PMSC11001 - Foundations of Paramedic Science

General Information

Unit Synopsis

This unit will provide you with an introduction to Australian and International ambulance services and systems. Throughout this unit you will explore various aspects of professionalism, teamwork and the impacts of a career in the emergency service; this will allow you to develop strategies to enhance your personal safety, emotional well being and longevity in the paramedic field while ensuring patient management priorities are met. As part of this unit there will be an introduction to Indigenous health and culture as well as the legal and ethical frameworks of paramedicine to provide you with a solid foundation for future clinical practice. *PLEASE NOTE* YOU MUST HAVE A CURRENT CERTIFIED FIRST AID CERTIFICATE (with current CPR) IN ORDER TO PROGRESS TO THE NEXT UNIT - PMSC11002 Foundations of Paramedic Clinical Practice.

Details

Level Undergraduate
Unit Level 1
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 2
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites There are no pre-requisites for the unit.

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 - 2024

There are no availabilities for this unit on or after 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).

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. Online Quiz(zes) 20%
2. Online Quiz(zes) 20%
3. Written Assessment 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 - 2019 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 79.71% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 35.03% 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: Student Feedback
Feedback
Some links to learning materials did not work, and some information provided was out dated.
Recommendation
Make several different resources available to students and not just links to journals etc. Continue to update policies, procedures, Acts and regulations yearly.
Action Taken
All policies and links to external content were new and/or updated. All weekly lectures were new with up to date information. New recordings of industry personnel interviews were made available as additional resources - recorded during this term.
Source: Student Feedback
Feedback
The resources provided in the unit far exceed what is required to complete an assessment piece.
Recommendation
The content will be broken down into separate categories eg. essential content and additional content on the Moodle page.
Action Taken
Resources were reduced this term. Only applicable resources relating either directly to lecture information, assessment items, or to give context to lecture material, were provided.
Source: Student Feedback
Feedback
Quizzes were not marked in an appropriate time frame.
Recommendation
Quiz due dates were extended due to poor completion by students and in consultation with the Head of Course.
Action Taken
All quiz results were returned to students within 2 weeks of submission, and all re-opened quiz attempts were marked and results open to students immediately.
Source: Student Feedback
Feedback
An important aspect was the teaching of self care. Everything was available to access on moodle and lecturer was easy to contact and informative. Even as a distance student, I felt involved and appreciated being regularly updated/checked on.
Recommendation
Invite the self care guest lecturer to return next year. Continue to make Moodle easy to access and navigate. Regular contact with students should continue.
Action Taken
All student inquiries and requests were received and acted upon promptly and in most cases within 24 hours. Guest speakers included Priority One care counselors and peers support specialists. All support links and relevant information accessible directly from the weekly Moodle tabs, with a beginning of term zoom session guide to navigation on Moodle, supplied to all students.
Source: Student feedback
Feedback
I really enjoyed the introduction to the ambulance service. Having lecturers who are current employees of QAS made the content relevant and provided insight into the future of our career choice. It was also great to be presented with alternate pathways to start considering for when we graduate.
Recommendation
Industry currency for lecturers is frequently commented on and where possible should be maintained.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: Student feedback
Feedback
I really enjoyed the format of the lectures. I found the topics very relevant and like that there was different people interviewed each week. The lectures were a good length an the information was well presented and the resources under each week were interesting. Definitely inspired me to keep studying / know I picked the right degree!
Recommendation
Short concise lectures via Camtasia/Echo with supporting lecture notes provision in dot point form. 20-30 minute lectures, up to 3 per week, depending on content required, would be recommended to maintain engagement.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: Student feedback
Feedback
The assessments were too broad in the explanation of what was required.
Recommendation
For a foundational unit, the assessment criteria needs to be very precise, as will be the recommendation for the future. However, this is the final offering for this unit.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: Student feedback
Feedback
I really liked the quests interviews and the info from other states Ambulance Services not just QAS.
Recommendation
Weekly information provision was broken up with guest speakers via pre-recorded interviews that were industry and content professionals currently employed and in the role. This is recommended to add vital context to the (sometimes dry) content. Particular hot spots are 'looking after yourself and mental health', 'rural and remote paramedic work' and 'Indigenous engagement'.
Action Taken
In Progress
Unit learning Outcomes

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

  1. Analyse the differences between Australian and international ambulance services
  2. Discuss the potential health impacts of emergency work on paramedics
  3. Explain the legal and ethical obligations of paramedic practice
  4. Show consideration for Indigenous health and cultural impacts on paramedic practice.

The new learning outcomes align with the Council of Ambulance Authorities accreditation (CAA) standards of:

3.1.4 Collaboration with the ambulance sector.

3.1.5 Collaboration with the profession.

3.1.6 Interaction with other sectors.

The new learning outcomes also aligns with the CAA Paramedic Professional Competency Standards:

  • professional expectations of a paramedic.
  • makes informed and reasonable decisions.
  • demonstrates professional autonomy and accountability.
  • develops and maintains professional relationships.
  • demonstrates the knowledge, understanding and skills required for practice.
  • operates within a safe practice environment.
  • identifies and assesses health and social needs in the context of the environment.

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
1 - Online Quiz(zes) •
2 - Online Quiz(zes) • • • •
3 - Written Assessment • • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
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