Staff workplace attendance and the ability to participate in rosters are critical to the success and morale of a medical imaging team, and therefore the quality of patient care provided by that team.

This unit is part of a professionally accredited course with significant Work Integrated Learning components. For this unit you must attend 12 weeks of full-time clinical placement or the equivalent number of days through an approved alternative scheduling arrangement. The placement location(s) and timing have been arranged by the course in order to provide sufficient learning and assessment opportunities for you to meet the unit learning outcomes.

You are required to achieve 100% attendance. This is defined as attending all hours relative to the quantity of time that you have been rostered by your clinical supervisor to achieve 12 weeks of full-time placement, minus any absence that is approved by both your clinical supervisor and unit coordinator. You are not required to attend on any public holidays that fall within your rostered weeks, nor are you required to make up those days.

If you need to be absent for a part or full day of placement, you must inform both your clinical supervisor and unit coordinator as soon as possible, preferably in advance of the missed time. If you have justifiable grounds for having missed time, you may apply for special consideration of the missed time to the unit coordinator by providing supporting documentation. This may impact the quantity of time you are required to make up. All unapproved absences must be made up. Any time to be made up is to be scheduled at the convenience of the clinical site. This may result in extension of the work day or work week. Note that not all facilities have extended hours of operation, so opportunities to make up time are site-dependent. If you attend outside of your normally rostered hours (e.g. late day, evening or weekend), you must still be under direct supervision and working within your scope of practice, and the caseload anticipated by your supervisor must be such that the time would provide useful learning experience.

Your rostering, including daily start and end times, is determined by the clinical supervisor of the allocated placement site. The roster depends on the scheduling of imaging procedures that are relevant to your educational requirements, the typical hours of operation of the clinical facility and availability of sufficient supervision. You should not expect the roster to be modified to suit your personal life. There are five allocated personal leave days during this placement. Personal leave days may be taken as a single week-long block or as a combination of single or multiple days. Personal leave days may only be taken with the permission of your clinical supervisor. Use the leave application form on the unit Moodle site when you request leave from your supervisor and upload the completed form to Moodle. You are not permitted to work extra shifts back to back in order to reduce the duration of clinical placement. You must attend on the final scheduled day of the clinical placement block.

You will document your attendance relative to your rostered time each week in the weekly logbook file.  The record must be accurate and complete. You must include any episodes of absence, lateness or early departure in the comments section.  Your attendance record for each week of rostered time must be uploaded within the logbook file within 3 days of the last rostered shift of the week.

To obtain a score of ‘Pass’ for this assessment, you must:

• complete 100% attendance as defined above,
• have documented all attendance accurately and completely in your weekly log, and
• have submitted each week's completed log file by the stated due date.

At the end of the scheduled 12 weeks of placement, if you have not met the 100% attendance requirement AND you have documented, justifiable grounds for your absenteeism, you will be provided additional scheduled time to make up the time you have missed.  This scheduled make up time may not be immediately following the scheduled placement, and/or may not be at the same placement site, depending on clinical availability.

At the end of the scheduled 12 weeks of placement, if you have not met the 100% attendance requirement AND you do not have documented justifiable grounds for the absence, you will score 'Fail' for this assessment item.

The clinical logbook serves as a record of your depth and breadth of experience attained during the placement.  It demonstrates the degree of progression of your skill development within and across procedure types.  You should use this record to inform your reflection on learning and in formulating weekly learning goals that will support achievement of the unit outcomes.

You must record in the electronic log tool (the Excel spreadsheet file provided on the unit Moodle site) a weekly listing of every imaging procedure in which you participate.  Your level of involvement in each procedure is to be categorised as observed, assisted or performed, using the following definitions:

• Observed: You have watched the radiographer(s) carry out the procedure, and your involvement in the case has been limited to an occasional task directly assigned by someone else.
• Assisted in: You have been an integral member of the imaging team that is led by a radiographer, and you have carried out many tasks to support the completion of the procedure.  You may have carried out all imaging tasks but were provided significant guidance and direction by your supervising radiographer.
• Performed: You have planned and carried out the imaging procedure with occasional guidance, assistance and/or direction provided by your supervising radiographer

For general radiographic procedures, you must also categorise the patient by type:

• Basic: The patient has no significant limitation in his/her ability to carry out your instructions, and procedure involves only standard views/projections that do not require significant customisation to the patient's condition.
• Complex: The patient's condition is such that you must significantly modify your approach (patient care and/or technical tasks) to carrying out the procedure relative to the requirements for a basic patient.
• Paediatric: The patient is a child whose age warrants a modified approach (patient care and/or technical tasks) to carrying out the procedure relative to a basic adult patient.

