Overview
During this clinical placement unit you will complete eleven weeks of full-time work integrated learning experience in a medical imaging clinical facility. You will provide patient care that supports the cultural, physical and psychosocial safety of your patients. You will further develop your skills in general radiography to perform competently in routine situations and to approach the level of competency for complex patients and in complex environments. You will perform routine computed tomography procedures competently and assist in complex procedures. You will attain competency in fluoroscopy in a range of environments. You will further develop your clinical reasoning and decision-making skills as you take on more independence in performance, operating within your scope of practice. You will perform in accordance with the code of conduct for regulated health professionals in Australia. You will further develop your clinical foundation knowledge of techniques, patient care requirements and safety considerations of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Pre-requisite: MEDI13005 Medical Imaging Clinical Placement 3, which must have been completed within the past six months. Should this time limit be exceeded, the student must complete a skills assessment and undergo a period of skills revision as determined by the Head of Course or designate. Co-requisite: MEDI14001 Transition to Independent Practice
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 3 - 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 18-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 37.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 450 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 Unit Coordinator reflection
All students fulfilled the adaptative imaging modality requirements by the end of clinical placement with the use of the 'Clinical Student Introduction form' in their first week of clinical placement.
Continue to use the 'Clinical Student Introduction form'.
- Model the professional behavioural attributes of an entry-to-practice medical radiation practitioner, adhering to the code of conduct of the profession
- Integrate clinical reasoning and critical reflection into your daily medical imaging practice
- Evaluate images across a wide range of procedure types for technical and medico-legal sufficiency, for demonstration of urgent or unexpected findings and for formulation of image improvement strategies where indicated
- Practice in a manner that supports the physical, psychosocial and cultural safety of patients, others and yourself
- Perform general radiographic examinations at a competent level for non-complex patient presentations and using a level of assistance commensurate with the complexity of the patient presentation for non-routine examinations
- Perform contrast and non-contrast computed tomography at a competent level for routine procedures and using a level of assistance commensurate with the complexity of the patient presentation for non-routine procedures
- Perform mobile radiography and fluoroscopy at a competent level for routine procedures and using a level of assistance commensurate with the complexity of the patient presentation for non-routine procedures
- Integrate into the clinical medical imaging team, operating within your scope of practice.
- Discuss the techniques, patient care requirements and safety considerations of magnetic resonance imaging that are required for advanced beginner practice in the modality.
This unit maps to the following components of the Medical Radiation Practice Board of Australia's Professional Capabilities for Medical Radiation Practice (2019):
Domain 1: Medical Radiation Practitioner capabilities 1 - 8
Domain 1A: Diagnostic radiographer capabilities 1 - 3
Domain 2 Professional and ethical practitioner: capabilities 1 - 3
Domain 3 Communicator and collaborator: capabilities 1 - 2
Domain 4 Evidence-informed practitioner: capabilities 1 - 2
Domain 5 Radiation safety and risk manager: capabilities 1 - 4
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | |
1 - Professional Practice Placement - 0% | |||||||||
2 - Learning logs / diaries / Journal / log books - 0% | |||||||||
3 - Direct observation of procedural skills (DOPs) - 0% | |||||||||
4 - Practical Assessment - 0% | |||||||||
5 - Reflective Practice Assignment - 0% | |||||||||
6 - Online Quiz(zes) - 0% |
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | |
1 - Communication | |||||||||
2 - Problem Solving | |||||||||
3 - Critical Thinking | |||||||||
4 - Information Literacy | |||||||||
5 - Team Work | |||||||||
6 - Information Technology Competence | |||||||||
7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||||||||
8 - Ethical practice | |||||||||
9 - Social Innovation | |||||||||
10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures |
Textbooks
There are no required textbooks.
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Vancouver
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
c.falconi@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Clinical Placement Week 1
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Site orientation and induction
- Complete Week 1 logbook and upload within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week (along with all forms for any performance assessments attempted this week).
Module/Topic
Clinical Placement Week 2
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Complete Week 2 logbook and upload within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week (along with all forms for any performance assessments attempted this week).
Module/Topic
Clinical Placement Week 3
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
- 27th January Australia Day public holiday
- Complete Week 3 logbook and upload within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week (along with all forms for any performance assessments attempted this week).
- Complete first GAPA if moving to new site next week.
Module/Topic
Clinical Placement Week 4
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Complete Week 4 logbook and upload within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week (along with all forms for any performance assessments attempted this week).
