Overview
In this unit, you will focus on examining, diagnosing and managing common conditions that impact male and female health across the lifespan. You will advance your understanding of a range of management topics related to multicultural and ageing populations including injury prevention, advice on healthy lifestyles, self-managed care, rehabilitation, and treatment options. This unit will assist you with your clinical development in the student clinic by addressing the importance of integrating knowledge and skills to support clinical decision-making for these special populations.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Pre-requisite: CHIR20011 Clinical Practice 5 and CHIR20012 Advanced Clinical Development 2 Co-requisite: CHIR20013 Clinical Practice 6
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 3 - 2026
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).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Postgraduate 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
Assessment Overview
| Assessment Task | Part Weighting (% of assessment) |
Assessment Security Level | Gen AI Guidance Levels |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. On Campus Activities (Pass/Fail ) | |||
| On Campus Activities (On-campus Activity) | 100% | High | No Gen AI Use |
| 2. Video Presentation and Critical Reflection (Presentation) (40% of unit · 2 parts ) | |||
| Part 1 – Video Presentation (Interactive Oral Assessments) | 30% of 40% | High | No Gen AI Use |
| Part 2 – Critical Reflection (Written Assessment) | 70% of 40% | Medium | AI Integration (Authentic Professional Use) |
| 3. End of term test (30% of unit ) | |||
| End of Term Test (In-class Test(s)) | 100% of 30% | High | No Gen AI Use |
| 4. Clinical Case Presentation (30% of unit ) | |||
| Clinical Case Presentation (Presentation) | 100% of 30% | Low | AI Integration (Authentic Professional Use) |
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.
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
- Academic Progression Policy and Procedure
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- 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.
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 Unit Coordinator self reflection
In light of the high risk of GenAI use in online and un-invigilated quizzes, assessment tasks should be reviewed to ensure rigorous assessment of student learning and knowledge.
It is recommended a Unit Update Proposal is submitted to move away from online assessments due to a high risk of GenAI use in un-invigilated and online quizzes. The weighting of online assessments will also be reduced to allow the rigorous assessment of student learning and knowledge through reflective assessments.
Feedback from SUTE student comments report
Some students would appreciate clearer expectations and more rigorous assessment design for the opportunity to apply clinical reasoning.
It is recommended assessment design continue to include reflective styles of assessment to allow students the opportunity to apply clinical reasoning, with time provided to clarify student expectations.
Feedback from SUTE student comments report
Students enjoyed the balance between evidence based theoretical content, content expertise and in person workshops.
It is recommended the Unit coordinator continue to develop and source evidence based materials, and include content experts in the delivery of both the online tutorials and in person workshops.
- Explain the morphology of a clinical condition according to its aetiology, epidemiology, pathophysiology and treatment options
- Evaluate findings and formulate a diagnosis, clinical impression, management plan and prognosis from a case history and physical assessment, taking into consideration patient safety and any contraindications
- Apply the appropriate chiropractic approach to treatment (within the scope of practice) that includes technique/skills, exercise/rehabilitation, health promotion, prevention, lifestyle advice and self-managed care in a professional and ethical way in accordance to the chiropractic code of conduct and professional standards
- Apply humanistic factors involving communication skills and bio-psychosocial awareness, relative to the patient-practitioner interface.
This is a unit to assist the student develop their individualised pathway towards strengthening the majority of elements and performance indicators of CCEA’s Accreditation Standards for areas considered ‘clinical interest’ as opposed to general practice. In total, this unit will address aspects of Unit 6 Patient Assessment, Unit 7 Diagnostic Decision Making, Unit 8 Planning of Patient Care, Unit 9 Implementation of Care, and Unit 3 Professional Interaction. There will be some elements addressed from Unit 10 Disease Prevention and Health Promotion and Unit 11 Professional Scientific Development.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
|
1.
Assessment 1
(Pass/Fail )
On-campus Activity
|
||||
|
2.
Assessment 2
(40% of unit · 2 parts
)
Part 1 -
Written Assessment
Part 2 -
Interactive Oral Assessments
|
||||
|
3.
Assessment 3
(30% of unit )
In-class Test(s)
|
||||
|
4.
