Graduate Diploma of Perioperative Nursing
2025 Deakin University Handbook
| Year | 2025 course information |
|---|---|
| Award granted | Graduate Diploma of Perioperative Nursing |
| Deakin course code | H672 |
| Faculty | Faculty of Health |
| Campus | This course is only offered Online |
| Online | Yes |
| Duration | 2 year part-time study |
| Course Map - enrolment planning tool | This course map is for new students commencing from Trimester 1 2025. Course maps for commencement in previous years are available on the Course Maps webpage or please contact a Student Adviser in Student Central. |
| Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) recognition | The award conferred upon completion is recognised in the Australian Qualifications Framework at Level 8 |
Course sub-headings
- Course overview
- Indicative student workload
- Professional recognition
- Career opportunities
- Participation requirements
- Pathways
- Alternative exits
- Course Learning Outcomes
- Course rules
- Course structure
- Fees and charges
Course overview
Every year, 2.8 million hospitalisations in Australia result in surgical interventions.* Integral to these interventions are the perioperative nurses providing care and support in pre-operative, intraoperative and post-operative environments. The advanced specialist skills required for this pivotal role in a multidisciplinary perioperative team are in high demand, in one of the strongest growth areas of the health sector.^ Deakin’s Graduate Diploma of Perioperative Nursing prepares you to meet that demand.
Ranked #16 in the world,# our School of Nursing and Midwifery is one of Australia’s largest and most established. You will be learning from the best with the School’s cutting-edge research recognised as well above world standard#. Our strong industry connections mean you will be guided by experts in critical care and perioperative nursing as you explore the current and emerging trends, concepts, knowledge and evidence that provides the policy and practice framework in which perioperative nursing takes place.
Are you ready to play a pivotal role in a multidisciplinary perioperative team?
If you want to take the next step in your nursing career, our Graduate Diploma of Perioperative Nursing prepares you to practise effectively at an advanced practice level. As a graduate you will demonstrate ethical, safe, high-quality and expert clinical decision-making abilities within a multidisciplinary team, and psychomotor skills commensurate with specialised theoretical knowledge, evidence-based practice and person-centred care.
Deakin’s strong industry connections ensure a high level of collaboration and support during your clinical practice. This means that while you study you can immerse yourself in your speciality nursing practice area with one of our numerous metropolitan, rural and regional health partners across Australia.
This course enables you to:
- critically assess and manage elective and emergency patients undergoing complex and specialty surgical procedures, including anaesthetic management
- develop an advanced understanding of pharmacological therapies including anaesthetic agents, adjunct therapies and pain management therapies
- perform patient assessment and monitoring of neurological, cardiovascular, respiratory and haemodynamic states
- manage complex and special populations to identify risk and inform decisions that deliver safe, high-quality nursing care to promote optimal patient outcomes
- play a pivotal role in the multidisciplinary team management of surgical and/or procedural patients across: infection prevention, surgical safety and environmental planning and preparation; surgical wound closure and management; and medico-legal requirements
- demonstrate skills in advanced monitoring and postoperative anaesthesia care following complex and specialty surgery
- apply the core principles of perioperative practice across a range of surgical specialities
- develop greater decision-making autonomy, critical thinking and leadership skills, advanced clinical judgement, and professional behaviours required for safe patient care, effective teamwork, and career advancement.
Second year elective units allow you to pursue specific areas of interest aligned to your career goals. You can choose from complementary areas of health practice, or undertake studies preparing you for roles in education, leadership or management. You will also have the opportunity to select a unit from anywhere across the university, further expanding your skill set.
Our innovative online program delivers a rich, interactive and empowering learning experience that is designed for postgraduate nursing students. Live-streaming seminars and class discussions encourage critical thinking, problem-solving and teamwork skills. Australia’s top-rated tech support and access to our expert teaching staff means you can learn at your own pace, when and where it suits you, without compromising quality or support.
With job growth of 12.2% projected for registered nurses and 12.1% for nurse managers by 2028,^ there is an industry demand for nurses with sophisticated specialty skills. Perioperative nurses are in strong demand as they are an integral part of the multidisciplinary teams that support patients through their surgical experience.
* Australia’s hospitals at a glance 2022 – Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) Australian Government (2022).
^ Jobs and Skills Australia Employment Projections
# 2023 ShanghaiRankings Ranking of Academic Subjects.
** Excellence in Research Australia (ERA) 2018.
Indicative student workload
As an online student in the Faculty of Health you will be expected to spend 11-13 hours every week studying, interacting online and completing assessment tasks for each unit in your course. Refer to the individual unit details in the course structure for more information.
Professional recognition
Nurses employed under the Victorian public hospital award receive a higher duties allowance for postgraduate qualifications relevant to their practice.
Career opportunities
With job growth of 12.2% projected for registered nurses and 12.1% for nurse managers by 2028,^ there is an industry demand for nurses with sophisticated specialty skills, particularly in regional and rural areas. Deakin’s Graduate Diploma of Perioperative Nursing will allow you to meet that demand in a variety of roles across advanced practice, leadership and management, including:
- anaesthetic nurse
- circulating nurse
- instrument nurse
- nurse educator
- perioperative nursing management positions
- post anaesthesia care unit (PACU) nurse
- pre-admission and day surgery nurses.
^ Jobs and Skills Australia Employment Projections
Participation requirements
Reasonable adjustments to participation and other course requirements will be made for students with a disability. More information available at Disability support services.
Pathways
Alternative exits
| Graduate Certificate of Perioperative Nursing (H572) |
Clinical Practice
To undertake this course you must independently secure employment of at least 24 hours per week in a perioperative setting within a collaborating hospital in Australia.