- First GAPA to be completed this week and uploaded within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week.
Module/Topic
Clinical Placement Week 5
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Complete Week 5 logbook and upload within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week (along with all forms for any performance assessments attempted this week).
- First reflection due by 4pm AEST Monday of Week 5.
Module/Topic
Clinical Placement Week 6
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Complete Week 6 logbook and upload within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week (along with all forms for any performance assessments attempted this week).
- Complete GAPA if moving to a new site next week.
Module/Topic
Clinical Placement Week 7
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Complete Week 7 logbook and upload within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week (along with all forms for any performance assessments attempted this week).
- Complete GAPA if moving to a new site next week.
Module/Topic
Clinical Placement Week 8
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Complete Week 8 logbook and upload within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week (along with all forms for any performance assessments attempted this week).
- Second GAPA to be completed this week and uploaded within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week.
Module/Topic
Clinical Placement Week 9
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Complete Week 9 logbook and upload within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week (along with all forms for any performance assessments attempted this week).
- Complete GAPA if moving to a new site next week.
Module/Topic
Clinical Placement Week 10
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Complete Week 10 logbook and upload within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week (along with all forms for any performance assessments attempted this week).
- Second reflection due by 4pm AEST Monday of Week 10.
Module/Topic
Clinical Placement Week 11
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
- Complete Week 11 logbook and upload within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week.
- If attendance requirement has been met, final GAPA to be completed and uploaded within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week.
- All Performance assessments must be completed and submitted by the Tuesday of the final week of placement.
Module/Topic
Clinical Placement Week 12
- Attendance required if any leave days have been taken and time has not been made up
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
- If you have taken any personal leave days, complete Week 12 logbook and upload within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week.
- Final GAPA to be completed in your final week and uploaded within 3 days of the last rostered shift for the week.
- All Performance assessments must be completed and submitted by the Tuesday of the final week of placement.
This unit is an 11 week full-time clinical (Work Integrated Learning or WIL) placement. The standard start date for the placement is Monday 13th January 2025. Some students may have non-standard start and end dates for their allocated placement.
You will have been allocated a specific clinical site (or sites) to attend for the placement. The clinical site/s will provide the range and quantity of imaging procedures to support your achievement of the unit learning outcomes and support your completion of clinical assessments.
You will be rostered by your clinical supervisor to attend at a variety of shift times and in a variety of work areas within the site/s. During this placement student rosters may not be standard Monday – Friday, but may include evening and night shifts, weekend work, compressed weekly rosters and scheduled leave days. Because of these factors, assessment due dates are expressed relative to the individual student’s roster and week of placement, not expressed in calendar days.
You will require regular computer and internet access, use of Microsoft office software and document image capture technology in order to complete assessment requirements. Clinical sites do not provide computer or internet access, so it is your responsibility to provide your own and ensure the regular access needed to upload your assessment files by the submission due dates.
The unit teaching team will monitor your clinical progress through review of your weekly logbook and clinical assessments. Please use the Q&A and Discussion Forums for general queries and comments. You are encouraged to contact the unit coordinator directly (by email or phone) for any queries or concerns related to your placement.
1 Professional Practice Placement
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 11 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 11 weeks of full-time placement, minus any exceptional absence that is approved by both your clinical supervisor and unit coordinator. (Exceptional absence is separate from allocated personal leave days discussed below.) 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.
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. You are not permitted to work extra shifts back to back in order to reduce the duration of clinical placement.
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. There are five allocated personal leave days during this placement. You are not required to take this leave, but you do have the flexibility to use the five personal leave days as a single week-long block or as a combination of single or multiple days. If you use any leave days in Weeks 1-11, then you will attend into your 12th scheduled week. If you have not used any leave in Weeks 1-11, then Week 11 is your final week of the placement.
Personal leave days may only be taken with the explicit approval of your clinical supervisor, and any leave days taken will add to the length of your clinical placement. Your personal leave days must be used for missed time due to illness, injury, caregiver responsibilities or other personal reasons for missing placement. Use the leave application form on the unit Moodle site to seek the approval of your clinical supervisor and upload the completed form to Moodle.
All unapproved absences must be made up. Any time to be made up is to be scheduled at the convenience of the clinical site and approved by your supervisor. 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.
For any time missed beyond the five personal leave days, 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. Note that only in exceptional circumstances will any missed time be waived.
