Bachelor of Nursing (Top-Up) Post-Registration*

Lifelong learning is paramount to surviving in today’s global workforce, and I pursued this ideal to continually update my skills and enhance my personal and professional development.

With the local healthcare industry experiencing greater challenges, I felt motivated to improve my skills to better the lives of others. Fortunately, I came across the Health Services Management programme from Griffith University, a world-renowned University especially lauded for its research and expertise in industry-based learning.

It is evident because the programme is accredited by the Australasian College of Health Service Management (ACHSM), a testament to its quality. It is fully taught by professional Griffith University faculty lecturers and provides modules directly applicable in my role as an Operations Manager. In addition to providing the programme, Kaplan in Singapore facilitates it via their centralised campus location.

I am proud to be a Griffith Health Services Management (HSM) graduate and affirm Griffith University as my first choice. I would strongly recommend Griffith University to others.

The healthcare industry is constantly advancing, and as a Nurse, it is important that I keep up with the latest medical updates in order to provide the best care for my patients. With this in mind, I knew I had to upgrade in order to push my career to new heights.

There are a few Universities that offer Nursing Degree, however, the modules were not relevant to my current role. Griffith University’s modules were related to my job, specifically the modules on Leadership and Management Concepts for Health Professionals, Clinical Health Assessment and Understanding Research in Practice, where I was able to apply the concepts learnt.

The programme was mostly assignment-based, which gave me ample time to work on assignments. Unlike taking an examination, which requires me to take time off to revise. The programme schedule was flexible which allow me to juggle between my studies together with work and family commitments. In addition, Kaplan is also one of the trusted private institutions which has very good reviews.

Although there are several universities offering Nursing Degrees in Singapore, Griffith University stands out to me by offering relevant modules suited to industry demand.

The modules offered by Griffith University are applicable to today’s Nursing. In particular, I was able to apply the knowledge from Clinical Health Assessment, Clinical Teaching for Health Professional and Care of Older Persons in my job.

The Clinical Health Assessment module for example, grants Nurses autonomy to perform proper physical examination to determine a patient’s underlying medical problems and to recommend relevant nursing care plans. The Clinical Health Teaching prepares every Nurse for an educational role, teaching and guiding colleagues and Nurse Trainees.

With Singapore’s ageing population, improved nursing care is necessary, and the Care of Older Persons module broadens our knowledge to provide the best care for our elderly population and cater to their unique needs.

The programme schedule was definitely created with nurses in mind. As a working professional, I did not face problems balancing my classes, assignments and career. The timetable was provided in advance so we could plan our work schedule ahead. Also, Kaplan ensures all students are given equal opportunity to strive and achieve their goals. Hence, I strongly recommend this programme to my peers.

I have always believed in continuous learning and expanding my knowledge as the healthcare industry is ever-changing.

My current role is to obtain diagnostic images for clinicians, but there are many areas I can grow into, be it switching to a different imaging modality to gain experience or advancing towards a supervisory position.

The modules taught under Griffith University’s Master of Health Services Management programme have provided me with insights that go beyond just being a ground staff, and I am now better prepared for the demands and expectations that come with progression into Management, should the opportunity arise.

In particular, the change management and leadership modules have been beneficial as the theories are highly applicable at the departmental level where we constantly look for innovation and improvements.

Furthermore, it was great to be able to connect with the Griffith University faculty during the block-teaching classes, as they provided invaluable insights about the industry.

I chose Griffith University to pursue my degree in Nursing as it was highly recommended by my mother. She herself had attained her Degree from Griffith University. In fact, she was my lecturer when it was my turn to study this programme! I was very proud of her as she imparted her knowledge with poise and confidence, including the bond she had with me and my classmates, was just amazing.

This programme has definitely helped me widen my knowledge and skills in Nursing. I can readily apply all that I have learnt in my career. I hope to continue to deliver the same kind of quality care to my patients just like what my mum did, and to be an inspirational educator like her and give my best in everything I do.

Since embarking on my career as a Nurse in 1987, my journey has brought me through many roles such as Enrolled Nurse, Staff Nurse, Assistant Nurse Clinician, Nurse Educator, Adjunct Lecturer, Nurse Clinician, Senior Nurse Manager and now, Assistant Director of Nursing.

After close to 20 years on, I decided to enrol for the Bachelor of Nursing degree with Griffith University as I am an advocate of lifelong learning and wanted to help people through expanding my knowledge. After graduation, I was promoted and most importantly, I am now an Adjunct Lecturer with the School of Nursing at Griffith University. I consider myself to have achieved my goals of imparting and sharing my knowledge with my fellow nursing peers. One of my proudest moments was that I got to lecture my daughter, Yasoda, who is also a Nurse, at the same Griffith University’s Nursing Degree programme which I graduated from.

As a Nursing Lecturer myself, I had two expectations from the programme that must be fulfilled in health services management – the rigour of the academic delivery and the practicality of my learning must add value to my professional field. The way Griffith University structured their programme delivery and assessment methods had aligned with my expectations.

In addition, there was essentially a balance between theoretical and practical approach to clinical leadership and healthcare management perspective, supported by tailoring of academic delivery that was specifically relevant to Singapore context – this allowed me to apply what I had learned to good practice in terms of developing and mastering subject matter expertise to teach the curriculum to my students where most of them would go on and embark on the journey of being Registered Nurses in the Healthcare sector.