All procedure information is to be recorded in such a way as to maintain patient confidentiality.

You must record any performance assessments that you have attempted, whether passed or failed.  Performance assessment documentation includes the patient type (basic vs complex).  You must also log other clinical learning activities.  This includes facility induction and orientation, any meetings, image critique sessions or other feedback/learning activities with your clinical supervisor or other clinical educator.

The weekly log is a multi-sheet Excel workbook with built-in calculations to track your progress during the unit.  You must follow the log instructions provided on the unit Moodle site and within the log in order to ensure that tracking calculations are correct. As per the posted instructions, you must use Microsoft Excel for data entry and save the file in its native Excel file format.  This same master file must be updated weekly, so that each week’s submission contains a running tally of all week’s entries.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you have regular access to the technology needed to complete the log spreadsheet each week. If you have a technical issue or personal circumstance that prevents you from being able to complete and upload your file by the weekly deadline, you MUST inform the unit coordinator of the situation, as this will require obtaining approval for an assessment extension.  In the absence of an approved assessment extension, your failure to meet the weekly upload deadline will result in a 'Fail' grade for this assessment item.

The logbook is graded on a 'Pass/Fail' basis.  The logbook is assessed on accuracy and completeness of information entered. Should any week's upload have noticeable gaps, errors or omissions, you will be given one week to correct and resubmit that week's log.

To obtain a score of 'Pass' for this assessment you must:

• ensure that your log book is complete and accurate in regards to your attendance, your participation in imaging examinations, assessments you have attempted, as well as supervisor meetings and/or other educational activities,
• ensure the integrity of the file format of the logbook is maintained AND
• each week, submit your completed weekly log book within 3 days of completing the last rostered shift of the week.

This task is designed to assess your level of competency in the performance of general radiographic procedures, theatre/mobile procedures and CT procedures. Performance assessments will be conducted by your clinical supervisor or a radiographer designated as an assessor by your supervisor. The assessor will observe you as you perform one radiographic examination. Your assessor will use the assessment tool provided on the unit Moodle site to document the level of independence, completeness and correctness you have demonstrated in each of the required tasks. The assessment is formative as well as summative in that it provides you with feedback on your relative strengths and areas for improvement. Should you not attain the minimum required score, you should create a remediation plan based on the feedback. Once you have carried out that remediation you may re-attempt the assessment.

By the end of placement, you must have successfully completed ten (10) performance assessments, consisting of:

• Two (2) assessments of performance in mobile and/or theatre radiography and/or fluoroscopy (Module A assessments).
• All students must pass two performance assessments in Module A. It is a course requirement that each student must complete at least one theatre assessment between MEDI13005 Medical Imaging Clinical Placement 3 and MEDI14006 Medical Imaging Clinical Placement 4 combined. Thus, if you have not completed a theatre assessment in your previous unit (MEDI13005) then you must successfully complete a theatre assessment during this unit. If you have already passed a theatre assessment in your previous unit, then you must still complete two assessments from Module A, however it is your choice if they are theatre and/or mobile and/or fluoroscopy.

• Six (6) assessments of 'general' radiography examinations (Module B assessments).
• Each of these six assessments must be completed on a different region of the body as detailed below.
• Upper extremity, lower extremity, shoulder girdle, pelvic girdle, bony thorax, spine, chest, abdomen, craniofacial and dental.
• At least three of these assessments must be completed on complex patients (who require significant adaptation to your technique or approach to the examination). These may also include paediatric patients (see previous definition).
  
