BMSC13001 - Advanced Haematology

General Information

Unit Synopsis

In this unit you will apply your foundation knowledge of haematology to the study of how haematological disorders manifest and are diagnosed through changes in number, cytogenetics and morphology of cells. Diseases of haemostasis including therapeutic management with anticoagulants will also be discussed. This advanced unit builds on the knowledge and skills taught in previous units and will prepare you for work as a Medical Laboratory Scientist in Haematology. You will be required to attend a compulsory residential school in Rockhampton and an assessment task will be completed on campus during this residential school.

Details

Level Undergraduate
Unit Level 3
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 2
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

Prerequisites:

BMSC12003 Haematology and Transfusion Science


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).

Class Timetable View Unit Timetable
Residential School Compulsory Residential School
View Unit Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2023

Term 1 - 2023 Profile
Mixed Mode
Rockhampton

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).

Assessment Overview

Recommended Student Time Commitment

Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. Written Assessment 20%
2. Practical Assessment 30%
3. Examination 50%

This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%).

Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 2 - 2022 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 50.00% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 35.29% response rate.

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.

Source: SUTE
Feedback
Some students thought that the written assessment allowed them to put theory into context
Recommendation
Continue current assessment format using an industry expert for creation and marking of the Case Study assessment.
Action Taken
Written assessment format remained the same as previous years and included a different case presentation, utilizing an industry expert for creation and marking of this Case Study assessment.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Students commented that while the lectures were easy to follow verbally, sometimes more explanation would be needed to explain the images used.
Recommendation
Additional lecture notes around graphics will be added to lecture slides.
Action Taken
Additional tutorial were created throughout the unit with case presentations using morphological images with detailed explanations. New lectures also included more images around clinical diagnoses.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Students requested more questions on the weekly study notes and changing questions on the online quizzes.
Recommendation
Continue to add questions to to weekly study notes as well as updating online quizzes. This should also include more questions representing blood morphology.
Action Taken
Weekly study questions and online quizzes have been added to all the weekly unit contents.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Students felt that although the residential school helped to develop practical skills, it felt rushed. They weren't able to practice calculations or see the film beyond that being shown on the screen.
Recommendation
Explore options for improved technology for efficient residential school experience. Allow regular breaks in between topics for students to practice differential calculations.
Action Taken
New and efficient technology is being sought to improve future delivery of this residential School session.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Some students commented that the Residential School was content heavy and challenging.
Recommendation
Consider inclusion of more weekly morphology exercises using Cellavision Proficiency Software and morphology tutorials to support student learning in preparation for the residential school.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Some students commented that no answers were provided to weekly questions.
Recommendation
Consider discussions of the weekly study questions in tutorial sessions to allow students to receive feedback on study questions.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Some students commented that the sound quality of some lectures was suboptimal.
Recommendation
Continue to update lectures with improved audio clarity.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: Informal feedback during Residential School.
Feedback
Students commented that the Residential School's hands on experience puts into perspective much of the weekly lecture topics.
Recommendation
Continue Residential School in current format.
Action Taken
Nil.
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Distinguish benign from malignant haematological disorders based on numerical, cytogenetic and morphological changes in the cells.
  2. Discuss the detection and monitoring of blood diseases using laboratory tests appropriate to the patient's clinical condition.
  3. Discuss disorders of haemostasis and the use of anticoagulant therapies.
  4. Analyse results of hematological tests and provide provisional and differential diagnoses with suggested further testing to support and confirm the diagnosis.
  5. Perform morphological analysis of peripheral blood smears to make a differential diagnosis.

Competency Based Standards for Medical Scientists, December 2009.

Unit 1: Collection, preparation and analysis of clinical material - Elements 1.1.1 - 1.1.3; 1.1.6 - 1.1.8; 1.2.4; 1.3.1 - 1.3.5; 1.5.1 - 1.5.5 & 1.6.1 - 1.6.8;   

Unit 2: Correlation and validation of results of investigations using knowledge of method(s) including analytical principles and clinical information - Elements 2.1.1 - 2.1.2; 2.2.1; 2.3.1 & 2.3.2

Unit 3: Interpretation, reporting and issuing of laboratory results - Elements 3.1.1; 3.2.1 - 3.2.3; 3.2.6 - 3.2.7 & 3.3.1 - 3.3.2

Unit 4: Maintenance of documentation, equipment, resources and stock - Elements 4.2.1 - 4.2.6 

Unit 5: Maintenance and promotion of safe working practices - Elements 5.1.3; 5.2.1; 5.3.4; 5.3.9; 5.4.1 - 5.4.5

Unit 6: Professional accountability and participation in continuing professional development - Elements 6.5.6 & 6.5.7

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
1 - Written Assessment • • •
2 - Practical Assessment • •
3 - Examination • • • • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
1 - Communication • • • • •
2 - Problem Solving • • • •
3 - Critical Thinking • • • •
4 - Information Literacy • • • • •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10