Task Description

This assignment is designed to support your understanding and knowledge of the profession that you are entering as well as the path you will take to get there.

You will complete a written assessment on the topic of 'The Professional Radiographer in Australia'. For this assessment you will be provided a series of questions focusing on the following topics being studied in the first 4 weeks of the unit:

• the responsibilities, knowledge, skills and behaviours of a diagnostic radiographer who is registered and licenced to practice in Australia,
• the educational process for student medical radiations professionals in developing the required knowledge, skills and behaviours,
• the roles of the diagnostic radiographer in providing patient care and being part of the healthcare team,
• the provision of diagnostic imaging services within Australia's healthcare framework.

In addressing the questions asked on these topics, you are expected to use a range of resources to support your responses. These include resources that are provided on the unit Moodle site, your texts and those that you select from searching the literature. (Note that lecture slides are visual accompaniment to a spoken presentation, so the slides are not appropriate to use as a standalone resource for this assessment). One of the required resources for this assignment will be the video recording 'Is this the image you want to make?', which presents a clinical scenario between a radiographer and patient.

There is no required word count for this assignment, but a suggested size is about 2000 - 2500 words. You will be provided instructions regarding the format of your submission on the unit Moodle site. Your submission will need to be word-processed and submitted electronically as either a Word or pdf document. This is not an essay but rather a series of responses to specific questions, so you will be expected to use numbered headings to identify your response to each question. You may choose to refer to content in one of your responses in completing another response, as the topics are inter-related.

Further details on this assignment, including the specific questions to be answered, the link to the video recording and details on formatting of your submission, will all be provided on the unit Moodle site.

Your submission will be assessed on the following criteria:

Content of your responses:

• relevance of the content to the questions asked
• correctness of factual information
• depth of your discussions
• selection of appropriate resources to support your answers
  
• effectiveness of your use of the resources in supporting your answer

Communication of your responses:

• use of professional terminology
• clarity and conciseness of your responses

Presentation of your responses:

• spelling and grammar
• referencing of resources used
• adherence to posted instructions regarding the submission format

Your submission must be processed through Turnitin, and thus must be in a compatible file format as detailed in the assignment instructions. No grade will be issued for the assessment submission unless a Turnitin report can be generated for it.

Task Description

Clinical simulation is a key learning activity to support your clinical readiness. The Medical Imaging laboratories are a simulated clinical environment, meaning that the physical space and most of the activities we carry out within them are the same as what you will see and do in the real world of clinical placement. The key point is that our labs are what we call a 'safe space'. Here you can develop and practice skills at a pace that is realistic for early learners, with considerable guidance and support ensuring that you are following safe practices.

You will complete six laboratory activities in the Medical Imaging laboratories at Mackay Ooralea campus. For those of you studying on campus, these lab sessions are timetabled in Weeks 2 - 7 of the term. For those of you studying by distance delivery mode, these lab sessions take place during the two day residential school timetabled on Thursday - Friday of Week 7 (30 - 31 August 2018).

The activities in the simulation facilities are designed to help you develop the knowledge, skills and behaviours you will need to apply whilst on clinical placement during Week 8 or 9 (as allocated). During these laboratory sessions you will work with classmates in small group activities with guidance from your instructors, learning to interact professionally, follow radiation safety practices and handle imaging equipment correctly. Attendance and participation notes will be taken by your lab instructor at each session. Your instructors will monitor your compliance with occupational health and safety practice. If your lab action or behaviour puts you or others at risk of harm, you may be removed from the lab activity. This may result in you being unable to complete the assessment.

The clinical simulation laboratories have the same behavioural standards for students as the real clinical environment. While in the labs, you are required to be attired as you would be for clinical placement, adhering to the course dress code published on the Medical Imaging Portal. You will not be admitted to the lab unless you are appropriately attired. Role play will involve you taking on the roles of patients and student radiographer. Some role play will require physical contact with classmates. In role play activities and in using imaging 'phantom' bodies and body parts as patients, you are expected to treat your 'patients' and 'colleagues' as respectfully as you would in the actual clinical environment.

