Frequently Asked Questions
I have completed by first pathway course. What do I do to take my next course in my pathway?
Congratulations on completing your first course. The courses in your assigned pathway align with transition to practice milestones to support your growth in specialty oncology nursing. There is no specific timeframe that needs to pass before enrolling in your next course, however, before enrolling in your next pathway course, please connect with your unit clinical leadership team (Clinical Practice Lead [CPL] and/or Clinical Resource Nurse [CRN], Clinical Nurse Educator [CNE], and Health Services Manager [HSM]) to discuss your transition to practice progress goals and if it’s the right time to be enrolling in a new course.
I have discussed my transition to practice with my unit leadership team and I’ve been approved to enroll in the next pathway course, what do I do now?
Please review your pathway and familiarize yourself with the next course mapped to your area of practice. Once you and your leadership team have mutually agreed that you may enroll in the next de Souza course, there are two steps to enrollment.
- Your HSM or CNE are required to submit a Practice Progression Form found on the Learning Institute for Health Care Providers Specialized Oncology Nurse Transition to Practice Program website to notify program faculty/administrator of their support for you to progress within your pathway.
- You can enroll via your de Souza Institute account. A verification of enrollment email will be sent to the program faculty/administrator at the Learning Institute. If the Practice Progression Form has been received by the Learning Institute, your course will be approved. If the Practice Progression Form has not been received, approval will remain pending until the form is received.
Courses are marked as asynchronous or synchronous on the Learning Institute website, how does this impact my access to the course?
Asynchronous courses are open access. Once you enroll and are approved by the Learning Institute program faculty/administrator, your access to the course materials will start immediately. The course content will be online only and will stay accessible in your de Souza account page until the course access is removed at the end date indicated to you upon enrollment (8 weeks, 11 weeks, 16 weeks, etc.). These courses are:
- Cancer Care Basics for Nova Scotia
- Foundations of Nursing Practice on Demand for Nova Scotia
- Foundations of Cancer Disease Sites Hematological Malignancies - On Demand Malignant Hematology
Synchronous courses have a specific start and end dates that can be found either on the Learning Institute website or in the de Souza course calendar. If you are enrolling in a synchronous course, then you will not be able to access until the date specified, even if you’ve been approved. These courses are:
- Provincial Standardized Chemotherapy and Biotherapy course
- Interprofessional Psychosocial Oncology: Introduction to Theory and Practice (IPODE)
- Chemotherapy Competency Maintenance Course*
*Asynchronous CCMC coming spring/summer 2024.
I have successfully completed the Provincial Standardized Chemotherapy and Biotherapy course and I have been notified that I will have to enroll in the Chemotherapy Competency Maintenance Course (CCMC). Why?
As part of your responsibility toward your maintenance of competency in systemic therapy administration, the CCMC is endorsed as a continuing competency activity for RNCCs working in NS. The course will be open for enrollment every 12-24 months. As your 12–24-month competency period restarts at the end of the last course you completed, please ensure the CCMC is completed as close to your 24-month anniversary date as possible, e.g., If you completed your PSCB in December 2023 and you complete the CCMC in May 2025, your new anniversary date will be 24 months from your May CCMC completion day (next due May 2027). Please see de Souza reminder emails for your specific lapse date.
If you do not successfully complete the CCMC within your 24-month renewal period, you will need to repeat the PSCB in total if competency lapses.
I am interested in taking a de Souza Institute course that is not listed in my pathway. Can I enroll free-of-charge?
You can certainly enroll in courses of interest outside of the courses listed in your pathway, however, the tuition costs will not be covered by your pathway agreement. Please discuss any course enrollments with HSM or CNE to prior to registration as support for any education requests would be at their discretion.
I’ve moved to another Nova Scotia Health oncology specialty unit and the pathway looks different. Does my pathway need to change?
Yes, if the practice focus has changed. Please have your HSM or CNE notify us of this change via the Practice Progression Form so we can promptly update your pathway. Completed courses will still appear in your de Souza account.
Example: Nurse A was originally hired to 8A/B and has accepted a new role in the Nova Scotia Cancer Centre in the Radiation Oncology Clinic. Nurse A’s pathway will change from Inpatient 8A/B to Radiation Oncology Clinic.
I have decided to leave specialty oncology nursing and/or leave my role at Nova Scotia Health. Can I still access my de Souza account and enroll in courses?
Your de Souza account will remain accessible to you, along with your records of course completions if you no longer work in a NS Health specialty oncology unit or leave NS Health as an employee. However, you will no longer be granted access free-of-charge to courses via your de Souza account when you attempt to enroll. Please have your HSM or CNE notify us of this change in employment via the Practice Progression Form.
As a note, if your de Souza account was created with your NS Health email account, please update your email within your de Souza account so that you are able to receive communications from de Souza.