Monash University Handbook 2011 Postgraduate - Course

This course will support students in improving their clinical practice and knowledge related to the delivery of emergency health services and help prepare them for clinical leadership positions. The student will explore clinical practice within an integrated emergency medical system and consider the issues and trends that influence scope of practice and service delivery. Students will be able to select streams of study relevant to the emergency health services context, to meet both their learning needs and interests.

By the completion of this course, the graduate will be able to:

• critically explore their practice role from the perspective of broader population and health system demands on care delivery within an integrated emergency health system
• critically review their clinical practice against current evidence
• apply knowledge gained through the completion of elective units of study to their practice context
• work collaboratively within an integrated emergency health system at an advanced level.

In addition, graduates of the intensive care paramedic stream, will be able to:

• apply an appropriate ethical and professional construct as an emergency care provider to their clinical practice
• recognise and assess appropriate symptom-syndrome patterns in patients with sudden illness or injury, and initiate advanced life support measures
• demonstrate the use of advanced clinical problem solving processes and the integration of theory, practical skills and clinical competence
• develop an awareness of the responses of patients and families to acute, life-threatening illness/injury, in a diverse cultural community
• contribute to and utilise outcomes from quality management and clinical audit strategies, information technology and research programs
• critically evaluate the relevance of research findings within the context of community-based emergency health.

Assessment

Assessment will be a mixture of written assignments and examinations, For clinical units, clinical simulation and professionalism assessment will form part of the assessment mix.

This course comprises core units, or core and elective units undertaken in one of three streams.

General stream

Core unit

MEH4306 Integrated emergency medical systems

Elective units

• 42 credit points, comprising a minimum of 18 credit points offered by the Department of Community Emergency Health and Paramedic Practice from units in any stream in course 3876 Graduate Certificate in Emergency Health (not including units in the 'Medical' stream)

Emergency preparedness and disaster health stream

Core units

• MDM4010 Introduction to the principles of emergency preparedness and disaster medicine
• MDM4020 Emergency preparedness
• MDM4030 Major incident management
• MDM4040 Disaster recovery

Elective units

At least two elective units from the following:

• MDM4060 Mass gatherings health care
• MDM4090 Emerging disaster health threats
• MDM4110 Disaster resilience and community safety

plus a maximum of two elective units from the following:

• ECX9720 Introduction to epidemiology and biostatistics
• MPH2048 Primary health care in developing countries
• MPH2050 Health of women and children in developing countries
• MPH2051 Communicable diseases control in developing countries
• MPH2053 Public health in refugee settings
• MPH2055 Health ethics and human rights

Intensive care paramedic stream

Core units

• MEH4306 Integrated emergency medical systems
• MEH4308 Clinical practicum*
• PAR4301 Theoretical foundations of MICA paramedic practice
• PAR4302 Management of emergency cardiac conditions
• PAR4303 Management of emergency trauma and environmental conditions
• PAR4304 Management of emergency medical conditions
• PAR4305 Management of paediatric and obstetric patients
• PAR4307 MICA Paramedic clinical practicum

* Note: This unit is a core unit for existing practicing MICA Paramedics (pre-graduate diploma) who are undertaking the graduate diploma conversion program.

Graduate Diploma in Emergency Health (MICA Paramedic)

Graduate Diploma in Emergency Health

Graduate Diploma in Emergency Health (Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Health)

Graduate Diploma in Emergency Health (Intensive Care Paramedic)

Where more than one award is listed the actual award conferred may depend on units/majors/streams/specialisations studied, the level of academic merit achieved, or other factors relevant to the individual student's program of study.