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ECHO12006 - Cardiac Science

General Information

Unit Synopsis

The accurate diagnosis of cardiac conditions requires comprehensive knowledge of cardiac pathophysiology, and the outcomes of a variety of cardiovascular assessment procedures. In this unit you will be introduced to cardiac assessment within the catheterisation laboratory. You will learn how to interpret a 12-Lead electrocardiogram (ECG), and how to assess cardiac structure and function by performing a 2D echocardiographic examination. Within the ethical framework of best practice, you will examine simulated case based clinical information, to explore the outcomes of these procedures, formulating differential diagnoses and patient management strategies for a variety of common cardiovascular pathologies. Attendance at practical activities is a requirement of this unit.

Details

Level Undergraduate
Unit Level 2
Credit Points 12
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 2
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.25
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

Pre-requisite
ECHO11002 Cardiac Structure and Function

and

Co-requisite
MEDS12001 Physics of Ultrasound

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 No Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 3 - 2019

Term 1 - 2020 Profile
Brisbane
Perth
Sydney
Term 1 - 2021 Profile
Brisbane
Perth
Sydney
Term 1 - 2022 Profile
Brisbane
Perth
Sydney
Term 1 - 2023 Profile
Brisbane
Sydney
Term 1 - 2024 Profile
Brisbane
Sydney

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 12-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 25 hours of study per week, making a total of 300 hours for the unit.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. Written Assessment 40%
2. In-class Test(s) 0%
3. Practical Assessment 0%
4. Performance 0%
5. Reflective Practice Assignment 0%
6. Examination 60%

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 1 - 2023 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 60.00% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 24.39% 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: Moodle and SUTE feedback
Feedback
Students found background noise in some lectures distracting. Some lectures were "not concise" causing confusion when learning a new topic.
Recommendation
A review of the unit lectures should be undertaken to identify where improvements can be made. Special consideration should be made to providing clear learning outcomes.
Action Taken
A review of the lectures was undertaken which incorporated a updating of lecture content and a revision of learning outcomes.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Student found expectations of prior knowledge and skill expectations varied between tutors.
Recommendation
Further guidance should be given to tutors at the start of term. This should help to make tutors aware of the level of students prior learning and could include a discussion on skill expectations for the unit.
Action Taken
Further guidance was provided to tutors prior to the start of the term via teams. A video was developed for tutors, discussing laboratory expectations, student learning objectives and prior skills and theoretical training.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Students reported the manned and unmanned sessions were very helpful to scanning practice.
Recommendation
Practice sessions will continue to be offered and students will continue to be encouraged to attend these sessions.
Action Taken
Manned and unmanned practice sessions remained consistent for this delivery. The students were encouraged to attend these sessions via regular Moodle posts, Zoom tutorials and during laboratory sessions.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Students would like more examples provided which are linked to real-world applications.
Recommendation
A review of tutorials should be undertaken to consider how to link unit content to real-world scenarios and case studies.
Action Taken
Real-world case studies were posted to Moodle to encourage student discussion in the tutorials and to link concepts being learnt to the clinical context.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Some students felt that expectations were not always clear.
Recommendation
This is the students first introduction to practical laboratory sessions. They may require further explanation of expectations of skill progression and assistance in understanding the assessment marking rubrics.
Action Taken
Unit expectations were regularly discussed with students in the tutorials and through Moodle posts improving students understanding of expectations.
Source: My Experience and SUTE feedback
Feedback
The lecture's face covers information on some lecture slides.
Recommendation
Lectures should continue to be reviewed with attention to slide content visibility.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: My Experience and Student
Feedback
The quality of ECG traces on the ECG quiz made if difficult to see the squares on some of the ECGs.
Recommendation
The format of saving and displaying ECGs should continue to be reviewed with resolution and image size being taken into consideration. Students should continue to be reminded that a larger screen such as a PC or laptop and a faster internet connection will improve the quality of the image displayed and the loading time of the ECGs.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: SUTE Feedback
Feedback
Students felt there was a large amount of content
Recommendation
Students should continue to be reminded of the significant study commitment involved in a 12-credit point unit. Study planners are available on Moodle and students should be encouraged to continue to utilise this resource to assist in planning study commitments.
Action Taken
Nil.
Unit learning Outcomes

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

  1. Perform the standard two dimensional echocardiographic protocol including associated anatomical quantification
  2. Provide rationale for the exclusion of artefactual and discordant 2D echocardiographic findings
  3. Analyse case-based clinical information to formulate differential diagnoses and plan patient management strategies for a variety of common cardiovascular pathologies
  4. Discuss common cardiac catheterisation procedures including radiation safety
  5. Interpret the outcome of 12-Lead electrocardiogram (ECG) studies
  6. Apply professional behaviour, teamwork and communication skills consistent with safe practice
  7. Apply constructive feedback to professional practice improvement.

Linked to National and International Standards
1. ASAR Accreditation Standards for Cardiac Sonography - critical practice Unit 8 - Cardiac, Foundation units of competence - 1 - 5.
2. European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging Core Syllabus
3. American Registry for Cardiac Sonography Core Syllabus

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
1 - Written Assessment
2 - In-class Test(s)
3 - Practical Assessment
4 - Performance
5 - Reflective Practice Assignment
6 - Examination
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
Introductory Level
Intermediate Level
Graduate Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
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
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
1 - Written Assessment
2 - In-class Test(s)
3 - Practical Assessment
4 - Performance
5 - Reflective Practice Assignment
6 - Examination