You must 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 including scheduled leave days, lateness or early departure in the comments section.
Document weekly attendance in logbook and upload within 3 calendar days of the last rostered shift of the week.
Weekly attendance will be reviewed by the unit coordinator, who will follow up within 5 working days of the log upload on any absences or incomplete attendance records.
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 within 3 days of completing your weekly shift.
At the end of the scheduled 12 weeks of placement:
- if you have not met the 100% attendance requirement (11 weeks) AND you do have documented, justifiable grounds for your absence, 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.
- if you have not met the 100% attendance requirement (11 weeks) AND you do not have documented justifiable grounds for your absence, you will score 'Fail' for this assessment item.
- Model the professional behavioural attributes of an entry-to-practice medical radiation practitioner, adhering to the code of conduct of the profession
- Perform general radiographic examinations at a competent level for non-complex patient presentations and using a level of assistance commensurate with the complexity of the patient presentation for non-routine examinations
- Perform contrast and non-contrast computed tomography at a competent level for routine procedures and using a level of assistance commensurate with the complexity of the patient presentation for non-routine procedures
- Perform mobile radiography and fluoroscopy at a competent level for routine procedures and using a level of assistance commensurate with the complexity of the patient presentation for non-routine procedures
- Integrate into the clinical medical imaging team, operating within your scope of practice.
2 Learning logs / diaries / Journal / log books
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 definitions provided. There are no minimum or maximum target numbers for any category of involvement, nor are there target numbers for any examination type.
- 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 type by:
- Basic: The patient has no significant limitation in their ability to carry out your instructions, and the 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. This includes patients with minor traumatic injuries.
- Paediatric: The patient is a child who is young enough to require you to modify your approach (patient care and/or technical tasks) to carrying out the procedure relative to a 'basic' patient.
- Trauma: The patient has major traumatic injury/injuries requiring significant modification to your approach (patient care and/or technical tasks).
All procedure information is to be recorded in such a way as to maintain patient confidentiality.
You must record in the logbook any performance assessments that you have attempted, whether passed or failed. All completed assessment forms are an extension of your log documentation, as they provide further evidence of your clinical learning experiences. 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 facility induction and orientation must be completed by your second day of placement and logged in your logbook. If you have not completed a site induction/orientation by the end of the second day of placement, see your clinical educator/site supervisor and contact your unit coordinator to advise.
In addition to noting imaging procedures and performance assessments, your logbook must have a minimum of 3 notation entries each week. This could include documentation of other clinical learning activities or explanation of types of x-rays, scans, patients, scenarios or helpful tips that you encountered throughout the week.
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 to ensure that tracking calculations are correct. 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 is a cumulative record of all weeks containing a running tally of examinations and assessments.
It is your responsibility to ensure that you have regular access to the technology needed to complete the spreadsheet each week. If you have a technical issue or personal circumstances that prevents you from being able to accurately complete and upload your file by the standard due dates, you MUST inform your unit coordinator and provide just cause by the due date to obtain approval for an assessment extension. In the absence of an approved extension, your failure to meet the weekly upload due date will result in a fail for this assessment item. If you miss the due date more than twice without just cause OR, if your logbook is returned to you for correction due to inaccuracies or incompleteness more than twice, you will fail this assessment task.
MRPBA Professional Capabilities and NSQHS Standards
This assessment task maps to the following MRPBA professional Capabilities (2020) and NSQHS Standards (2021):
- MRPBA Domain 1A, Key Capability 1
Logbook must be uploaded each week, within 3 calendar days of the last rostered shift of the week.
Unit coordinator will follow up within 5 working days for any log entries that require further information or to discuss any areas of concern.
The logbook is graded on a Pass/Fail basis. The logbook is assessed for accuracy and completeness of information entered and on timeliness of submissions.
If 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 logbook 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
- meet the stated standards of documentation completeness and timeliness, such that you have no more than two incidents in total of incompleteness or lateness.
- Perform general radiographic examinations at a competent level for non-complex patient presentations and using a level of assistance commensurate with the complexity of the patient presentation for non-routine examinations
- Perform contrast and non-contrast computed tomography at a competent level for routine procedures and using a level of assistance commensurate with the complexity of the patient presentation for non-routine procedures
- Perform mobile radiography and fluoroscopy at a competent level for routine procedures and using a level of assistance commensurate with the complexity of the patient presentation for non-routine procedures
- Integrate into the clinical medical imaging team, operating within your scope of practice.
