Overview
This final work integrated learning unit further builds on the knowledge, skills and professional behaviour developed during the course. Theoretical and technical knowledge will be applied to a professional work environment in a specialised field of diagnostic Medical Laboratory Science. You will perform technical skills and analyse the outcomes to meet the competency and skill required of an entry-level Medical Laboratory Scientist. You will perform, and reflect on, safe operations and quality management in the medical laboratory, with due regard for legislation, regulation and accreditation. Behavioural aspects of professional practice are emphasised and you are expected to reflect on your own communication, decision-making and team-work skills. Critical appraisal of performance will enable you to attain competency in your professional, technical and analytical skills.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Pre-Requisites: LMED28001 Chemical Pathology 1 AND LMED28002 Haematopathology 1 AND LMED28003 Immunopathology 1 AND LMED28004 Infectious Diseases 1 AND LMED29002 Anatomical Pathology 1 AND LMED29001 Genomic Pathology 1 AND LMED29003 Transfusion and Transplantation Medicine 1. AND Co-Requisite: LMED29008 Clinical Placement 1
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 2 - 2024
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 12-credit Postgraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 25 hours of study per week, making a total of 300 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a pass/fail (non-graded) unit. To pass the unit, you must pass all of the individual assessment tasks shown in the table above.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback - Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Self-reflection
Students suggested alteration to timings of assessment due dates to avoid clashes with timings of assessments in other units.
Given clinical placement may fall outside of the standard University term dates, related assessment due dates may differ depending on individual arrangements. Timings for assessments will be provided consideration.
Feedback from Student Placement Site Evaluation
Students very satisfied with the placement allocations in pathology (& research labs)
Continue to maintain the strong relationships with placement providers to ensure continuation of offers for future cohorts of CM18 CQU placement students
- Apply knowledge of pathology, laboratory medicine procedures and quality management to demonstrate competency as a Medical Laboratory Scientist as per the competency standards of the Australian Institute of Medical Scientists
- Integrate and interpret laboratory data from various sources to solve problems, inform decisions and provide advice to other health professionals
- Behave professionally using appropriate interpersonal skills relevant to diagnostic pathology practice in accordance with the competency standards of the Australian Institute of Medical Scientists
- Evaluate new, or adapted, laboratory protocols and procedures to enhance efficiency and efficacy of diagnostic testing in a medical science laboratory.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 1 - Practical Assessment - 0% | ||||
| 2 - Practical Assessment - 0% | ||||
| 3 - Professional Practice Placement - 0% | ||||
| 4 - Learning logs / diaries / Journal / log books - 0% | ||||
| 5 - Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs) - 0% | ||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 1 - Knowledge | ||||
| 2 - Communication | ||||
| 3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills | ||||
| 4 - Research | ||||
| 5 - Self-management | ||||
| 6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility | ||||
| 7 - Leadership | ||||
| 8 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | ||||
Textbooks
There are no required textbooks.
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- ZOOM
- Teams
- SONIA (Online)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Vancouver
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
g.burchall@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
You will attend and complete 350 hours of clinical placement within this unit.
You will have already completed 210 hours in Clinical Placement 1.
Together these will give you your total required clinical placement hours of 560.
Chapter
There are no set texts for this unit.
Events and Submissions/Topic
The actual placement schedule will differ for each student.
Placements will be arranged for each individual student by liaison with the School of Health, Medical and Applied Sciences Clinical Placement Coordinator and the WIL officer via the Sonia Placement system. It is expected that your placement (in Clinical Placement 2) continue at the same placement site in which you undertook/completed your Clinical Placement 1.
Zoom 'Drop-in/Q&A' sessions will be scheduled at regular intervals (usually monthly) throughout the placement period to allow for contact with students whilst on placement. A placement site visit/s or teleconference was completed early in your placement period (at approx. 4-6 weeks into your placement) ie in Clinical Placement 1, and, if required another site visit/ teleconference may occur in the second half of your placement. This will only be required if your placement supervisor determines a discussion of your progress needs to occur with your clinical supervisor, yourself and
the placement coordinator.