Assessment 4
(30% of unit )
Presentation
|
||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |
| 1 - Knowledge | ||||
| 2 - Communication | ||||
| 3 - Cognitive, technical and creative skills | ||||
| 4 - Research | ||||
| 5 - Self-management | ||||
| 6 - Ethical and Professional Responsibility | ||||
| 7 - Leadership | ||||
| 8 - First Nations Knowledges | ||||
| 9 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | ||||
Textbooks
There are no required textbooks.
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Vancouver
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
k.deluca@cqu.edu.au
Week 1 - The ageing population
Begin Date: 09 Nov 2026Module/Topic
Lecture: The ageing population
Online tutorial: Unit outline
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 2 - Chiropractic care for the older adult
Begin Date: 16 Nov 2026Module/Topic
Lecture: Chiropractic care for the older adult
Online tutorial: Chiropractic care for the older adult
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 3 - Back pain in older adults
Begin Date: 23 Nov 2026Module/Topic
Lecture: Back pain in older adults
Online tutorial: Back pain in older adults
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 4 - Assessment of the older adult
Begin Date: 30 Nov 2026Module/Topic
Lecture: Assessment of the older adult
In Person, On Campus Workshop: Assessment of the older adult
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
CBA presentation (compulsory)
On campus activity 1
Week 5 - Spinal stenosis
Begin Date: 07 Dec 2026Module/Topic
Lecture: Spinal stenosis
Online tutorial: Spinal stenosis
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
WEEK 6 - Scoliosis
Begin Date: 14 Dec 2026Module/Topic
Lecture: Scoliosis
Online tutorial: Degenerative scoliosis
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Critical Reflection Due: Week 6 Thursday (17 Dec 2026) 5:00 pm AEST
Mid-Term Break
Begin Date: 21 Dec 2026Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 7 - Osteoporosis and osteoarthritis
Begin Date: 04 Jan 2027Module/Topic
Lecture: Osteoporosis and osteoarthritis
Online tutorial: Osteoporosis and osteoarthritis
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 8 - Neurological conditions in older adults
Begin Date: 11 Jan 2027Module/Topic
Lecture: Neurological conditions in older adults
Online tutorial: Neurological conditions in older adults
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 9 - Falls
Begin Date: 18 Jan 2027Module/Topic
Lecture: Falls
In Person, On Campus Workshop: Falls
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
On campus activity 2
Week 10 - Women's health (1)
Begin Date: 25 Jan 2027Module/Topic
Lecture: Women's health (1)
Online tutorial: Women’s Health
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Clinical Case Presentation Due: Week 10 Thursday (28 Jan 2027) 5:00 pm AEST
Week 11 - Women's health (2)
Begin Date: 01 Feb 2027Module/Topic
Lecture: Women's health (2)
No online tutorial: Clinic Exit exam
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 12
Begin Date: 08 Feb 2027Module/Topic
Lecture: Mens health
Online tutorial: Unit review
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Exam Week
Begin Date: 15 Feb 2027Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1. On Campus Activities ( Pass/Fail )
On-campus Activity
You will be required to attend two 4-hour practical sessions that will include learning how to assess and manage geriatric patients. During the session you will be required to actively participate, and at the completion, you will be asked (in a small group) to demonstrate practical skills related to (i) assessing and managing the geriatric patient and (ii) prescribing a falls prevention rehabilitation program.
This is a Pass/Fail task that will take place on the Friday of weeks 4 and 9. If students are unsuccessful in this Pass/Fail task they will be unable to complete the unit successfully.
The 72-hour assessment grace period is NOT implemented on this assessment.
-----
To help you use Generative AI tools in a transparent, flexible, and responsible way, you are encouraged to explore the following practical framework that guides your ethical and effective AI use in your assessment. All AI Assessment scale tool descriptors have been provided on the CHIR20014 Unit Documents & Materials.
For this assessment, AI Assessment descriptor 1 is applied.
Descriptor 1: No AI - The assessment is completed entirely without Al assistance in a controlled environment, ensuring that students rely solely on their existing knowledge, understanding, and skills. You must not use Al at any point during the assessment. You must demonstrate your core skills and knowledge.