3 Direct observation of procedural skills (DOPs)
This task is designed to assess your level of competency in the performance of general radiographic examinations, CT procedures, mobile radiography, theatre fluoroscopy and/or screening fluoroscopy procedures.
Planning for performance assessments:
It is your responsibility to communicate with your supervisor in a timely manner to ensure that you are rostered into the required work areas for the targeted quantity of time (~3 weeks for CT, ~4 weeks for mobiles/theatre/fluoroscopy and ~4 weeks for general radiography). It is also your responsibility to schedule the assessments during the weeks you are rostered into the appropriate work areas.
Once you have performed a given examination type multiple times and are able to carry it out with a moderate amount of guidance and correction from the supervising radiographer, you are to request an assessment in that examination type. 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 imaging examination. Your assessor will use the assessment tool provided to you on the unit Moodle site to document the level of independence, completeness and correctness you have demonstrated in each of the required tasks in that single examination or procedure. 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.
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 imaging procedures to undergo assessments, then you must discuss this with your clinical supervisor AND contact the unit coordinator in a timely manner, so that action can be taken prior to the end of placement.
Scope of assessments:
Over the course of the placement, you must pass a total of ten performance assessments as detailed below by procedure category.
General Radiography
You must pass six performance assessments in general radiography. Each of these six assessments must be completed on a different region of the body as categorised below:
- upper extremities
- lower extremities
- shoulder girdle
- pelvic girdle
- bony thorax
- spine
- chest
- abdomen
- craniofacial
- dental
Three of the six performance assessments in general radiography must be completed on complex patients. A complex patient is defined as - 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. This includes patients with minor traumatic injuries. This adaptation may be required because of factors such as the patient's current health status, mobility, stability, cognitive status, communication abilities and/or ability to cooperate. The type of adaptation may include, but is not limited to, the approach to communicating with the patient, modification of patient positioning, the selection of views/projections to be obtained, infection control protocols to be followed. Your assessor will categorise the patient involved in the performance assessment as either basic or complex. Paediatric patients are categorised as complex only if significant adaptation is required.
The other three assessments may be on any type of patient (basic or complex). Any basic assessments are limited to the following body regions:
- craniofacial
- dental
- spine
- pelvic girdle
- bony thorax
- shoulder girdle
Adaptation Imaging in Complex Environments
You must pass two performance assessments in adaptation imaging. These may be for mobile radiography, theatre fluoroscopy and/or screening fluoroscopy.
It is a course requirement that each student must complete at least one mobile radiography, one theatre fluoroscopy and one screening fluoroscopy assessment in either MEDI13005 Medical Imaging Clinical Placement 3 or MEDI14006 Medical Imaging Clinical Placement 4. Thus, any of those three categories of assessments that you did not complete in your previous unit (MEDI13005) must be completed successfully during this unit.
Computed Tomography (CT)
You must pass two performance assessments in CT.
Both CT performance assessments must be different examinations to those assessed in MEDI13005. One assessment must be contrast and the other can be either contrast or non-contrast.
For all performance assessments in all categories above, 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.
Documentation and submission of the completed assessment:
You must ensure that each completed assessment form has all required information, including the name, dated signature and MRPBA registration number of your assessor, as well as your dated signature. (Note that both your signature and your assessor's signature must be done on a hard copy document. Digital signatures are not accepted.) If you submit an incomplete form, you will be provided with feedback and will need to resubmit the completed form within one week. This is the case whether you have passed or failed the assessment.
If a radiographer other than your clinical supervisor completes the assessment, it is your responsibility to ensure that your supervisor knows the outcome of each attempted assessment and that they are 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.
If your performance assessment is returned to you for correction due to incompleteness, OR, if you miss the due date without just cause more than twice, you will fail this assessment task.
This is a pass/fail assessment item. In the absence of an approved assessment extension, if you have not met all of the minimum criteria for achieving a score of 'Pass' on this assessment, you will receive a Fail grade for the unit.
MRPBA Professional Capabilities and NSQHS Standards
This assessment task maps to the following MRPBA professional Capabilities (2020) and NSQHS Standards (2021):
- MRPBA Domain 1, Key Capability 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7
- MRPBA Domain 1A, Key Capability 1(radiography), 2 (fluoroscopy), 3 (CT)
- MRPBA Domain 2, Key Capability 1, 2, 3, 4
- MRPBA Domain 3, Key Capability 1, 2
- MRPBA Domain 5, Key Capability 1, 2, 3, 4
- NSQHS Standard 2
- NSQHS Standard 3
- NSQHS Standard 4 (CT contrast and fluoroscopy medications)
- NSQHS Standard 6
Each completed performance assessment form must be uploaded within 3 days of completing the weekly shift in which the assessment was done. The final date for completing and submitting all forms is Tuesday of the last week of placement.
