NURS 523 is Liberty's MSN course on financial and resource management for nurse leaders. Its written work is three discussion forums, three financial exercises, a question set, and a resource management paper built in three parts (annotated bibliography, outline and a 10 to 15-page final draft).
Liberty's catalog lists the course as NURS 523 Financial and Resource Management for Nurse Leaders, 3 credit hours; Canvas and the course guide file print it as NURS523.
What NURS 523 covers
The catalog description: The course focuses on financial and resource management for the nurse leader. The course provides students the skills and knowledge to perform a variety of functions related to financial and resource management including budgetary functions such as operating, expense, revenue, capital, and performance budgets, planning, controlling, management of costs associated with staff/skill mix, and cost analysis. Key concepts such as strategic management, reimbursement and payor mix, forecasting economic and marketing factors are explored for decision making. Students will be required to perform financial and budgeting operations and spread sheet analysis using Microsoft® Excel.
The course gives nurse leaders the working tools of finance: operating, capital and performance budgets, staffing and skill-mix costs, cost analysis, reimbursement and payer mix, and forecasting. The catalog says students perform budgeting operations and spreadsheet analysis in Microsoft Excel. The textbook is Jones et al., Financial Management for Nurse Managers and Executives.
The source rule is consistent across the course: scholarly sources published within the last five years, in current APA, with a reference list on every post. The guide adds a detail many students miss: every discussion thread must have a title formatted as it would be in a formal paper.
Textbook named in the published guide: Jones et al., Financial Management for Nurse Managers and Executives (2019). Check the current edition in your Canvas section.
NURS 523 assignments, week by week
Every graded written assignment in the published guide has its own how-to guide below. Quizzes, exams, checklists and class introductions are left out because there is nothing to write.
| Week | Assignment | Points | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Discussion Board Forum 1 | 75 | Thread at least 500 words |
| 3 | Discussion Board Forum 2 | 75 | Thread at least 500 words |
| 3 | Financial Exercise 1 | 100 | Answers to every question (no length set in the guide) |
| 4 | Financial Exercise 2 | 100 | Answers to every question (no length set in the guide) |
| 5 | RMP Annotated Bibliography | 50 | 7 to 10 annotated references |
| 5 | Financial Exercise 3 | 100 | Answers to every question (no length set in the guide) |
| 6 | Question Set | 100 | Answers to all 8 questions (no length set in the guide) |
| 6 | RMP Outline | 50 | A comprehensive outline (no length set in the guide) |
| 7 | Discussion Board Forum 3 | 75 | Thread at least 500 words |
| 8 | RMP Final Draft | 200 | 10 to 15 pages, not counting the title page, abstract and reference page |
Week 2: Discussion Board Forum 1
A titled 500-word thread with two recent scholarly sources and two 250-word replies, each with a reference list. How to write NURS 523 Week 2 Discussion Board Forum 1.
Week 3: Discussion Board Forum 2
The second forum: a titled 500-word thread with two recent sources and two 250-word replies. How to write NURS 523 Week 3 Discussion Board Forum 2.
Week 3: Financial Exercise 1
Answers to a series of finance questions on nurse administration, with an APA title page and reference page. How to write NURS 523 Week 3 Financial Exercise 1.
Week 4: Financial Exercise 2
The second set of finance questions for nurse administration, with an APA title and reference page. How to write NURS 523 Week 4 Financial Exercise 2.
Week 5: RMP Annotated Bibliography
The first part of the resource management paper: an annotated bibliography of 7 to 10 recent peer-reviewed references. How to write NURS 523 Week 5 RMP Annotated Bibliography.
Week 5: Financial Exercise 3
The third finance exercise, due in the same week as the annotated bibliography. How to write NURS 523 Week 5 Financial Exercise 3.
Week 6: Question Set
Answers to 8 reflective and applied questions on resource management, with an APA title and reference page. How to write NURS 523 Week 6 Question Set.
Week 6: RMP Outline
A comprehensive outline that gives the resource management paper a clear, developed framework. How to write NURS 523 Week 6 RMP Outline.
Week 7: Discussion Board Forum 3
The third forum: a titled 500-word thread with two recent sources and two 250-word replies. How to write NURS 523 Week 7 Discussion Board Forum 3.
Week 8: RMP Final Draft
The finished resource management paper: 10 to 15 pages with an abstract, recommendations and 7 to 10 recent scholarly references. How to write NURS 523 Week 8 RMP Final Draft.
How NURS 523 is graded
The published guide totals 1,010 points. The three financial exercises are 100 each and the question set is 100. The resource management paper is 300 across its parts (annotated bibliography 50, outline 50, final draft 200). The three forums are 75 each, a reading quiz 75 and the checklist 10.
| Graded item | Points |
|---|---|
| Financial Exercises (3) | 300 |
| Question Set | 100 |
| RMP Annotated Bibliography | 50 |
| RMP Outline | 50 |
| RMP Final Draft | 200 |
| Discussion Board Forums (3) | 225 |
| Reading Quiz | 75 |
| Course Requirements Checklist | 10 |
The published scale puts an A at 940 to 1010 points.
Week timing in the published guide: Each course module/week begins on Monday morning at 12:00 a.m. (ET) and ends on Sunday night at 11:59 p.m. (ET). The final module/week ends at 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Friday.
How to approach NURS 523
Choose the resource management topic by Week 4: the annotated bibliography of 7 to 10 recent peer-reviewed references is due in Week 5, the outline in Week 6 and the final draft in Week 8. Topics with good recent literature include nurse staffing and skill mix, agency and travel nurse costs, overtime, supply waste and length of stay.
For the financial exercises, show your work. Where a question asks for a calculation (a variance, a break-even point, a full-time equivalent count), give the formula, the numbers and the interpretation.
Questions students ask
What is the NURS 523 resource management paper?
A 10 to 15-page paper on an aspect of resource management you choose, built in three parts: an annotated bibliography of 7 to 10 recent peer-reviewed references (Week 5), a comprehensive outline (Week 6) and the final draft (Week 8).
Do NURS 523 forum threads need a title?
Yes. The guide says all threads must include a title formatted as it would be in a formal paper, and all posts need a reference list.
Working through NURS 523 now?
Tell us the week and the assignment. A tutor who knows the course replies with a plan for the draft.