Monash University Handbook 2011 Undergraduate - Unit

Refer to the specific census and withdrawal dates for the semester(s) in which this unit is offered.

Level	Undergraduate
Faculty	Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences
Offered	Clayton First semester 2011 (Day) Sunway First semester 2011 (Day)
Coordinator(s)	Professor Christine McMenamin

Synopsis

Through a 'Community Partnerships' placement, the student develops an awareness of the sector's relevance to the practice of medicine and the socio-economic context of health and illness. In 'Information Management and Health Promotion' the student develops skills in data management and critical appraisal of evidence and knowledge to assist in clinical decision-making. 'Homeostasis: Maintaining the internal environment' enables the student to study the cardiovascular, respiratory, renal and haematopoietic systems. 'Clinical Skills' assists the student to develop clinical reasoning and focused history taking based on these major systems. Weekly Patient Centred Learning studies will integrate material presented in all themes. The Rural/urban placement focuses on the development of a perspective of experience of practising medicine in either environment. Through the Selective, the student will develop existing, and/or acquire new interests and skills that lie outside the traditional ambit of 'medical education'.

Objectives

Theme I:
On completion of this sub-unit students will be able to:

• develop a perspective on issues of social equity and justice, particularly as they relate to the practice of medicine;
• develop knowledge of the welfare system and its relevance to medicine;
• explain the operational philosophy and service delivery components of key agencies working in the areas of social action, social justice and advocacy;
• develop the concept of the 'whole person' and in particular, the social and economic context of health and illness;
• develop an understanding of social and public policy and how it impacts on people's lives;
• demonstrate that from their position of responsibility within the community, they have knowledge and skills that can contribute to the well-being of those people who are disadvantaged;

Theme II:
On completion of this sub-unit students will be able to:

• articulate the relationship between data, information, evidence, knowledge and informed care;
• demonstrate in applied situations the following:
• enhanced information technology skills (searching and medical database identification skills, including computer presentation skills)
• application of critical skills to clinical and research questions
• application of a range of knowledge based systems in clinical practice (bibliographic software, decision support systems);
• analyse the different perspectives in health promotion through the application of the 'sociological imagination';
• define, compare and contrast medical, behavioural and socio-environmental approaches to health promotion;
• align a range of health promotion theories of change, ranging through individual to social;
• participate in the basic health promotion process of program development, planning, implementation and evaluation;
• systematically apply critical appraisal and knowledge management skills to evaluation of health promotion intervention strategies;
• identify appropriate strategies for health promotion interventions, including targeting high risk and population-based strategies;

Theme III:
On completion of this sub-unit students will be able to:

• discuss the relevance of biomedical science to the practice of cardiovascular, respiratory and renal medicine, and apply knowledge in these areas in an integrative manner to the understanding of particular cases or clinical issues;
• describe the structure and function of the healthy cardiovascular, respiratory and renal systems and the formation and function of blood;
• discuss the mechanisms and effects of selected common pathologies affecting these systems;
• outline therapeutic agents commonly used to deal with disorders of these systems;
• give an account of the interactions of these systems in the maintenance of homeostasis, drawing upon knowledge acquired in preceding semesters;

Student Project Cases: On the completion of this activity students will be able to:

• integrate information from the four curriculum themes based on the range of learning activities, including self-directed research;
• integrate and synthesise information from different body systems and human perspectives in the appreciation of clinical issues;
• identify relevant resources and critically analyse information from a variety of sources;
• develop skills in problem solving and apply in a medical context;
• develop interpretative skills related to the evaluation of endocrine, metabolic, gastrointestinal, nutritional, reproductive and developmental information and issues, interfacing biomedical science with clinical medicine;
• work effectively and communicate constructively within small groups in the planning, development and implementation of teamwork tasks, with individual and group responsibilities and adherence to project timelines;
• discuss issues and problems in a structured manner and act as spokesperson for a group in a wider forum;
• apply skills in audiovisual presentations on particular topics in medicine;
• develop skills in preparation of written summaries in the form of notes suitable for effective communication and education;
• apply constructive critiques to verbal and written presentations.

Theme IV:
On completion of this sub-unit students will be able to:

• describe the framework for clinical reasoning in the cardiovascular, respiratory, haematopoietic and renal systems;
• demonstrate focused history taking in the cardiovascular, respiratory, haematopoietic and renal systems;
• perform and understand the relevance of an examination of the patient's cardiovascular, respiratory, haematopoietic and renal system;
• work cooperatively with peers to achieve specified tasks;
• participate, under supervision, in patient interviews and examination of patients on hospital wards;
• discuss the range and types of disorders in the cardiovascular, respiratory, haematopoietic and renal systems encountered in general practice;
• discuss the complementary and diverse aspects of clinical disorders in the cardiovascular, respiratory, haematopoietic and renal systems encountered in general practice and in hospitals;

Rural Placement:

• describe and discuss how rural contexts impact on the assessment of health conditions;
• recognize the importance of context and clinical reasoning in relation to focused history taking;
• describe and discuss how a rural context impacts on the clinical and non-clinical management of patients;
• analyse the ways in which rural diversity can impact on rural health, illness and clinical practice;
• reflect on the nature of a rural clinical practice from a clinician's perspective.

Assessment

Examinations and written assignments account for 10% of the end of Year 2 result as follows:
Mid semester test: 5%
End of semester examination: 5%
The following in semester assignments are carried out across the full year and account for 40%:
Year Two Portfolio: 30%
Year Two Rural Project: 5%
Year Two Special Project Case: 5%
The Vertical Integration Exam accounts 20% of the full year result.
For MED2031 the end of semester results will be pass grade only (PGO).
Hurdle requirement: Students must attend a minimum of 80% at designated small group teaching activities to pass this unit.

Chief examiner(s)

Associate Professor Shah Yasin

Prerequisites

MED1011, MED1022

Co-requisites

Must be enrolled in the MBBS or MBBS/LLB