Unit coordinator will review each uploaded assessment form and provide you feedback within 5 working days of upload of each item.
Each performance assessment measures your ability to carry out the core tasks of an imaging procedure. These tasks are detailed on the assessment form. For each of the performance assessment forms - general radiography (basic and complex), CT, and mobile radiography, theatre fluoroscopy and screening fluoroscopy, there are 'critical' and 'non-critical' tasks. The assessor will score your observed performance of each listed task using the 1 - 6 scale, below. The scale is based on quantity of assistance and correction you required to perform each task.
Score | Descriptor |
1 | Unable to complete the task without radiographer intervention. |
2 | Completed with 3+ assists, OR completed with 1 - 2 assists but with 1 - 2 errors. |
3 | Completed with 2 assists OR completed with 2 errors OR completed with 1 assist and 1 error. |
4 | Completed with 1 assist OR completed with 1 error. |
5 | Completed without error and without the need for assistance or reminder (at entry to practice level). |
6 | Completed independently and to a high standard (at experienced practitioner level). |
To achieve a 'Pass' score on a general radiography performance assessment, you must achieve the following scores:
- a minimum score of '5' on critical tasks
- for basic assessments, at least 7 non-critical tasks scored at '5' or better
- for complex assessments, at least 6 non-critical tasks scored at '5' or better
- all remaining non-critical tasks scored at '4' or better
To achieve a 'Pass' score on a CT performance assessment, you must achieve the following scores:
- Non-contrast CT Examination
- a minimum score of '5' on critical tasks
- at least 7 non-critical tasks scored at '5' or better
- all remaining non-critical tasks scored at '4' or better
- Contrast CT Examination
-
- a minimum score of '5' on all critical tasks
- at least 7 non-critical tasks scored at '5' or better
- all remaining non-critical tasks scored at '4' or better
To achieve a 'Pass' score on a mobile radiography, screening fluoroscopy or theatre imaging performance assessment, you must achieve the following scores:
- a minimum score of '5' on all critical tasks (3 tasks for mobiles, 2 tasks for theatre, 5 tasks for fluoroscopy)
- at least 8 non-critical tasks scored at '5' or better for mobiles and theatre radiography,
- at least 7 non-critical tasks scored at '5' or better for fluoroscopy
- all remaining non-critical tasks scored at '4' or better
To obtain a score of 'Pass' for this assessment, you must:
- meet the minimum requirements for each assessment, as detailed above in the Assessment Criteria,
- ensure that each of the ten performance assessments are completed on an appropriate procedure or body region as detailed in the Task Description above, and
- meet the stated standards of documentation completeness and timeliness, such that you have no more than two incidents in total of incompleteness or lateness.
- Model the professional behavioural attributes of an entry-to-practice medical radiation practitioner, adhering to the code of conduct of the profession
- Evaluate images across a wide range of procedure types for technical and medico-legal sufficiency, for demonstration of urgent or unexpected findings and for formulation of image improvement strategies where indicated
- Practice in a manner that supports the physical, psychosocial and cultural safety of patients, others and yourself
- Perform general radiographic examinations at a competent level for non-complex patient presentations and using a level of assistance commensurate with the complexity of the patient presentation for non-routine examinations
- Perform contrast and non-contrast computed tomography at a competent level for routine procedures and using a level of assistance commensurate with the complexity of the patient presentation for non-routine procedures
- Perform mobile radiography and fluoroscopy at a competent level for routine procedures and using a level of assistance commensurate with the complexity of the patient presentation for non-routine procedures
4 Practical Assessment
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 Conduct Policy and 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 four main sections to the GAPA form:
- Section 1: initiative and communication
- Section 2: responsibility and demeanour
- Section 3: overall technical knowledge and skill
- Section 4: adherence to site policies
In each section, there are multiple observable behaviours that are required. For most behaviours, it is expected that you are aiming toward consistent performance. 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. This critical behaviour 'Adheres to site policies regarding 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-compliance
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 initially 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 the Student Conduct Policy and Procedure.
