Postgraduate - UnitSRH5000 - Health and health care practices for communities

This unit entry is for students who completed this unit in 2015 only. For students planning to study the unit, please refer to the unit indexes in the the current edition of the Handbook. If you have any queries contact the managing faculty for your course or area of study.

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6 points, SCA Band 2, 0.125 EFTSL

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

Level	Postgraduate
Faculty	Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences
Organisational Unit	School of Rural Health
Offered	Moe First semester 2015 (Online)
Coordinator(s)	TBA

Synopsis

Concepts and principles of health practice in different communities and the impact on the people in those communities are explored. Differences in communities across Australia are also examined, and their influence on health outcomes and access to health services. The nature of metropolitan and rural communities are also examined and the health/illness patterns explored from a social and epidemiological framework. Structure and function of health care services and their role in maintaining the health status of individuals and communities are covered as well as health care practice in different communities from the point of view of the rural health professional, including consideration of personal and professional issues and on-going issues of recruiting and retaining health professionals in rural areas.

Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this unit, students should be able to:

Critically analyse definitions of metropolitan, regional, rural and remote as they pertain to health;
Communicate and understand the impact social structures, roles and relationships have on the health and well-being of people living in differing communities;
Use evidence to identify the factors which affect the health status of Australians living in communities of different sizes and locations;
Engage in critical appraisal of the structures and processes involved in health services delivery across varying communities;
Differentiate between the aspects of rural and remote practice that distinguish it from practice in the metropolitan setting;
Critically analyse the factors that affect the recruitment and retention of health practitioners in differing communities.

Assessment

Case study of a rural/remote community (3,000-3,500 words) (50%)
Interview with a rural practitioner (2,500 words) (35%)
Discussion forum (15%)

Chief examiner(s)

Dr Angelo D'Amore

This unit applies to the following area(s) of study

Rural health