• The other three assessments may be on any type of patient (basic, complex or paediatric). Any basic assessments are limited to the following body regions: craniofacial, dental, spine, pelvic girdle, bony thorax or shoulder girdle.

• Two (2) assessments of CT examinations (Module C Assessments).
• Both must be performed on different body parts which are also different to those assessed in MEDI13005. One assessment must be non-contrast and one must be on a contrast examination.

For all performance assessments, each must be completed on a separate patient presentation. It is not acceptable to image a single patient for several anatomical areas during one attendance and use those examinations for several performance assessments.

There is no limit to the number of attempts you may make at any performance assessment. However, you must recognise that the clinical site staff's first priority is patient care. Opportunities for assessment are limited by time available as well as the availability of suitable patients and suitable procedures. You need to take initiative in starting the assessment process in a timely manner in order to ensure you will complete the assessments in the placement time available. If there are extenuating circumstances at the clinical facility that limit your ability to access radiographic procedures to undergo assessments, then you must discuss this with your clinical supervisor AND contact the unit coordinator in a timely manner.

You need to ensure that each completed assessment form has all required information on page 1, including the name, dated signature and MRPBA registration number of your assessor, as well as your dated signature. If this information is not on the form, you will be provided with feedback and will need to have the form updated by your assessor to resubmit within one week. This is the case whether you have passed or failed the assessment. If a radiographer other than your clinical supervisor completed the assessment, it is your responsibility to ensure that your supervisor knows the outcome of each attempted assessment and that he/she is provided with the original of the completed assessment form.

Your supervisor will provide you with a copy of the completed assessment form. You will then scan it and upload each form into the unit Moodle site using the link provided. The form for each attempted assessment, whether passed or not, must be uploaded into Moodle.

Each performance assessment measures your ability to carry out the core tasks of a radiographic imaging procedure. These tasks are detailed on the assessment form. Some tasks are classified as 'critical' and require a higher level of performance than the 'non-critical' tasks. This is also outlined on the assessment form. The assessor will score your observed performance of each of the listed tasks using the 1 - 6 scale on the form and as follows:

To achieve a 'Pass' on an individual mobile radiography, screening fluoroscopy or theatre imaging (Module A) performance assessment, you must achieve the following scores:

• a minimum score of 5 on all critical tasks (2 tasks for mobiles, 1 task for theatre, 4 tasks for fluoroscopy)
• at least 5 non-critical tasks scored at 5 or better
• all remaining non-critical tasks scored at 4 or better

• a minimum score of 5 on both critical tasks
• at least 7 non-critical tasks scored at 5 or better
• all remaining non-critical tasks scored at 4 or better

• Non-contrast Examination

• a minimum score of 5 on both critical tasks
• at least 6 non-critical tasks scored at 5 or better
• all remaining non-critical tasks scored at 4 or better

• Contrast Examination

• a minimum score of 5 on all three critical tasks (1, 2 and 3)
• at least 7 non-critical tasks scored at 5 or better
• all remaining non-critical tasks scored at 4 or better

This assessment item is marked on a Pass/Fail basis. To achieve a 'Pass', you must:

• pass all ten performance assessments as detailed in the Task Description and the Assessment Criteria,
• ensure the documentation of each completed assessment form is complete as detailed in the Task Description above, AND
• upload each assessment form within three days of the last rostered shift of the week in which the assessment was completed.

In the absence of an approved assessment extension, if you have not met all of the above-listed criteria for achieving a Pass on this assessment, you will receive a Fail grade for the placement.

Clinical placement occurs in the professional workplace. As a clinical student, you are provided access to that workplace on the condition that you demonstrate behaviours and attributes of a healthcare professional, present a positive image to the clinical facility's staff and clients and comply with the site’s policies. As a student in a regulated healthcare profession in Australia, you are also required to be working towards consistent compliance with the Professions' Code of Conduct. As a CQUniversity student you must also meet the General Behavioural Requirements of the Student Behavioural Misconduct Procedure and refrain from Misconduct as described in that Procedure.