TERM SPECIFIC INFORMATION
Contact information:
The Unit Coordinator for this unit is A/P Genia Burchall and she can be contacted via e-mail, g.burchall@cqu.edu.au.
Professional Behaviour and Uniform:
On your placement, you are representing not only yourself, but the University as well as the profession as a whole. Professional representation and behavior is expected at all times.
Before commencing placement, you will have attended a compulsory pre-placement preparation session/workshop (online). At this session you received the relevant information to prepare you for placement, including key aspects of professional behavior you are expected to exemplify at all times during your professional placement period.
Whilst you are on placement you must continue to wear the appropriate CQUniversity uniform at all times. You are expected to purchase this uniform from the Bookshop prior to commencing placement.
Medical certificates and illness during placement: In case you are unable to attend any part of your placement due to sickness, please submit a medical or health related certificate to the Unit Coordinator as soon as practical (& ensure you communicate with your Clinical supervisor in the laboratory as soon as possible via phone, preferably on the morning of the day you cannot attend, to indicate you are unwell). Medical or health-related certificates must be in the approved formats articulated in the CQUniversity Assessment Policy and Procedure (HE Coursework).
In the event that your condition could harm or negatively impact either yourself or those around you (e.g. put you at risk of exacerbating an injury, or pass on viral or bacterial infections to other students and staff) you will be sent home and you will need to provide acceptable medical documentation for your absence, as stated above.
Students who are sick and / or injured and cannot attend work placement, in addition to notifying the Unit Coordinator (via email) and their Work Placement Supervisor (by telephone), and submitting a medical certificate (to the Unit Coordinator via email), will also need to make alternative arrangements to complete the remaining hours of work placement that are missed, after consultation with the placement provider and the Unit Coordinator.
Assessment Submission:
As each student has a different commencement date for placement, and as there are differences in terms of how students complete placement (ie full time vs part time), there are no set/specific due dates for assessments for placement, however deadlines based on the amount of time students have been on placement. Failure to submit by the due date (based on the relevant time completion for placement) will incur a late submission penalty.
For Assessment Task: Competencies Based Standards for Medical Scientists (Portfolio - Part 2) - If this assessment task does not meet the minimum standard for a pass you will be given one opportunity to re-submit the assessment (or relevant competency their-in where the min standard was not met) following the provision of feedback.
A final fail grade for any assessment task (with a minimum pass mark requirement) will result in an overall fail for the unit.
Student Performance and Evaluation during Placement & Learning (Probationary) Contract:
Performance evaluations of each student's performance will be carried out by the laboratory supervisor initially approximately halfway through the placement period (i.e. ~at/before the student has completed 280 hours of placement) and then again that the end of the placement period (i.e. following 560 hours of placement). The initial evaluation is a formal way to receive an assessment of the student’s progress approx. halfway through their placement, allowing the student to know their strengths and enabling improvement in areas of weakness before the final evaluation at the end of the full placement period. If a weakness is evident in the initial evaluation or the student demonstrates difficulty in progressing to competence at the level expected at a particular stage in a student’s training, the Clinical Supervisor along with the student and Unit Coordinator, will develop a Learning (Probationary) Contract which identifies specific areas of development, recommends remedial strategies and includes a time frame for completion. Competence is the ability to consistently perform professional procedures well. In order to accurately reflect competence, the evaluation will be judged at professional entry level but reflect the relative time period the student has been on placement. The student should take every opportunity during their placement to enhance their skill and knowledge but also let the Clinical Supervisor know if they do not feel they are ready for competency assessment or require further support during any period of their placement. The student can request one postponement of the evaluation and undertake preparation of a learning contract to remedy the situation. The placement coordinator may also initiate draw-up of a learning (probationary) contract should they feel that the student is not adequately taking every opportunity during their placement to enhance their skill and knowledge and/or seeking additional support in this regard. Students are also encouraged to familiarise themselves with the WIL polices surrounding circumstances that may warrant removal of students from placement (see 4.75-4.77 https://delivery-cqucontenthub.stylelabs.cloud/api/public/content/work-integrated-learning-policy-and-procedure.pdf).