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 in the final week of the placement. If you haven't used any of your assigned days of leave during your placement, the final GAPA will be at the end of Week 11, or if you have taken 1-5 days of leave then your final GAPA will be in Week 12.
In the instance where you have a split placement scheduled across two or more sites, a formative GAPA is to be completed in the last week of the block of the rotation at each of the sites (just before leaving the site to attend another site), and a GAPA should be completed at least once every four weeks.
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 completed and book a meeting with them 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 they will not be available.
Formative and Summative Use of the GAPA assessment:
The first two GAPAs 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 for Sections 1, 2 and 3. Adherence to site policies (Section 4) is a requirement for all GAPAs. You are expected to use the 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 GAPAs, it is expected that you will continue to meet that level of performance or surpass it for the remainder of the placement.
The end-of-placement GAPA 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 final 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. You must 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 MRPBA registration number of your assessor, as well as your dated signature. (Note that both you and your supervisor must sign a hard copy document. Electronic signatures are not accepted.)
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 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.
If you have a technical issue or personal circumstances that prevent you from being able to accurately complete and upload your file by the standard due date, you MUST inform the unit coordinator by the due date and provide just cause. If you miss the due date without just cause OR if your supervisor-completed GAPA or self-completed GAPA is returned to you for correction due to inaccuracies or incompleteness more than twice, you will fail this assessment task.
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 unit.
MRPBA Professional Capabilities and NSQHS Standards
This assessment task maps to the following MRPBA professional Capabilities (2020) and NSQHS Standards (2021):
- MRPBA Domain 1, Key Capability 2, 7, 8
- MRPBA domain 1A, Key Capability 1, 2, 3
- MRPBA Domain 2, Key Capability 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
- MRPBA Domain 3, Key Capability 1, 2
- MRPBA Domain 4, Key Capability 1, 2
- MRPBA Domain 5, Key Capability 1, 2, 3, 4
First assessment must be completed by end of Week 4, second at the end of Week 8 and third during the final week of placement. Each completed form must be uploaded within 3 days of the last rostered shift of the week in which the assessment was completed.
Unit coordinator will review the uploaded assessment forms and provide you feedback within 5 working days of submission of each item.
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.
Score | Descriptor |
NA | No opportunity or insufficient opportunity to assess |
1 | Never or hardly ever demonstrated (<10%) despite opportunities to do so |
2 | Demonstrated infrequently but less than half of the time |
3 | Demonstrated about half of the time (just as likely to happen as not) |
4 | Demonstrated much of the time, but still inconsistent |
5 | Demonstrated consistently (nearly always, at the level of a new graduate practitioner) |
6 | Demonstrated consistently and to a high degree (at the level of an experienced practitioner) |
The minimum required scores for each sections 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
Section 2: Responsibility and Demeanour
- Minimum score of '5'
Section 3: Overall Technical Knowledge and Skill
- Minimum of '5' for the use of equipment
- Minimum of '4' for other attributes
- At least 2 of the 4 remaining categories are scored at '5' or above
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-compliance.
Note the procedure for non-compliance with Section 4 of the GAPA, as detailed above in Task Description.
To obtain a score of 'Pass’ for this assessment, you must:
- undergo all GAPAs by the due dates listed,
- on the summative GAPA, meet the minimum required scores in all sections, and
- meet the stated standards of documentation completeness and timeliness, such that you have no more than two incidents in total of incompleteness or lateness.
- Model the professional behavioural attributes of an entry-to-practice medical radiation practitioner, adhering to the code of conduct of the profession
- Integrate clinical reasoning and critical reflection into your daily medical imaging practice
- Evaluate images across a wide range of procedure types for technical and medico-legal sufficiency, for demonstration of urgent or unexpected findings and for formulation of image improvement strategies where indicated
- Practice in a manner that supports the physical, psychosocial and cultural safety of patients, others and yourself
- Integrate into the clinical medical imaging team, operating within your scope of practice.
5 Reflective Practice Assignment
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 two reflections during this placement.
Your two reflections must each be on a different topic chosen from the list below. You must complete a reflection on the topic of cultural awareness if you did not choose that topic to reflect on in your previous placement, MEDI13005. If, by the end of Week 8 of this unit, you have not had any experience with patients of a different culture, then you must contact the Unit Coordinator who will assign you a substitute topic.
