NUR 503 Module 7 Course Reflection and Ethical Principle Example

Reviewed by Ingrid Vasterling, MSN, RN Arizona State University Updated October 2026

This NUR 503 Module 7 example is the course reflection that closes the second integrated assessment, pathophysiology and drug therapy course in ASU's online MS in Nursing. ASU NUR 503 asks students in this short paper to judge whether they met the learning outcomes, choose the ethical principle they consider most important and explain how the course will help their practice. The composite writer, a home health nurse who spent the course on one problem, reviews the outcomes through her assignments on skin breakdown after spinal cord injury, argues that justice is the most important principle for her patients because their harm comes largely from unequal access, and names three ways she will practice differently.

CourseNUR 503 Advanced Health Assessment, Pathophysiology and Pharmacotherapeutics for Health Promotion II
ModuleModule 7
Paper typeCourse reflection paper
LengthAbout 537 words, 4 pages
FormatAPA 7 student paper
SchoolArizona State University
ProgramMS in Nursing
UpdatedOctober 2026

Free sample paper for NUR 503 Module 7

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Justice at the Bedside and Beyond: A Course Reflection on Assessment, Pharmacology and Ethics for Vulnerable Patients

Student Name

Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation, Arizona State University

NUR 503: Advanced Health Assessment, Pathophysiology and Pharmacotherapeutics for Health Promotion II

Instructor Name

Month Day, Year

What this page is doingLeading with the ethical principle the writer ranks highest tells the grader at once which reflection question the paper answers most fully.
2

Justice at the Bedside and Beyond: A Course Reflection on Assessment, Pharmacology and Ethics for Vulnerable Patients

Introduction

This reflection reviews my learning in NUR 503, identifies the ethical principle I consider most important for my practice, and describes how the course will change my work as a home health nurse. My assignments in the course focused on one population, adults living with spinal cord injury, and one outcome, pressure injuries.

Meeting the Learning Outcomes

The course outcomes asked me to integrate advanced assessment, pathophysiology and pharmacology in caring for vulnerable populations, to evaluate best practice and health outcomes, and to communicate effectively. I believe I met them.

In the best practices discussion and the outcomes evaluation, I learned that the evidence for preventing pressure injuries through education is weaker than I assumed. A systematic review found limited evidence that self-management programs change clinical outcomes (Baron et al., 2018), and a trial showed that skin often broke down within weeks of discharge whatever the intervention (Guihan et al., 2014). That changed my thinking from teaching more to supporting routines and equipment.

In the case study presentation, I connected the pathophysiology of pressure injury to a patient's medications and daily life, and I practiced motivational communication. The communication quiz pushed me to phrase questions that invite patients to share their own plans. My growth area is pharmacology depth; I will review medication effects on skin and healing more systematically.

The Most Important Ethical Principle

The ANA code was part of our first week's reading. Among the four principles, autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence and justice, I rank justice first for my patients. My patients with spinal cord injury usually understand their risks and make their own choices, so autonomy is often respected. What harms them most is unequal access: cushions delayed by authorization, clinics without accessible exam tables, and home health visits that end when risk is highest. The current code calls on nurses to address the social determinants and structural barriers that affect health (American Nurses Association, 2025), which describes much of what my patients face. Justice means that a person who cannot feel pressure deserves the equipment and support to prevent it as promptly as anyone else receives care.

How the Course Will Help My Practice

First, I will book extra home visits during the four weeks after a patient returns from a pressure injury admission, since that is when wounds tend to deteriorate. Second, I will assess equipment and routines at every visit, not just the wound. Third, I will document equipment delays as safety issues and work with case managers to escalate them, which turns justice from a value into an action.

These changes are small, but each addresses a gap the course helped me see. Before NUR 503, I treated a pressure injury as a wound to dress; now I treat it as a signal that something in a person's routine, equipment or access has failed, and my assessment starts there.

Conclusion

NUR 503 taught me to see a pressure injury as the result of physiology, habit, medication and access together. Justice is the principle that ties these together for my patients, and the course gave me the evidence and skills to act on it.