1 Practical Assessment
As part of this assessment you will have the opportunity to submit draft/s of your remaining Portfolio Competencies related to the Clinical Placement 2 unit (Units 4-10 - Elements 4.1-4.4, 5.1-5.4, 6.1-6.5, 7.1-7.4, 8.1-8.4, 9.1-9.4, 10.1-10.4 competency-based standards) and receive feedback where improvements are needed.
Portfolio Part 2 DRAFTs; As each student has a different commencement date for placement, as there are differences in terms of how students complete placement (ie full time vs part time), we have not set specific due dates for this assessment, however deadlines based on time completion of placement. This assessment is due at/before you have completed 500 h of placement.
Feedback will generally be provided within two (2) weeks of submission.
No Assessment Criteria
- Apply knowledge of pathology, laboratory medicine procedures and quality management to demonstrate competency as a Medical Laboratory Scientist as per the competency standards of the Australian Institute of Medical Scientists
2 Practical Assessment
Based on the documents ‘Competency Based Standards for Medical Scientists, 2009’ and the ‘Scope of Practice of the Scientific Workforce of the Pathology Laboratory’ we have mapped the scope of practice and the competency-based standards to the two Work Integrated Learning/Clinical Placement units in the Master of Laboratory Medicine course.
During your Master of Laboratory Medicine you will need to complete two Clinical Placement units: Clinical Placement 1 and Clinical Placement 2, with a combined total of five hundred and sixty (560) hours duration. Each placement has been constructed to be aligned with the Competency Based Standards for Medical Scientists (2009) and tasks and activities are designed to assess you against these standards; Units 1-3 (Elements 1.1-1.6, 2.1-2.3, 3.1-3.4) will have been assessed in the Clinical Placement 1 Unit, while Units 4-10 - Elements 4.1-4.4, 5.1-5.4, 6.1-6.5, 7.1-7.4, 8.1-8.4, 9.1-9.4, 10.1-10.4, will be assessed here in the Clinical Placement 2 Unit.
Portfolio Part 2 FINAL; As each student has a different commencement date for placement, and as there are differences in terms of how students complete placement (ie full time vs part time), we have not set specific due dates for this assessment, however deadlines based on time completion of placement. This assessment is due within 2 weeks of completion of your full placement time ie due within 2 weeks of completing 560h of placement.
Feedback will generally be provided within two (2) to three (3) weeks of submission.
Complete the competency Based Standards to a minimum grade of 50%
- Apply knowledge of pathology, laboratory medicine procedures and quality management to demonstrate competency as a Medical Laboratory Scientist as per the competency standards of the Australian Institute of Medical Scientists
3 Professional Practice Placement
Performance Evaluation/Appraisal while out on Practical Placement:
The Clinical Placement Supervisor is required to complete two (2) 'Evaluation of Student Performance' forms, one at the mid-point (midpoint evaluation) that would have been completed and submitted within the Clinical Placement 1 unit; and the other at the completion of your full placement period (560h), final endpoint evaluation, that is assessed here during Clinical Placement 2.
The evaluation forms are available online with the link provided by the Clinical Placements Officer at CQUniversity.
Your Supervisor should discuss your evaluation with you prior to submission.
End-point/Final Performance Evaluation/Appraisal while out on Practical Placement; As each student has a different commencement date for placement, and as there are differences in terms of how students complete placement (ie full time vs part time), we have not set specific due dates for this assessment, however deadlines based on time completion of placement. This assessment is due within 2 weeks of completion of your full placement time ie due within 2 weeks of completing 560h of placement.
Feedback will generally be provided within two (2) weeks of submission.
Supervisor Evaluations
The Supervisor Evaluations are based on your professional behaviour whilst on practical placement and are a 6-point Likert Scale.
