CQUniversity Unit Profile

BMSC14005 - Preparation for Professional Practice in Medical Laboratory Science

Save or Print as PDF

All details in this unit profile for BMSC14005 have been officially approved by CQUniversity and represent a learning partnership between the University and you (our student).
The information will not be changed unless absolutely necessary and any change will be clearly indicated by an approved correction included in the profile.

General Information

Overview

This capstone unit will provide you with an opportunity to examine and critique current health practices issues prior to your entry into the Medical Laboratory Science professional workforce. Your study will focus on the contemporary legislative, social and economic trends in the Australian Pathology profession that will impact on your practice. You will be required to exhibit ethical decision-making and clinical/professional reasoning at a graduate level, in preparation for practice.

Details

Career Level: Undergraduate

Unit Level: Level 4

Credit Points: 6

Student Contribution Band: 8

Fraction of Full-Time Student Load: 0.125

Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

Prerequisites: BMSC13001 Advanced Haematology AND BMSC13002 Advanced Clinical Biochemistry AND BMSC13003 Medical Microbiology 2 AND BMSC13009 Immunology OR BMSC13023 Applied Immunology AND BMSC13010 Pharmacology AND BMSC13011 Advanced Transfusion Science AND BMSC13016 Advanced Histopathology and Cytopathology

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 1 - 2024

Online

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).

Website

This unit has a website, within the Moodle system, which is available two weeks before the start of term. It is important that you visit your Moodle site throughout the term. Please visit Moodle for more information.

Class and 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.

Class Timetable

Regional Campuses

Bundaberg, Cairns, Emerald, Gladstone, Mackay, Rockhampton, Townsville

Metropolitan Campuses

Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney

Assessment Overview

1. Reflective Practice Assignment

Weighting: 20%

2. Portfolio

Weighting: 40%

3. Oral Examination

Weighting: 40%

Assessment Grading

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.

CQUniversity Policies

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.

Previous Student Feedback

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 Emails

Feedback

Due to the transition from one unit coordinator to another mid-term created some delay in response to emails

Recommendation

Attempt to provide only one unit coordinator per term. In this case, the change in unit coordinator was unforeseen, and the replacement Unit Coordinator ensured the students were abreast of the situation

Feedback from Self-reflection & SUTE

Feedback

Assessment items were structured well; scaffolding assessments worked well for the students, allowing them to defend their written work via an interactive oral

Recommendation

This assessment structure will be maintained for future offerings.

Unit Learning Outcomes

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

Apply knowledge of legal, economic and ethical issues that impact the provision of health care services and best practice in Medical Laboratory Science
Investigate the current trends in the provision of professional services to rural/remote and regional Australia
Discuss the principles underlying effective leadership and communication skills in health care settings, demonstrating cultural safety
Discuss current Australian Standards for laboratory accreditation and how these impact on service delivery in rural/remote and regional Australia
Discuss the role of a Medical Laboratory Scientist in the Safety and Risk Management framework in healthcare.

Alignment of Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Graduate Attributes

N/A Level

Introductory Level

Intermediate Level

Graduate Level

Professional Level

Advanced Level

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes

Assessment Tasks	Learning Outcomes
	1	2	3	4	5
1 - Reflective Practice Assignment - 20%
2 - Portfolio - 40%
3 - Oral Examination - 40%

Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes

Graduate Attributes	Learning Outcomes
	1	2	3	4	5
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 - First Nations Knowledges
11 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures

Textbooks and Resources

Textbooks

There are no required textbooks.

IT Resources

You will need access to the following IT resources:

CQUniversity Student Email
Internet
Unit Website (Moodle)
Zoom (both microphone and webcam capability)

Referencing Style

All submissions for this unit must use the referencing styles below:

Harvard (author-date)
Vancouver

For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.

e-Reading List on Moodle

Events and Submissions/Topic

Events and Submissions/Topic

Tutorial - covering Week 8

Exam Week

Begin Date: 10 Jun 2024

Module/Topic

Chapter

Events and Submissions/Topic

Term Specific Information

The Unit Coordinator and teaching staff for this Unit is Genia Burchall who can be contacted by e-mail (g.burchall@cqu.edu.au) or via the Moodle forums.

Lectures will all be pre-recorded in smaller 'modules' and will be posted on the Moodle page.

There are weekly Tutorials/ Q&A sessions that will be linked to Zoom, and the Tutorials are also recorded and posted in Moodle.

There is no prescribed textbook for this unit.