Reflection topics to choose from:
- Your cultural awareness and ability to provide culturally safe care to a patient where adaptation from your default approach is required
- 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 experience that tested your skills in adaptation radiography
Note that for all reflections, your discussion should focus on how the situation triggered increased self-awareness and a resultant change in your knowledge, skills and/or attitudes.
Patient and staff confidentiality must always be maintained. Further guidance will be available on the unit Moodle site.
This is a pass/fail assessment item. In the absence of an approved extension, failure to submit by the due dates will result in a fail for this assessment, and that will result in a Fail grade for the unit.
MRPBA Professional Capabilities and NSQHS Standards
This assessment task maps to the following MRPBA professional Capabilities (2020) and NSQHS Standards (2021):
- MRPBA Domain 1A, Key Capability 1,2,3 (development of skill in radiography, fluoroscopy and CT)
- MRPBA Domain 2, Key capability 2 (cultural care), 4 (advocating for patient)
- MRPBA Domain 3, Key capability 1 (culturally appropriate communication)
- MRPBA Domain 4, Key Capability 1, 2
- NSQHS Standard 2 (Partnering with patients)
First reflection is due by 4pm AEST Monday of Week 5. Second reflection is due by 4pm AEST Monday of Week 10.
Unit coordinator will review the uploaded assessment and provide you feedback within two weeks of upload of each item.
Each reflection submission is assessed for:
- correct use of the Gibbs' or Borton's reflective tool proforma,
- critical reflection of an approved topic listed in the Task Description that you have not reflected on in previous clinical placement units,
- detailed analysis of performance,
- critical reflection on areas for improvement,
- detailed action plan relevant to reflection,
- demonstrated evidence of learning and development through reflection,
- use of a minimum of two external resources to inform your reflection, that are cited and referenced correctly,
- word count (excluding citations) must be between 400-600 words, and
- clarity and format of writing (including logical flow, spelling, punctuation, grammar).
A detailed marking rubric will be posted on the unit Moodle site. This specifies the attributes for the three levels of scoring of criteria: 'meets requirements', 'marginally meets requirements' and 'does not meet requirements'.
For both reflection submissions, if you receive any scores of 'does not meet requirements', you will attain a Fail score for the task.
For only one of the two reflection assessments, in the event that your submission receives any criteria scores of 'marginally meets requirements' but no scores of 'does not meet requirements', you will be provided feedback. You will then have one week to edit the submission to address the feedback to reach 'meets requirements' in all criteria on the re-attempt.
For the other reflection, you must score 'meets requirements' in all criteria on the initial submission. No re-attempt is allowed.
To obtain a score of ‘Pass’ for this assessment, you must:
- submit the two reflections by the stated deadlines,
- attain 'meets requirements' scores in all criteria for one reflection after a maximum of two attempts, and
- attain 'meets requirements' scores in all criteria for the other reflections in a single attempt.
- Integrate clinical reasoning and critical reflection into your daily medical imaging practice
- Practice in a manner that supports the physical, psychosocial and cultural safety of patients, others and yourself
6 Online Quiz(zes)
As Year 4 Medical Imaging students, you are becoming integrated into your clinical work team and are progressively gaining independence in your practice. That requires you to have a working knowledge of safe practice and to have some familiarity with standard processes in imaging areas beyond radiography, fluoroscopy and computed tomography. To that end, you will complete a series of learning activities on the topic of clinical Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) including safety, clinical indications, patient preparation, patient positioning, MRI imaging protocols and sequences, anatomy and image appearances. This will prepare you to participate safely and effectively in the workflow of the MRI area in your final clinical placement unit.
This assessment task is an online quiz on MRI clinical practice. You may attempt the quiz as often as you need within the availability period in order to achieve the required minimum score of 80%. Your highest score of all your attempts will be used to determine your grade.
This is a pass/fail assessment item. In the absence of an approved assessment extension, if you have not met the minimum criteria for achieving a score of 'Pass' on this assessment, you will receive a Fail grade for the unit.
1
Completion of the quiz is due by 11pm AEST Friday of your final scheduled day of placement for the unit.
Your quiz score will be released immediately after you submit.
Your quiz responses will be scored on factual correctness, completeness relative to what the question asked and correct use of technical terminology.
To obtain a score of 'Pass' for this assessment, you must:
- attain a quiz score of at least 80% in one of your attempts, and
- complete the quiz by the due date.
- Discuss the techniques, patient care requirements and safety considerations of magnetic resonance imaging that are required for advanced beginner practice in the modality.
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.