Week 10 Thursday (28 Jan 2027) 5:00 pm AEST
Students will be marked in class in relation to each activity. A signed assessment form should be saved as a PDF file and uploaded to Moodle by 5pm on Thursday in week 10.
Week 12 Thursday (11 Feb 2027)
You will be required to demonstrate practical skills related to:
(i) assessing and managing the geriatric patient and
(ii) prescribing a falls prevention rehabilitation program.
- Explain the morphology of a clinical condition according to its aetiology, epidemiology, pathophysiology and treatment options
- Evaluate findings and formulate a diagnosis, clinical impression, management plan and prognosis from a case history and physical assessment, taking into consideration patient safety and any contraindications
2. Video Presentation and Critical Reflection (Presentation) ( 40% of unit · 2 parts )
Part 1 - Interactive Oral Assessments
In this assessment students will select a topic related to geriatric, women’s, or men’s health.
Students are required to submit a recorded knowledge translation presentation that communicates research to a specific audience. The video should be ~6 minutes in duration and should be based on high quality evidence, where you can translate scientific findings of clinical data into clear, practical and immediately usable information for a patient, the chiropractic profession or community. Students should explain findings from your source(s), draw reasonable conclusions and deliver implications for patient-centred chiropractic practice or future research.
Week 6 Thursday (17 Dec 2026) 5:00 pm AEST
A recorded video presentation should be submitted to Moodle by Thursday 17th December, 2026.
Week 9 Thursday (21 Jan 2027)
The assessment will be returned with feedback relevant to the assessment guidelines and marking rubric provided.
Criteria for assessment include the student synthesising and discussing: topic and target audience, evidence based content, communication style, logical flow, length, organisation and appearance, and acknowledgement of course(s).
Please see Moodle for detailed assessment guidelines and rubric.
- Explain the morphology of a clinical condition according to its aetiology, epidemiology, pathophysiology and treatment options
- Apply the appropriate chiropractic approach to treatment (within the scope of practice) that includes technique/skills, exercise/rehabilitation, health promotion, prevention, lifestyle advice and self-managed care in a professional and ethical way in accordance to the chiropractic code of conduct and professional standards
- Apply humanistic factors involving communication skills and bio-psychosocial awareness, relative to the patient-practitioner interface.
Part 2 - Written Assessment
In this assessment you will select a topic related to geriatric, women’s, or men’s health.
Students are required to submit a 300-word post-presentation reflection evaluating their own performance and how they integrated evidence and evidence based medicine into their internship.
------
For this assessment, AL Assessment descriptor 2 is applied.
Descriptor 2: AL PLANNING - AI may be used for pre-task activities such a brainstorming, outlining and initial research. This level focuses on the effective use of AI for planning, synthesis, and ideation, but assessments should emphasise the ability to develop and refine these ideas independently. You may use AI for planning, idea developing, ideas development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refines these ideas.
Week 6 Thursday (17 Dec 2026) 5:00 pm AEST
Week 9 Thursday (21 Jan 2027)
The assessment will be returned with feedback relevant to the assessment guidelines and marking rubric provided.
Criteria for assessment include the student submitting a 300-word post-presentation reflection evaluating their own performance and how they integrated evidence and evidence based medicine into their internship.
- Explain the morphology of a clinical condition according to its aetiology, epidemiology, pathophysiology and treatment options
- Apply the appropriate chiropractic approach to treatment (within the scope of practice) that includes technique/skills, exercise/rehabilitation, health promotion, prevention, lifestyle advice and self-managed care in a professional and ethical way in accordance to the chiropractic code of conduct and professional standards
- Apply humanistic factors involving communication skills and bio-psychosocial awareness, relative to the patient-practitioner interface.
3. End of term test ( 30% of unit )
In-class Test(s)
This end of term test will be taken in person on Brisbane Campus. The test will be held on Tuesday 16th February from 9:00AM to 11:00AM in BNE - Rooms: 1.06 / 5.11 / 1.07. The end of term test will be open for two hours. The test will involve a mix of question types including multiple choice, short answer, essay and matching styles. The test will assess all theoretical content taught across weeks 1 - 12. This is NOT an open book quiz nor a group assessment and answers must be an individuals own work.
