Nursing - Children's Palliative Care & Complex Care

The Master/Postgraduate Diploma in Health Sciences (Children’s Palliative / Complex Care) is facilitated by both the teaching teams at University of Galway and UCD. The programme designed for Registered Nurses working with children and adolescents with complex or life limiting conditions. The programme aims to provide students with the necessary in-depth evidence-based knowledge, skills and competencies to provide quality care to highly dependent children as they live with life-limiting illness and may face the end-of-life. 



All students will register on the full-time one-year Postgraduate Diploma. On completion of both theoretical and clinical modules for this course, students will graduate with a Postgraduate Diploma or (if they have achieved the minimum 60% average mark across these modules) they may apply to transfer to the second year of the MSc programme.

Year 1 (60 Credits)

Required NU6446: Quality of Life and Symptom Management in Children’s Palliative / Complex Care

Required NU623: Clinical Governance: Supporting Safe Practice

Required NU6444: Care of the Child & Family with Palliative / Complex needs

Required NU921: Clinical Competence 1

Required NU6439: Service Improvement

Required UCD_NU6445: Specialist Understanding of Complex Care for Children

Required NU502: Advanced Research Methods

Required NU922: Clinical Competence 2

Year 2 (30 Credits)

Required NU6515: Research Dissertation

Postgraduate Diploma: 1 year full-time

Masters: 2 years full-time (if eligible for second year following Postgraduate Diploma).

Next start date: September 2026

The Master/Postgraduate Diploma in Health Sciences (Children’s Palliative / Complex Care) is facilitated by both the teaching teams at University of Galway and UCD. The programme designed for Registered Nurses working with children and adolescents with complex or life limiting conditions. The programme aims to provide students with the necessary in-depth evidence-based knowledge, skills and competencies to provide quality care to highly dependent children as they live with life-limiting illness and may face the end-of-life.