MDWF14002 - Pharmacology for Midwifery Practice

General Information

Unit Synopsis

In this unit, you will have the opportunity to gain theoretical knowledge in pharmacology relating to maternal, fetal and neonatal physiology for midwifery practice. This will include the use and effect of over the counter and prescribed medications, and illicit substances upon the mother, placenta, fetus and neonate. You will develop your midwifery knowledge of pharmacotherapeutics and the quality use of medicines to inform effective care across the childbearing continuum.

Details

Level Undergraduate
Unit Level 4
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 1
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

Pre-requisites:  MDWF13003 Midwifery Practice 3, and MDWF13008 Foundations of Midwifery 3 and MDWF13007 Midwifery Practice for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Families

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 1 - 2025

Term 1 - 2025 Profile
Online
Term 1 - 2026 Profile
Online

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) 40%
2. Case Study 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 - 2025 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 100.00% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 3.85% 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: SUTE
Feedback
I found that the first quiz was not so much related to the study guide and the answer sheets but more so to the weekly content that had been covered.
Recommendation
The study guide and the answer sheets constituted the weekly content. Quiz questions were derived from this material. The unit coordinator will review and revise quiz questions to clarify their alignment with unit material.
Action Taken
The quiz questions were reviewed to ensure they aligned with the unit’s weekly learning content.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
My feedback was extremely concise and clear. I am grateful for the knowledge and expertise of my teaching staff.
Recommendation
The unit coordinator will endeavour to continue providing meaningful assessment feedback to students.
Action Taken
Meaningful assessment feedback was provided to all students.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Great lecturer. Very clear about she expects from our assignments. I really enjoyed pharmacology, throughout the course she is very supportive and encouraging to the students and to reach out if we needed. Loved her emails at the beginning of every week, it really helped.
Recommendation
The unit coordinator will continue to do their best to provide students with encouragement, support and guidance to enhance their learning experience and continued engagement.
Action Taken
The unit coordinator endeavoured to provide a high-quality learning experience.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
I found the course to be overall good. However, I did think that the marking of assessments and the lecturer was quite harsh.
Recommendation
This unit is the first and only AQF level 8 unit in the Bachelor of Midwifery (graduate entry) program, as all other units are AQF 7. The marking is done with this higher level in mind. The unit coordinator provides honest feedback on the strengths and weaknesses of assessments to give quality guidance to students. The feedback is meant to be honest and constructive, not punitive. In the future, the unit coordinator will strive to find ways of conveying this guidance that are not perceived as harsh.
Action Taken
The 2025 grade distribution indicates that marking was fair, with all students who made sufficient attempts at the assessments successfully completing the unit.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Definitely my favourite subject by far.
Recommendation
Continue to provide quality teaching and learning experiences to students.
Action Taken
The unit coordinator endeavoured to provide a high-quality learning experience.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
This was the best course in term 4. The overall course layout was very cleverly created, with activities included in weekly content and regular exams to keep learning motivation levels high. I also really appreciated the answer sheets that came out at the end of the week so I could see if my learning was on the right track. Bridget was very engaged in the course and provided great feedback on assessments. This was a very engaging course and promoted my learning. Thank you
Recommendation
Continue to provide quality teaching and learning experiences to students.
Action Taken
The unit coordinator endeavoured to provide a high-quality learning experience.
Source: Email from student.
Feedback
A student expressed appreciation to the unit coordinator for providing prompt clarification regarding an error they had made on a quiz question.
Recommendation
The unit coordinator will continue to answer emails promptly to allay student anxiety about assessment tasks.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: Email from student.
Feedback
The unit coordinator was thanked for proactively correcting a quiz grading error before the student needed to raise a query.
Recommendation
The unit coordinator will continue vigilant surveillance of the students' quiz results and make amendments to their grades as required.
Action Taken
In Progress
Unit learning Outcomes

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

  1. Demonstrate a sound understanding of pharmacology, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics, inclusive of over the counter and prescribed medications and illicit substances, as related to maternal, placental/fetal and neonatal physiology for midwifery practice
  2. Demonstrate sound numeracy and mathematical calculation skills to correctly administer and critically evaluate medication orders for women and their infants
  3. Critically evaluate the physiological and psychological effects of medication administration on the maternal, fetal or neonatal wellbeing to determine the effectiveness of treatment
  4. Critically appraise the role of the midwife in the use of pharmacological therapies during the childbearing continuum.

Draft ANMAC Midwifery Education Standards.

Standard 3: Program of study.

NMBA Code of Conduct.

Principle 1: Legal compliance.

Principle 2: Woman centred practice.

Principle 3: Cultural practice and respectful relationships.

Principle 4: Professional behaviour.

Principle 6: Research in health.

Principle 7: Health and wellbeing.

NMBA Standards for Practice.

Standard 1: Promotes health and wellbeing through evidence based midwifery practice.

Standard 2: Engages in professional relationships and respectful partnerships.

Standard 3: Demonstrates the capability and accountability for midwifery practice.

Standard 4: Undertakes comprehensive assessments.

Standard 5: Develops a plan for midwifery practice.

Standard 6: Provides safety and quality in midwifery practice.

Standard 7: Evaluates outcomes to improve midwifery practice.

ICM code of Ethics.

1. Midwifery relationships

2. Practice of midwifery.

3. Professional responsibilities of midwives.

4. Advancement of midwifery knowledge and practice.

NPS Competencies Required to Prescribe Medicines: All competency areas apply.

NSQHSS: All standards apply.

National Nursing and Midwifery Digital Health Capability Framework

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
1 - Online Quiz(zes) • • • •
2 - Case Study • • • •
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 • • • •
9 - Social Innovation •
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