Any 'Disagree' or 'Strongly Disagree' evaluations on the first evaluation (Mid-point Performance Evaluation/Appraisal completed during your Clinical Placement 1 by your laboratory supervisor) are to be addressed and improved upon before/by this final evaluation.
Five (5) or more 'Disagree' or 'Strongly Disagree' evaluations on this final evaluation will result in a FAIL.
To pass there must be at least 50% of this final supervisor evaluation as 'Agree' or 'Strongly Agree'.
- Behave professionally using appropriate interpersonal skills relevant to diagnostic pathology practice in accordance with the competency standards of the Australian Institute of Medical Scientists
4 Learning logs / diaries / Journal / log books
The Attendance Record is maintained in Sonia Online and you are required to submit a 'time-sheet' for each attendance. You are required to indicate the start time and finish time and any meal break taken. You must demonstrate attendance for a minimum of 560 hours during the total duration of placement between Clinical Placement 1 and 2; 210h to be completed during Clinical Placement 1 and a further 350h during this Clinical Placement 2 unit.
Attendance Record while out on placement; Submit your time-sheets via Sonia online to demonstrate attendance on practical placement on a regular basis (on the final day of each week).
You are required to attend placement for a minimum of 560 hours across both Clinical Placement units; 210h to be completed during Clinical Placement 1 and 350h during Clinical Placement 2.
- Apply knowledge of pathology, laboratory medicine procedures and quality management to demonstrate competency as a Medical Laboratory Scientist as per the competency standards of the Australian Institute of Medical Scientists
- Integrate and interpret laboratory data from various sources to solve problems, inform decisions and provide advice to other health professionals
5 Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs)
Students will receive training in a broad range of activates, tests, methods, instrumentation procedures and other requirements while out on clinical placement as a trainee medical scientist. Evidence of this training will be added to the laboratory's standard training schedule/log (used for qualified medical scientists) where the student is undertaking their placement. Completion of this training schedule can be, and will be encouraged, to be undertaken on a regular basis (as the training takes place), or completed at regular intervals. Once a student has achieved competency in a task/procedure/method etc where they received training, this then can be noted on the same training schedule (including an indication of both the date of competency achievement and the method used to assess competency ie Direct observation, etc). The range of training requirements is expected to vary between one laboratory to another and one discipline of Laboratory Medicine to another where a student is undertaking their placement, however laboratory supervisors are encouraged to train students in a broad range of tasks/procedures/methods equivalent to what a qualified Medical Scientist may receive training, noting that placement students are not permitted to undertake some actions ie authorise final results (but can certainly receive training in this authorisation process). It is expected that students will become competent in a min of 80% of tasks/procedures/methods etc they have received training before the end of their laboratory placement period. It should be noted here that the laboratory supervisor/s may indicate 'Not applicable' for certain tasks/procedures/methods etc where a student received training but also where they believe a student cannot achieve competence in the timeframe they are on placement. Students will be required to demonstrate knowledge and skill of key clinical, technical and professional attributes of a Medical Laboratory Scientist they will have acquired during both the placement period and the course overall.
Training Schedules/Logs; As each student has a different commencement date for placement, and as there are differences in terms of how students complete placement (ie full time vs part time), we have not set specific due dates for this assessment, however deadlines based on time completion of placement. This assessment is due within 2 weeks of completion of your full placement time ie due within 2 weeks of completing 560h of placement.
Feedback will generally be provided within two (2) weeks of submission.
Students much achieve 80% competency in tasks/methods/procedures for which training was received on placement (where the clinical supervisor believes competency is achievable in the timeframe a student is on placement - 560h).
- Apply knowledge of pathology, laboratory medicine procedures and quality management to demonstrate competency as a Medical Laboratory Scientist as per the competency standards of the Australian Institute of Medical Scientists
- Integrate and interpret laboratory data from various sources to solve problems, inform decisions and provide advice to other health professionals
- Evaluate new, or adapted, laboratory protocols and procedures to enhance efficiency and efficacy of diagnostic testing in a medical science laboratory.
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