This is a pass/fail activity that requires attendance at all six laboratory sessions as timetabled. Because this is a pass/fail assessment task, it must be completed by the published due date. Should you have any circumstances that require you to miss any of the timetabled lab learning sessions, you must apply for an assessment extension and provide documented justification for your absence in order to have any opportunity to attend at a later date to complete the lab activities. In the absence of an approved assessment extension, you will be issued a Fail grade for this assessment item, and that will result in a Fail grade for the unit.

You must successfully complete this assessment prior to attending the five day clinical orientation placement. Delay in completing this assessment item may mean you are unable to attend placement as scheduled, and that may result in you being unable to complete the unit in the normal term period.

This is a pass/fail assessment item. In order to attain a pass score, you must:

• attend as timetabled for all six laboratory activities,
• participate in structured group learning activities, and
• adhere to occupational health and safety policies and procedures in the laboratory area.

Task Description

Your learning activities in the clinical simulation laboratories will have prepared you for the next step - putting theory to practice in the real world.

You will attend a five-day clinical placement in a Medical Imaging facility and participate within your scope of practice. The goal of the placement is for you to apply theory concepts to the clinical environment, to provide a frame of reference for concepts and knowledge you have been studying in the course so far, and for you to gauge your suitability for the Medical Imaging profession.

There are two blocks in the term during which this placement is offered: Week 8 (3 - 7 September) and Week 9 (10 -14 September). A limited number of placement spots will be available in each block.

The clinical facility you are allocated to may be located anywhere in Queensland, depending on availability of placements in partner clinical facilities and numbers of students requesting placements in each designated geographic region in the state. Accordingly, you should expect that you may not be placed in the region of your choosing and that you may need to relocate for the week in order to attend at your allocated facility. You are responsible for arranging and covering the cost of any travel and/or accommodation required to attend the placement.

Allocation of students to placements is carried out in accordance with the document 'Allocation of Students to Clinical Placements' posted on the Medical Imaging section of Sonia. You will be asked for your preference of blocks (Week 8 or Week 9) as well as your ranked preferences of geographical regions. While we will take student preferences into account, allocations are constrained by the number of spots available in each geographic region. If you have special circumstances that limit your availability to attend in terms of either time or location, then you must indicate that in the placement preference form that is administered through Sonia, and you will need to provide supporting documentation.

In order to be eligible to attend the placement, you must have met the following pre-clinical requirements:

• completed the Medical Imaging laboratory sessions assessment task, and
• submitted all required pre-clinical documentation as evidence of having met the prescribed mandatory checks, declarations and occupational health and safety requirements for attendance of clinical placements (as detailed on Sonia).

During the five days, you will be rostered on a full-time basis (normally 38 hours) to interact with patients and assist staff while operating within your scope of practice. You will apply the knowledge, skills and behaviours you have developed so far in your studies. You will rotate through various procedure and support areas of the Medical Imaging facility. You will observe the activities of the various members of the Medical Imaging professional and administrative staff, and take on simple tasks to support the workflow in each area. Whilst on placement, you will be required to wear your Medical Imaging Course clinical uniform.

During the five days, you are expected to attend as rostered. If you are absent, late to arrive or need to leave early on any of the five scheduled days, you must provide documented justification for the missed time by submitting an assessment extension request. You will be required to notify both your clinical supervisor and unit coordinator of any missed time as soon as possible. If you miss time, you must submit an assessment extension request with supporting evidence of extenuating circumstances for that absence.

Throughout your time on placement, you are expected to demonstrate professional behaviours of a medical radiation practitioner. The required behaviours and minimum standards are documented on the Orientation Assessment of Professional Attributes (OAPA) form which is posted on the unit Moodle site. There are three sections to the OAPA assessment. Section 1 measures your initiative and communication (both verbal and non-verbal). Section 2 measures your adherence to policies, health and safety standards, respect for others and demeanour. Section 3 measures your overall technical knowledge. The detailed attributes and scoring scale will be posted on the unit Moodle site. There are minimum required scores for each of the three sections, set at a level appropriate for a Year 1 student on first placement. The scoring is based on the relative frequency with which you demonstrate the behaviour before and after feedback and guidance. There are three 'critical behaviours' (adherence to site policies, attendance and attire) that must be demonstrated consistently in order to pass this assessment.

