NRSG374 Principles of Nursing : A Palliative

NRSG374 Assessment 2: Written Critique

Task Written Assessment Instructions

This assessment consists of three sections. Each section includes a choice of questions — you are required to select and respond to one (1) question per section.

You do not need to include introductions or conclusions for each section or for the overall assessment.

When answering, you must demonstrate critical thinking and analysis. A critique should go beyond description to provide a reasoned evaluation of the care provided — identifying strengths and weaknesses, supported by relevant evidence. Your response should refer to the National Palliative Care Standards and incorporate contemporary, relevant, evidence-based literature.

Section One (Approx. 600 words)

Respond with reference to the case study below.
Select and answer one (1) of the following questions:

• Critique the care provided to Amina with respect to her sociocultural circumstances.
  Evaluate the adequacy of support given to Amina’s spiritual needs. Identify strengths and limitations and provide at least one clear, evidence-based recommendation for how nurses can enhance care in this area.

OR

• Critique the spiritual care provided to Amina.
  Evaluate the adequacy of support given to Amina’s spiritual needs. Identify strengths and limitations and provide at least one clear, evidence-based recommendation for how nurses can enhance care in this area.

Section Two (Approx. 600 words)

Respond with reference to the case study below.
Select and answer one (1) of the following questions:

• Critique the legal aspects of the care provided to Amina.
  Demonstrate your understanding of relevant legal principles. Assess whether her legal rights were upheld and identify best-practice recommendations for legal care in similar situations.

OR

• Critique the ethical aspects of the care provided to Amina.
  Apply key ethical principles (e.g., autonomy) in evaluating her care. Identify ethical tensions, if any, and provide best-practice recommendations supported by evidence.

Section Three (Approx. 800 words)

Respond with reference to the Survivors Teaching Students (STS) sessions .

• Provide a brief summary (approx. 150 words) of one of the stories shared during the STS sessions, focusing on the individual's lived experience.

• Critique the care provided by health care professionals in the story. How did this care impact the individual’s quality of life?

• Make recommendations for improvements or alternative actions that may have enhanced the person's care experience.

Note

A strong critique requires you to make a clear and well-supported judgment about the quality of care provided. Avoid simply describing the situation — instead, focus on evaluating the care using relevant standards and evidence.

All claims should be supported with references to the National Palliative Care Standards and current literature.

This assessment requires a minimum of fifteen (15) references.

Case Study: Mrs. Amina Hassan

Patient Profile

• Name: Amina Hassan

• Age: 32 years

• Background: Muslim woman, married, mother of two young children (ages 5 and 7)

• Residence: Australia

• Family: Husband lives with her; both their parents reside overseas and are not physically present in Australia.

Amina has been diagnosed with stage IV ovarian cancer. Despite aggressive chemotherapy and supportive care, her disease has progressed, and she is now approaching the terminal phase of care. She experiences significant pain and fatigue, necessitating complex symptom management including palliative care.

Amina is a devout Muslim whose faith plays a central role in how she understands her illness and the prospect of dying. She practices Salah (daily prayer) regularly and finds spiritual strength through her beliefs. Recently, the community nursing team has overheard Amina saying, “What have I done to deserve this suffering?”

In conversations, she has shared that she often lies awake at night, feeling anxious about dying and concerned about how her family will cope in her absence. The nursing team have referred Amina to a Social Worker for support regarding care of her children.

Her husband, Rohan, is actively involved in her care. However, he remains focused on the hope of recovery and is reluctant to acknowledge the seriousness of her condition. He believes life will return to normal, and this optimism has created tension between them. Amina has expressed frustration to the nurses, noting that Rohan avoids conversations about her end-of-life wishes, particularly regarding her care choices when she is no longer able to communicate them herself.

Amina is concerned about Rohan making medical decisions which would prolong her life; her preference is for her friend Yasmin to be listed as her decision maker.

Amina has also spoken about her emotional isolation. Financial limitations have prevented her parents from traveling from abroad, which has deepened her sense of disconnection from her cultural and familial support systems. She finds it difficult not having anyone to confide in about her fears. Additionally, she is worried about who will care for her children after her death.

As her condition progresses, Amina anticipates that a hospice admission will soon be necessary, as she does not believe she has sufficient support to remain at home. However, the local hospice is a Catholic-run facility, and Amina has expressed concern about whether she will be able to fully practice her faith or receive support from her Muslim community during end-of-life care.

In response, the nursing team offered to contact the Muslim Imam affiliated with the hospice on her behalf. However, conversation about faith support in hospice has not progressed beyond this offer.

Currently, the nursing team have made referrals to the Social Worker and Muslim Imam. Her GP has been providing the medical care for Amina until now but has just referred her to a Palliative Care Specialist working at the local hospice; she has not yet met with this specialist to discuss care options.

Submission

Submit via the Canvas dropbox in the NRSG374 Canvas site under the “Assessment” module.

