PMSC20015 - Primary Healthcare Practice

General Information

Unit Synopsis

This unit offers you clinical experiences where you can transition your knowledge, decision making and skills into practice as a paramedic with a primary healthcare focus. This unit centres around workplace learning for assessment, diagnosis and management of patients in the primary healthcare environment under the supervision of a GP/physician or other advanced health care practitioner. Additionally, you will function with other healthcare providers and demonstrate your functionality within a multidisciplinary team. You will develop your leadership and managerial skills as an advanced paramedic practitioner. By reflecting on your own performance, you will demonstrate your commitment to ongoing professional development.

Details

Level Postgraduate
Unit Level 9
Credit Points 12
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 2
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.25
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

Pre-requisites:

  • PMSC20012 Primary Healthcare 1 and
  • PMSC20013 Primary Healthcare 2

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 12-credit Postgraduate 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. Portfolio 0%
2. Professional Practice Placement 0%

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.

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 1 - 2020 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 100.00% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 100% 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
Consider offering certification for specific skill sets within the course (unit PMSC20013) to allow students to offer evidence for WIL placements
Recommendation
Engage in discussions with relevant stakeholders within the university to explore the possibility of building modules for specific skills offering certification
Action Taken
Preliminary discussions have indicated that this process may not be straightforward, particularly for skills such as phlebotomy where other courses and requirements exist. The concept remains on the list for consideration and further discussion.
Source: Student feedback/self-reflection
Feedback
Provide more comprehensive information for WIL service providers/mentors
Recommendation
Develop a mentor handbook
Action Taken
The information in the mentor handbook was boosted and aligned with the format offered in the undergraduate paramedic science WIL mentor booklets, however, feedback from mentors this term suggests further development is still required.
Source: Student feedback/self-reflection
Feedback
Streamline WIL placement arrangements
Recommendation
Engage students in consideration of future placement opportunities earlier in the course, to accommodate contract time-lines and the ability to source alternate placements should plans not eventuate
Action Taken
An earlier discussion was held with students; however, it did not lead to improved time-lines. A formalised task will be introduced into a prerequisite unit to ensure students communicate their preferences early to enable timely arrangements.
Source: WIL service provider.
Feedback
Provide more comprehensive information for WIL service providers/mentors.
Recommendation
To further develop the mentor handbook to include background of what a paramedic practitioner is and to clearly identify critical tasks that require direct supervision.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: Self-reflection
Feedback
Create formalised task for WIL placements in prerequisite unit.
Recommendation
To create a formalised task in PMSC20013 for students to identify, approach and nominate WIL placement preferences to enable timely acceptance of placements and instigation of contract arrangements.
Action Taken
In Progress
Unit learning Outcomes

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

  1. Apply underpinning knowledge to primary healthcare practice
  2. Promote ethical principles within independent practice
  3. Exhibit integration and functionality within a multidisciplinary team
  4. Develop leadership and managerial skills as a paramedic practitioner
  5. Demonstrate a commitment to ongoing professional development.

A Graduate Diploma is now the standard requirement for many state ambulance services for advanced positions in the paramedic field. An emphasis has been placed on preferred candidates exceeding this requirement with a Masters degree for many new positions such as the Paramedic Practitioner.

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
1 - Portfolio • • •
2 - Professional Practice Placement • • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Professional Level
• Advanced Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4 5
1 - Knowledge •
2 - Communication •
3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills • •
4 - Research • •
5 - Self-management •
6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility • • •
7 - Leadership • • • • •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Professional Level
• Advanced Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
1 - Portfolio • • • • • • •
2 - Professional Practice Placement • • • • • •