Description of course

Nurses care for people with health problems, and also have an increasing role in promoting good health - encouraging people to take more responsibility for themselves in relation to avoidable health problems.

An understanding of biology helps in both these areas of practice, and for this reason there is a biological theme within the nursing curriculum. Some students have studied biology before they enter the nursing course, but a sizeable number of students have never achieved a formal qualification in the subject.

It is for the latter group that the Headstart BioGalleries have been prepared. When you know that you have been accepted onto the nursing course, and if you feel a bit uncertain or apprehensive about your ability to understand biological concepts, you have the option to register for Headstart. Then, in the few weeks before you begin formal classes, you can lay the foundation for the biological studies that are to come. We believe that by doing this you will enter the nursing course with a greater degree of confidence and interest with regards to the nursing-related biology content.

HEADSTART IN BIOLOGY IS A FREE INTERNET COURSE in biology for Biology and Nursing Students. It assumes that you are not familiar with biology, nor for that matter, with science. All we ask is that you answer a few simple questions to register as a user of the course. It is composed of five BioGalleries and a BioViews section:

BioGallery 1: Science and Measurement. This level outlines the importance of scientific measurement and accuracy in nursing practice. It takes a look at what makes science different from other sources of information by looking at simple data and how they can be presented graphically and statistically.

Sample from Biogallery 1: Units in Nursing

BioGallery 2: Atoms and Molecules. This level introduces the material world of atoms, molecules and chemical interactions. The rationale for a whole range of nursing activities is linked to an understanding of chemistry, so that is why we need to become familiar with some relevant aspects of this fascinating subject.

Sample from Biogallery 2: Elements used in the body

BioGallery 3: Chemistry of Life. This level takes a closer look at the special macromolecules of DNA and proteins, which are vitally important in the co-ordination of living systems at the cellular level.

Sample from Biogallery 3: Biological molecules

BioGallery 4: Arrangement of the Body. This level takes a look at the general layout of the body, starting at cells and moving up through tissues to whole organs. Histological images are included, allowing comparisons to be made of different tissues and cellular detail.

Sample from Biogallery 4: Cardiac Muscles

BioGallery 5: Activities of Living. This level examines the processes of life such as body inputs and outputs as well as other activities like communication and movement, directly applicable to nursing practice.

Sample from Biogallery 5: Communication with the outside world

BioViews: This section is located at the top of the package and takes the form of a selection of discrete contemporary developments in Biology, such as cancer and also the Human Genome Project. The BioViews allow you to explore these issues and to get an appreciation that Biology is an exciting and alive discipline, highly pertinent to your role as a nurse.

Sample from BioViews: Cancer and the Cell Cycle (Apoptosis)