References

American Nurses Association. (2025). Code of ethics for nurses. https://codeofethics.ana.org/

Baron, J. S., Sullivan, K. J., Swaine, J. M., Aspinall, A., Jaglal, S., Presseau, J., White, B., Wolfe, D., & Grimshaw, J. M. (2018). Self-management interventions for skin care in people with a spinal cord injury: Part 1. A systematic review of intervention content and effectiveness. Spinal Cord, 56(9), 823-836. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41393-018-0138-3

Guihan, M., Bombardier, C. H., Ehde, D. M., Rapacki, L. M., Rogers, T. J., Bates-Jensen, B., Thomas, F. P., Parachuri, R., & Holmes, S. A. (2014). Comparing multicomponent interventions to improve skin care behaviors and prevent recurrence in veterans hospitalized for severe pressure ulcers. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 95(7), 1246-1253. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmr.2014.01.012

Reading the NUR 503 Module 7 assignment instructions

The posted syllabus places the Reflection in Week 7, alongside the course evaluation, and lists it at 5 of the course's 100 points. It describes the assignment as a course reflection in which students determine whether they met the learning outcomes, which ethical principle is most important, and how the course will help them in their practice. The ANA Code of Ethics appears in the Week 1 readings, so many students draw on it here. Expect a short paper that addresses each outcome with evidence from your assignments, defends one ethical principle with reasons and examples, and names concrete changes in practice. Your Canvas shell will show length, format and whether sources are required.

Inside the NUR 503 Module 7 example

The reflection opens by naming the single population and outcome that ran through the writer's assignments, which gives the paper focus. The outcomes section draws on three assignments, citing two studies from earlier work to show how the writer's thinking changed. A section on ethics compares four principles briefly and argues for justice with examples from the writer's patients, linked to the current ANA code. Three specific practice changes follow, and a short conclusion ties them back to justice. The paper stays brief, as the assignment intends. Specific practice changes show how the course's ideas will reach the patients the writer actually visits.

NUR 503 Module 7 rubric: what earns full marks

Reflections are usually graded on whether each required element is addressed, outcomes, the ethical principle and practice application, and on specificity and depth. Faculty look for evidence from actual assignments rather than general statements, a reasoned choice of ethical principle with examples, and practice changes that are concrete. An honest growth area adds credibility. Because the assignment is short and worth 5 points, clarity matters more than length, but citations should support any references to readings or studies. Choosing a principle and defending it with examples from your own patients usually earns more than defining all four principles. A clear link between the principle and your planned changes completes the argument.

NUR 503 Module 7 help with common mistakes

The most common mistake is naming an ethical principle without explaining why it matters most for your patients. Defend your choice with examples. Another is listing course topics instead of reflecting on learning. Name what changed in your thinking. Make practice changes specific enough to observe. Keep patient details unidentifiable. Paraphrase the ANA code rather than quoting long passages. If you want help shaping your reflection around your own assignments, send the prompt and a list of your work to the desk. Write in first person, keep it short, and avoid repeating the syllabus outcomes word for word. Proofread names of studies and principles before submitting, and remember that faculty may read reflections when revising the course.

Write yours, or have the desk draft it

This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Arizona State University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.

More NUR 503 and MS in Nursing sample papers

NUR 503 Module 7 questions, answered

Where can I find a free NUR 503 Module 7 sample paper?

The course reflection is shown above in full: learning outcomes reviewed with evidence, justice argued as the most important ethical principle, three practice changes and references.

Which ethical principle should I choose in NUR 503?

Choose the one most important for your patients, such as autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence or justice, and explain why with examples.

How long is the NUR 503 reflection?

The syllabus lists it at 5 points; it is usually a short paper. The exact length is posted in Canvas.

Do I need to cite the ANA code in the NUR 503 reflection?

If you refer to it, cite it. The code appears in the Week 1 readings, so many reflections draw on it.

What practice changes should I describe in NUR 503?

Specific actions you will take, such as changing visit timing or assessing equipment, that follow from what you learned in the course.