Summary of Assessment Requirements

The NRSG374 Assessment 2: Written Critique is designed to evaluate students’ ability to apply critical thinking, analysis, and evidence-based practice in palliative care contexts. The task consists of three sections, and the student must answer one question per section:

• Section One (600 words): Critique either the sociocultural care or spiritual care provided to Amina Hassan, identifying strengths, limitations, and evidence-based recommendations.

• Section Two (600 words): Critique either the legal or ethical aspects of Amina’s care, evaluating adherence to principles, identifying tensions or gaps, and offering best-practice recommendations.

• Section Three (800 words): Using a story from the Survivors Teaching Students (STS) sessions, provide a summary, critique the care provided, evaluate its impact on quality of life, and suggest improvements.

Across all sections, students must:

• Go beyond description to provide a reasoned critique.

• Link responses to the National Palliative Care Standards.

• Incorporate contemporary, evidence-based literature (minimum of 15 references).

• Present responses under section headers, without overall introductions or conclusions.

Academic Mentor’s Step-by-Step Guidance

The academic mentor guided the student through the assessment process in a structured way, breaking down the requirements of each section and ensuring that critical analysis, evidence, and reflection were central to the responses.

Step 1: Understanding the Task and Expectations

The mentor began by carefully reviewing the assessment brief with the student, highlighting:

• The importance of critique rather than description.

• The need to connect care practices with the National Palliative Care Standards.

• Word count allocation (600 + 600 + 800 = 2000 words approx.).

• The requirement of a minimum of 15 scholarly references from current literature.
  This helped the student understand that the focus was on evaluation, identifying gaps, and making practical recommendations.

Step 2: Section One – Sociocultural or Spiritual Care Critique

The mentor encouraged the student to select one focus area (sociocultural or spiritual care) to avoid overlap. Together, they explored Amina’s case study in detail:

• Strengths identified: Referral to the Imam, involvement of a social worker, recognition of her faith needs.

• Limitations: Lack of follow-up on faith support, emotional isolation, inadequate engagement with sociocultural background.

• Recommendation: Incorporate structured cultural assessment tools and ensure consistent spiritual care follow-up through interdisciplinary collaboration.
  The mentor reminded the student to apply National Palliative Care Standard 2 (Developing a Care Plan) and Standard 5 (Care of the Family and Carer), linking practice gaps to evidence-based improvements.

Step 3: Section Two – Legal or Ethical Critique

Here, the mentor explained the importance of choosing either legal or ethical aspects and applying relevant frameworks:

• If legal was chosen: Discussed patient rights, advance care planning, substitute decision-makers, and whether Amina’s preferences were respected.

• If ethical was chosen: Guided the student to apply principles such as autonomy, beneficence, and justice, highlighting the tension between Rohan’s denial and Amina’s expressed wishes.

• Recommendation: Strengthen legal documentation and encourage open communication to ensure patient autonomy is respected.
  The mentor emphasized that referencing Standards 1 (Care is patient-centred) and Standard 9 (Service Culture) would strengthen the critique.

Step 4: Section Three – Survivors Teaching Students (STS) Critique

The mentor guided the student to choose one story from the STS sessions and:

• Write a concise summary (approx. 150 words) focusing on the person’s lived experience.

• Critique the care: Identify whether communication, empathy, and person-centredness were evident.

• Evaluate quality of life impact: Did care enhance or diminish the patient’s dignity, comfort, or autonomy?

• Recommendations: Suggest how healthcare professionals could improve communication, empathy, and adherence to palliative standards.
  Here, the mentor reinforced the value of reflective practice, showing how patient narratives reveal gaps between theory and practice.

Step 5: Integrating Evidence and Standards

Throughout the mentoring process, emphasis was placed on:

• Using peer-reviewed, current literature to justify claims.

• Mapping arguments to the National Palliative Care Standards for alignment with best practice.

• Ensuring references were relevant and credible (published within the last 10 years).

Step 6: Final Review and Outcome

In the final stage, the mentor worked with the student to:

• Check that each section had a clear critique structure: strengths → limitations → recommendations.

• Ensure word count balance across sections.

• Verify referencing style and count (minimum 15).

• Remove unnecessary description and keep the focus on critical evaluation.

Final Outcome and Learning Objectives Achieved

By the end of the mentoring process, the student was able to:

1. Demonstrate critical thinking by evaluating care beyond surface-level description.

2. Apply the National Palliative Care Standards to real-world patient scenarios.

3. Incorporate evidence-based practice through scholarly references.

4. Recognize sociocultural, spiritual, ethical, and legal dimensions of palliative care.

5. Develop practical recommendations that improve quality of life and uphold patient rights.

6. Gain confidence in producing a structured, well-referenced written critique suitable for academic submission.

The final submission reflected a balance of theory, practice, and reflection — showing that the student could critically appraise palliative care delivery while integrating professional standards and evidence.

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