Assessment Process:

Your clinical supervisor will be working in the imaging areas with you, directly observing your day to day performance, and/or obtaining feedback from supervising radiographers who are doing so. These observations and collected feedback relate to your demonstrated knowledge, skills and behaviour over a span of time. This is not limited to a particular procedure or patient case. The observations and feedback are then used to complete the Global Assessment of Professional Attributes (GAPA) form provided on the unit Moodle site.

There are 3 main sections to the global assessment form:

Section 1: initiative and communication

Section 2: responsibility and demeanour

Section 3: overall technical knowledge and skill

In each section, there are multiple observable behaviours that are required. For most behaviours, it is expected that you are aiming toward consistent performance but are still developing toward entry to practice level. These behaviours are categorised as non-critical. There is one critical behaviour: adhering to site policies. It is expected that all students, right from their first placement, are capable of full and ongoing compliance with site policies.

Your assessor will score your performance based on how frequently and to what extent you demonstrate each of the listed behaviours. Your assessor is also encouraged to provide comments to expand on the scoring feedback.

Your clinical supervisor (or designated assessor) will meet with you after completing each assessment to discuss it with you. This is your opportunity to get clarification on any score or comment on the assessment.

Timing of Assessment:

This assessment occurs three times during the placement. The first occurs at the end of Week 4 and the second occurs at the end of Week 8. The third and final GAPA assessment occurs toward the end of Week 12 (or the final week of your placement).

It is your responsibility to ensure that you remind your clinical supervisor at least a week prior to the assessment that it needs to be done and book a meeting with him/her toward the end of the week that the assessment is due. This gives your supervisor the opportunity to collect feedback and to designate an alternate assessor if he/she will not be available.

Formative and Summative Use of the GAPA assessment:

These first two GAPA assessments are formative, meaning their function is to provide you and your unit coordinator with formal documented feedback on your performance, but there are no minimum required scores related to your final grade. You are expected to use that feedback to reflect on your performance, develop an action plan to address any areas of performance that are not yet at the target level for this placement, and use the remaining weeks to achieve those targets. For any behaviour that you score well on for these initial GAPA assessments, it is expected that you will continue to meet that level of performance or surpass it for the rest of the placement.

The end of placement assessment is summative, in that its primary use is to evaluate and document your performance relative to the stated performance targets (the minimum required scores listed in the Assessment Criteria section below). Your final overall grade in this assessment depends on where you stand relative to those performance targets. As this placement is the fourth of five in the course, you should also use this end-of-placement assessment as formative, to help inform your plans for improvement that you can implement in your fifth and final placement.

Self-assessment:

For all GAPAs, prior to meeting with your supervisor, you must also use the assessment tool to self-assess your behaviours. Complete the form and take it with you to your meeting with your supervisor to aid in the discussion of your progress.

Documentation and submission requirements:

Once you have met with your supervisor about your GAPA, you both need to sign and date both assessment documents (your supervisor’s assessment and your self-assessment). You need to ensure that each completed assessment form has scores entered in all sections and has all required fields completed, including the name, dated signature and registration number of your assessor as well as your dated signature.

Your supervisor will provide you with a copy of the completed assessment form. You must then scan the supervisor-completed and self-completed GAPA forms and upload the file into the unit Moodle site using the link provided.

You are required to log these three assessment meetings in Section 3 of your relevant weekly logs, including the meeting date and a brief summary of the discussion plus the overall score of each assessment.

It is your responsibility to ensure regular access to the technology needed to upload your assessment files by the submission due dates. Recognise that the clinical facility is not responsible for providing you access to computer facilities for your assessments.

Assessment Due Dates and Extensions:

If there are extenuating circumstances at the clinical facility that prevent you from being assessed during the required weeks, you must contact the unit coordinator in a timely manner to explain the situation and request an extension.

In the absence of an approved assessment extension, if you have not met all of the requirements listed in the Assessment Criteria section by the stated due dates, you will fail this assessment, and because this is a pass/fail unit that means you will receive a Fail grade for the placement.

Non-critical behaviours and attributes:

The assessor will use the stated 1-6 scale to indicate the frequency and extent to which you demonstrate each of those.