While you are at the placement, the clinical staff will observe your behaviours as you interact with others and carry out assigned tasks. At the end of the week, your clinical supervisor or designate will complete the OAPA form to score your observed behaviours relative to the stated standards, based on feedback from the staff. You are to discuss the feedback and scores with your supervisor, then sign and date the form to indicate that you understand and agree with the evaluation. Your supervisor will provide you a copy of the completed assessment. You must submit an electronic copy of the completed OAPA form using the upload link for this assessment item on the unit Moodle site by the published due date. If you are unable to upload the completed OAPA form by the due date, you must submit an assessment extension request with supporting evidence of the extenuating circumstances for the delay.

This is a pass/fail assessment item. You are required to attend the placement as allocated (both location and date), and complete all tasks associated with this assessment by the published due date. As this is a pass/fail assessment item, in the absence of an approved extension, if you have not completed all tasks for this assessment by the due date, you will receive a Fail grade for the task and a Fail grade for the unit.

There are two main requirements to the assessment in order to attain a Pass grade:

• you must complete a week of full-time attendance (less any approved minor absence) at the assigned clinical facility in the week scheduled by the Course.
• you must attain a Pass score in each of the three sections of the Orientation Assessment of Professional Attributes (OAPA) form, as detailed on the form, and upload the completed form by the due date.
  

Task Description

This assessment focuses on your experiences during your scheduled five-day clinical orientation placement in a Medical Imaging workplace. This activity helps you tie together concepts from all weeks of study in this unit and to consider them in the context of your real-world experience. It also helps you develop the critical skill of reflection on action, one of the core attributes of a health professional. As you will study in Week 1 of the term, learning encompasses not just knowledge but also developed skill and attitudes. By discussing and reflecting on your experiences you will see evidence of your learning across all three domains.

In your clinical workbook you will document what you observe and experience whilst on placement, and reflect on these in light of the concepts and knowledge you have covered in this unit. You are expected to revise the theory material from Weeks 1 - 7 of the unit prior to attending placement in order to frame your observations in the context of your prior learning.

The workbook includes a series of questions to answer after each day as well as some to answer at completion of the placement. You should use a small notebook to record brief notes each day while on site, particularly with respect to answering workbook questions. If you are using your mobile phone to record notes, you must not use your phone in any patient care area, nor may you photograph any patient or patient-related document (including medical images). You are responsible for ensuring that your phone use complies with site policy.

The clinical workbook is provided as a Word template that you will complete by entering your responses in the spaces provided. The spaces expand to accommodate your responses. It is recommended that you have access to a computer or tablet daily during your placement week so that you can add content to your workbook after each day of placement. Your clinical site is not expected to provide you any computer or internet access. You are expected to do your workbook activity off-site.

During the three weeks of the term following your placement you are expected to continue to work on your workbook responses. You are expected to go back to your learning from Weeks 1 - 7, and to consider your experiences by comparing theory to observed practice. You will need to present the the specific theory, standard and/or published best practice and then relate your observations to those. This consideration of theory to practice includes consulting resources from within the unit and beyond. You will need to consider possible contributing factors for reality not matching your preconceived expectations. You will also be expected to explore the impacts of your experiences on your development as a health professional.

Confidentiality of patient information must be maintained. Breach of patient confidentiality is a form of student behavioural misconduct and would be dealt with according to the University's Student Behavioural Misconduct Procedures.

The workbook is assessed on the following criteria:

• completeness of all sections of the workbook
• application of unit content in describing and discussing clinical observations and experiences
• depth and breadth of reflection responses
• factual correctness of stated observations, logged experiences and unit content
• use of professional terminology and clear communication
  
• clarity of communication
• maintenance of confidentiality of patient and clinical staff information

The scoring rubric and further information will be available on the unit Moodle site.

Due to the serious nature of privacy and confidentiality of patient information, should you breach confidentiality requirements your assessment score will be capped at 50% (30/60 marks).