Students should arrive 15 minutes before the start of the end of term test. Reading time is allocated within the 120 minute duration of the end of term test. Students should bring their student ID with them to confirm it is them taking the end of term test. Once the end of term test has begun nobody can leave the room for the first 30 minutes. After that, no late students will be allowed to join the end of term test as per policy. Students must finalise and submit the end of term test and show the invigilator the submission screen prior to leaving the CQUniversity computer lab.
The quiz is worth 30% of your total grade and has a 50% minimum mark to pass.
The 72-hour assessment grace period is NOT implemented on this assessment. Therefore, you are NOT allowed to submit your end of term test up to 72 hours after the original due date.
-----
To help you use Generative AI tools in a transparent, flexible, and responsible way, you are encouraged to explore the following practical framework that guides your ethical and effective AI use in your assessment. All AI Assessment scale tool descriptors have been provided on the CHIR20014 Unit Documents & Materials.
For this assessment, AI Assessment descriptor 1 is applied.
Descriptor 1: No AI - The assessment is completed entirely without Al assistance in a controlled environment, ensuring that students rely solely on their existing knowledge, understanding, and skills. You must not use Al at any point during the assessment. You must demonstrate your core skills and knowledge.
Exam Week Tuesday (16 Feb 2027) 9:00 am AEST
The end of term test will be open in Moodle at 9:00am on Tuesday in Week 13.
Exam Week Friday (19 Feb 2027)
Marks will be returned to students once all questions have been graded.
The assessment criteria will include selecting the most accurate and correct answers to the questions posed in this end of term test. The end of term test is graded and has a 50% minimum mark to pass.
- Evaluate findings and formulate a diagnosis, clinical impression, management plan and prognosis from a case history and physical assessment, taking into consideration patient safety and any contraindications
- Apply the appropriate chiropractic approach to treatment (within the scope of practice) that includes technique/skills, exercise/rehabilitation, health promotion, prevention, lifestyle advice and self-managed care in a professional and ethical way in accordance to the chiropractic code of conduct and professional standards
- Apply humanistic factors involving communication skills and bio-psychosocial awareness, relative to the patient-practitioner interface.
4. Clinical Case Presentation ( 30% of unit )
Presentation
Students are required to provide a 750 word, written, clinical case presentation.
The clinical case presentation should include the following sections: title, introduction, case description, research question, search strategy and results, implications, and reflection. This assessment should be referenced appropriately throughout and include appendices if necessary.
This assessment is worth 30% of your total grade.
----
To help you use Generative AI tools in a transparent, flexible, and responsible way, you are encouraged to explore the following practical framework that guides your ethical and effective AI use in your assessment. All AI Assessment scale tool descriptors have been provided on the CHIR20014 Unit Documents & Materials.
For this assessment, AI Assessment descriptor 2 is applied.
Descriptor 2: AI PLANNING - Al may be used for pre-task activities such as brainstorming, outlining and initial research. This level focuses on the effective use of Al for planning, synthesis, and ideation, but assessments should emphasise the ability to develop and refine these ideas independently. You may use Al for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas.
Week 10 Thursday (28 Jan 2027) 5:00 pm AEST
The assessment should be saved as a PDF file and uploaded to Moodle.
Week 12 Friday (12 Feb 2027)
The assessment will be returned with feedback relevant to the assessment guidelines and marking rubric provided.
Students are required to provide a 750 word, written, clinical case presentation. The written assessment should be on a case (geriatric, women’s, or men’s health) informed from their clinic internship.
The written assessment should include: Title and introduction (existing knowledge and research question), Case description (Patient history and demographic information, Clinical, physical, laboratory and/or radiological findings (including PROMs), and Differential diagnoses / diagnosis), Research question, Search strategy and selection criteria, screening results (PRISMA diagram), a narrative synthesis of literature, Discussion and Case reflection, and reference list. Please see Moodle for detailed assessment guidelines and rubric.
- Evaluate findings and formulate a diagnosis, clinical impression, management plan and prognosis from a case history and physical assessment, taking into consideration patient safety and any contraindications
- Apply humanistic factors involving communication skills and bio-psychosocial awareness, relative to the patient-practitioner interface.
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.
What can you do to act with integrity?