Scores Descriptors for non-critical behaviours and attributes:

The minimum required scores for each sections's non-critical behaviours and attributes are:

Section 1: Initiative and Communication.

• Minimum score of 4
• At least 5 of the 9 categories are scored at 5 or above
  
• No more than one score at N/A

Section 2: Responsibility and Demeanour.

• Minimum score of 5
  
• No more than one score at N/A

Section 3: Overall Technical Knowledge and Skill

• Minimum of 5 for the use of equipment
• Minimum of 4 for the other 2 attributes

Critical Behaviour:

The behaviour 'Adheres to site policies on privacy, confidentiality, use of mobile devices and use of social media' is scored separately using the following scale:

• Full compliance
• One incident of non-compliance
• More than one incident of non-complicance.

A student who is non-compliant on a single occasion will receive a warning from the supervising radiographer or clinical supervisor. This incident will be considered behavioural misconduct. This warning may be issued intially in verbal form or in writing. The clinical supervisor will inform the unit coordinator (UC) of the situation. The Head of Course will then lodge a formal report of behavioural misconduct. This will be addressed separately from the scoring of the GAPA.

Any student who violates site policy more than once during a placement unit (whether violation of the same or a different policy as previously) will fail the GAPA. This will result in a Fail grade for the unit. This repeated behaviour is considered Serious Misconduct and thus will also be dealt with under the procedure of Student Behavioural Misconduct.

Requirements for a Pass score in the GAPA assessment task:

In order to achieve a grade of 'Pass' in this assessment task, you must:

• undergo all three placement assessments by the due dates listed,
• on the end-of-placement assessment, meet the minimum required scores in all sections
• ensure the documentation of each assessment is complete, and
• upload each completed supervisor-assessed and self-assessed GAPA form into the unit Moodle site by the due date.

Critical reflection in an on-going cycle of experience, reflection, learning and practice is a critical skill for your professional development. Reflecting on your practice only at the end of your clinical block breaks this cycle and reduces your learning opportunities.  For this reason, you will be required to complete a total of three (3) reflections during this placement.

Reflection topics to choose from:

• Your cultural awareness and ability to respond to the needs of a patient with whom you are culturally different.
• Your clinical decision-making.
• An instance where you have advocated for your patient (spoken up on their behalf to benefit their care or medical pathway).
• Your increasing level of independence in practice.
• An aspect of your adaptive radiographic skills (e.g. fluoroscopy, mobile radiography or horizontal beam lateral hip radiography).
• A CPD activity that you have participated in.
  

Other submission guidelines:

• Your writing should follow the format of an acknowledged reflective tool (e.g. Gibb’s reflective cycle or Borton’s reflective framework).
• You will be expected to use relevant external sources of information to aid your reflection and these should be referenced in the Harvard style.
• You cannot repeat reflections used for previous Clinical Placement units, as that is considered self-plagiarism as defined in the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedures document.
• Patient and staff confidentiality must always be maintained.
• Each reflection must be approximately 300 words, with a maximum of 500 words.
• As a reflection, it is appropriate to write this in the first person.
• Further guidance will be available on the unit Moodle site.
  

The reflection submission is assessed for:

• use of an acknowledged reflective tool,
• critical reflection of your professional practice in one of the topics, as stated in the Task Description,
• identification of causative factors that impact your performance,
• demonstrated evidence of learning and development through reflection,
• use of external resources to support your reflection, and
  
• clarity and format of writing (including logical flow, spelling, punctuation, grammar and correct use of Harvard system in citing external sources).

A detailed marking rubric will be posted on the course Moodle site to specify the 'Pass' requirements for each criterion listed above. If you do not meet the requirements for the first reflection submitted, feedback will be provided by the unit coordinator and you will have one week to resubmit the reflection to meet the requirements. The Week 6 and 9 reflections must meet minimum requirements on initial submission.

The reflection assessments are scored on a Pass/Fail basis. To obtain a score of ‘Pass’ for this assessment, you must:

• submit the three reflections by the stated deadlines,
• attain a 'requirements met' score for the first reflection after a maximum of two submissions, and
• attain a 'requirements met' score for the second and third reflections on initial submission.