A number of readings will be suggested or made available to you as resource materials for this unit.

As per Australian educational standards, you are expected to commit 150 hours of engagement to your study of this unit. This is broken down as:

2 - 3 hours per week watching recorded lectures and revising the content through study notes

3 - 4 hours per week completing the weekly study questions on the unit's Moodle page

1 - 2 hours per week attending the weekly tutorial and reflecting on your answers to the weekly study questions

3 - 4 hours per week preparing your assessments or studying for your end of term test

Assessment Tasks

1 Reflective Practice Assignment

Assessment Title

Reflective Practice

Task Description

You are required to reflect upon your previous clinical placements (Work Integrated Learning) and how the role of the Medical Scientists were guided by the legal, economic and ethical framework and how they displayed effective leadership and communication skills in the execution of their role. You may also reflect upon the process of laboratory accreditation and workplace health and safety and how they guided practice.

Assessment Due Date

Week 6 Friday (19 Apr 2024) 11:59 pm AEST

Upload assignment to Moodle

Return Date to Students

Week 8 Friday (3 May 2024)

Marked assignments will be posted to Moodle

Weighting

20%

Minimum mark or grade

50%

Assessment Criteria

A marking guide for the reflective practice item will be made available on the Moodle page.

Referencing Style

Harvard (author-date)
Vancouver

Submission

Online

Submission Instructions

Upload assignment to Moodle

Learning Outcomes Assessed

Apply knowledge of legal, economic and ethical issues that impact the provision of health care services and best practice in Medical Laboratory Science
Discuss current Australian Standards for laboratory accreditation and how these impact on service delivery in rural/remote and regional Australia
Discuss the role of a Medical Laboratory Scientist in the Safety and Risk Management framework in healthcare.

2 Portfolio

Assessment Title

Portfolio of work

Task Description

A number of case studies will be provided during the term. You are required to submit your responses to four of these cases as a portfolio of work.

Topics for the case studies may include Quality Management, Personnel Management, Professional Development, Legislation and the Regulatory Framework of Pathology, Workplace Health and Safety and Emerging Technology in Pathology.

They may also include examples of practices in Medical Laboratory Science that were controversial for discussion.

Assessment Due Date

Week 9 Wednesday (8 May 2024) 11:59 pm AEST

Upload assignment to Moodle

Return Date to Students

Week 11 Wednesday (22 May 2024)

Marked assignments will be posted to Moodle

Weighting

40%

Minimum mark or grade

50%

Assessment Criteria

A marking Guide for this assessment will be provided on the Moodle page.

Referencing Style

Harvard (author-date)
Vancouver

Submission

Online

Submission Instructions

Upload assignment to Moodle

Learning Outcomes Assessed

Investigate the current trends in the provision of professional services to rural/remote and regional Australia
Discuss the principles underlying effective leadership and communication skills in health care settings, demonstrating cultural safety
Discuss the role of a Medical Laboratory Scientist in the Safety and Risk Management framework in healthcare.

3 Oral Examination

Assessment Title

Interactive Oral Examination

Task Description

In the oral exam I will pose ~4 questions, each based on your answers in Assessments 1 & 2 to further assess your understanding of the topics discussed.

I expect that the discussion should take between 30 and 40 minutes and you will be provided with an opportunity to have a 'practice run' at the oral examination prior to the actual exam if required and feedback will be provided.

More details regarding the date, time and structure of the oral exam will be provided on Moodle.

Assessment Due Date

The exact day and time to be negotiated with each individual student.

Return Date to Students

The grades will be finalised by the Certification of Grades

Weighting

40%

Minimum mark or grade

50%

Assessment Criteria

Each question will be graded out of 100 and an average will be the final mark for the assessment.

Your answers will be assessed on Relevance (50 marks), Coherence (40 marks) and Overall organisation, expression and flow (10 marks).

A detailed marking rubric will be provided on the Moodle page.

Referencing Style

Harvard (author-date)
Vancouver

Submission

Offline

Submission Instructions

The session will be recorded and marked in real time, there is nothing to submit.

Learning Outcomes Assessed

Apply knowledge of legal, economic and ethical issues that impact the provision of health care services and best practice in Medical Laboratory Science
Discuss the principles underlying effective leadership and communication skills in health care settings, demonstrating cultural safety
Discuss current Australian Standards for laboratory accreditation and how these impact on service delivery in rural/remote and regional Australia

Academic Integrity Statement

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.