
-To plan, implement and assess the specialized Rehabilitation Nursing care provided to individuals, families, groups and communities;
-To design, organize, plan, implement and assess specialized care programs within the scope of prevention, empowerment and social reintegration of individuals in their life processes;
-To act scientifically and develop research practices;
-To take responsibility for the training and management of nurses and nursing care;
-To participate in policy-making, as well as in the planning and management of care and health resources;
-To provide technical and scientific opinions in the context of Rehabilitation Nursing.
