CQUniversity Unit Profile

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Please note that this Unit Profile is still in progress. The content below is subject to change.
MEDS12001 Physics of Ultrasound
Physics of Ultrasound
All details in this unit profile for MEDS12001 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

In this unit, you will be introduced to the principles of ultrasound physics and instrumentation. Ultrasound safety, quality assurance and recognition of artifacts will also be covered. The knowledge and skills learnt from this unit are integral to all concurrent and subsequent sonography and echocardiography units and forms the foundation from which you will build your image acquisition, recognition and assessment skills. You will apply your knowledge and skills of physics principles in the laboratory setting using ultrasound equipment.

Details

Career Level: Undergraduate
Unit Level: Level 2
Credit Points: 6
Student Contribution Band: 8
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load: 0.125

Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

  Prerequisite MEDI11002 Physics for Health Sciences Co requisite MEDS12003 Superficial Structures in Ultrasound or ECHO12006 Cardiac Science    

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 - 2025

Brisbane
Mackay
Melbourne
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).

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

Bundaberg, Cairns, Emerald, Gladstone, Mackay, Rockhampton, Townsville
Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney

Assessment Overview

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.

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 SUTE Teacher Evaluations

Feedback

Students reported issues with the time limit and certain question types not functioning as expected on specific electronic devices in the redesigned Assessment 1.

Recommendation

Reconsider number of questions from a timing perspective. Limit question sub-parts and drag and drop style questions as these may be unreliable on some electronic devices, such as tablets, further exacerbating the time limit concerns.

Feedback from SUTE Teacher Evaluations

Feedback

Students found the Kahoot interactive platform used during tutorials to be effective for both engagement and retaining knowledge.

Recommendation

The Kahoot tutorials should continue next year, with an increase in interactive content during tutorials.

Feedback from MEDS12001 Q&A forum

Feedback

Practice questions and quizzes in a similar format to the assessments would be useful.

Recommendation

Consider developing more practice quizzes and questions in the same format as the online assessments.

Unit Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
  1. Apply the physical principles of diagnostic ultrasound to practical problems
  2. Evaluate the components and performance of diagnostic ultrasound equipment
  3. Apply knowledge of ultrasound physics and practical skills to acquire optimal ultrasound images, with due regard of safe practices
  4. Discuss the principles of ultrasound techniques, Doppler ultrasound and its application in medical ultrasound including safety issues
  5. Interpret the causes of, and apply problem solving skills to reduce, sources of artifacts on an ultrasound image.

The learning outcomes for this unit relate to the requirements of general sonography courses under the Australasian Sonography Accreditation Registry (ASAR), Standards for the Accreditation of Sonographer Courses (SASC):

Foundation Units of Competence 1-5

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 - Online Quiz(zes) - 40%
2 - Laboratory/Practical - 0%
3 - Online Test - 60%

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 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures
Textbooks and Resources

Information for Textbooks and Resources has not been released yet.

This information will be available on Monday 17 February 2025
Academic Integrity Statement

Information for Academic Integrity Statement has not been released yet.

This unit profile has not yet been finalised.