Clinical requirement
Clinical practice across all perioperative speciality areas (intraoperative, perianaesthesia and post anaesthesia care unit) per semester.
Core clinical certificate units in this course are semester based. Students are expected to attend synchronous seminars on Wednesdays throughout the semester.
Course Learning Outcomes
| Deakin Graduate Learning Outcomes | Course Learning Outcomes |
|---|---|
| Discipline-specific knowledge and capabilities | Demonstrate advanced clinical practice commensurate with perioperative nursing theoretical knowledge, evidence-based practice and person-centred care |
| Communication | Demonstrate advanced communication skills to ensure the delivery of high quality, safe nursing care to patients in the perioperative care setting. |
| Digital literacy | Evaluate information using digital technologies to effectively disseminate relevant perioperative care information to patients and/or the multidisciplinary team. |
| Critical thinking | Identify, analyse and evaluate complex data from multiple sources to inform clinical decision making in the perioperative care setting. |
| Problem solving | Apply advanced nursing knowledge to complex problems in the perioperative care setting to optimise patient outcomes. |
| Self-management | Demonstrate professionalism, accountability, reflection, and personal autonomy as a perioperative nurse. |
| Teamwork | Establish and maintain inclusive, collaborative professional relationships with all members of the multidisciplinary team. |
| Global citizenship | Demonstrate accountability for, and sound professional judgement in behaviours that uphold ethical principles of practice within diverse social, cultural, and environmental contexts. |
Course rules
To complete the Graduate Diploma of Perioperative Nursing students must pass 8 credit points and meet the following course rules to be eligible to graduate:
- DAI001 Academic Integrity and Respect at Deakin (0-credit-point compulsory unit) in their first study period
- 6 credit points of core units
- 1 credit point of course electives
- 1 credit point of level 7 open electives
Students are required to meet the University's academic progress and conduct requirements. See the enrolment codes and terminology to help make sense of the University’s vocabulary.
Note:
- This course is part-time only.
- The core perioperative nursing specialisation units are completed in year 1 of the course and are semester-based delivery.
- Both the theoretical and clinical components of the assessment for each unit must be passed in order to successfully gain an overall pass in this course. Compulsory clinical hurdles form part of the assessment of this course. Recognition of the importance of clinical assessments is calculated in the overall student workload.
- Failure of a compulsory clinical component in a unit will normally lead to exclusion.
Course structure
Core units
Year 1 - Semester 1
| DAI001 | Academic Integrity and Respect at Deakin (0 credit points) |
| HNN755 | Core Principles of Perianaesthesia Nursing Care * |
| HNN740 | Core Principles of Intraoperative Nursing Care * |
Year 1 - Semester 2
| HNN742 | Principles of Complex Perianaesthesia Nursing Care * |
| HNN743 | Principles of Complex Intraoperative Nursing Care * |
Year 2 - Trimester 1
| HNN750 | Inquiry Into Specialty Nursing Practice |
Plus 1 credit point of course elective
Year 2 - Trimester 2
| HNN788 | Advanced Concepts in Specialty Nursing Practice |
Plus 1 credit point of any level 7 electives from anywhere in the university, including stackable short courses (0.5 cp microcredentials), subject to eligibility.
* Speciality units are delivered on a semester basis in the first year of study
Course Electives
| HND701 | Pathophysiology of Diabetes |
| HND702 | Management of Diabetes |
| HND731 | Contemporary Approaches to Diabetes Education |
| HND732 | Diabetes in Social and Psychological Contexts |
| HNN714 | Ethical Dimensions in Nursing |
| HNN715 | Leadership and Management in Nursing |
| HNN730 | Advanced Health Assessment and Diagnostic Reasoning |
| HNN749 | Patient Safety and Risk Management |
| HNN754 | Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples' History, Culture and Health |
| HNN761 | Biopsychosocialspiritual Mental Health Nursing Assessment |
| HNN762 | Person-Centred Approaches to Engagement in Mental Health Nursing |
| HNN771 | Facilitating Clinical Learning |
| HNN772 | Healthcare in Low Resource/Complex Environments |
| HNN773 | Healthcare Management of Vulnerable Populations |
| HNN778 | Research in Nursing and Midwifery |
| HNN780 | Quality and Safety in Medication Management |
| HNN781 | Therapeutic Medication Management |
| HNN782 | Recognising and Understanding Mental Illness |
| HNN783 | Therapeutic Interventions in Mental Health Nursing |
| HNN789 | The Physical Health Needs of Persons with Mental Illness |
| HNN790 | Sustaining the Mental Health Nursing Workforce |
Stackable short courses
Mix and match Deakin stackable short courses (0.5 cp microcredentials) to earn up to 1 credit point of open electives, subject to eligibility. Any stacking must add up to a whole number to be used for credit. See more information on Deakin stackable short course options.
Course duration
Course duration may be affected by delays in completing course requirements, such as failing of units or accessing or completing clinical requirements.
Further information
Student Central can help you with course planning, choosing the right units and explaining course rules and requirements.
- Contact Student Central
Fees and charges
Fees and charges vary depending on the type of fee place you hold, your course, your commencement year, the units you choose to study, and their study discipline or your study load.
Tuition fees increase at the beginning of each calendar year and all fees quoted are in Australian dollars ($AUD). Tuition fees do not include textbooks, computer equipment or software, other equipment or costs such as mandatory checks, travel and stationery.
For further information regarding tuition fees, other fees and charges, invoice due dates, withdrawal dates, payment methods visit our Current students website.