Unit Synopsis
This unit will offer you a comprehensive introduction to retrieval medicine relevant to critical care paramedic practice. You will explore the basic principles of aviation as they relate to the clinical retrieval of unwell patients. You will gain an understanding of the safety considerations associated with both rotary and fixed-wing retrieval platforms. You will evaluate the impact of flight on normal and altered physiology to enable you to optimise care in this environment. Furthermore, this unit will assist you to distinguish the non-technical skills used to complement technical skills utilised in aeromedical retrieval, as well as develop knowledge surrounding the identification and mitigation of retrieval challenges.
Details
| Level | Postgraduate |
|---|---|
| Unit Level | 9 |
| Credit Points | 6 |
| Student Contribution Band | SCA Band 2 |
| Fraction of Full-Time Student Load | 0.125 |
| Pre-requisites or Co-requisites |
There are no pre-requisites for the unit.
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 - 2026
Term 1 - 2026 Profile
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.
Assessment Tasks
| Assessment Task | Weighting |
|---|---|
| 1. Case Study | 30% |
| 2. Case Study | 30% |
| 3. Essay | 40% |
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%).
Past Exams
All University policies are available on the Policy web site, however you may wish to directly view the following policies below.
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of policies are available on the Policy web site .
No previous feedback available
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: Self-reflection.
Continue engagement of subject matter experts.
Seek to record video discussions with subject matter experts to offer students authentic reflections on practice in this specialist area of paramedicine.
A series of tutorials was delivered at the end of the unit, incorporating case studies designed to strengthen students’ ability to apply their knowledge.
Source: Self reflection
As this unit matures, the inclusion of additional retrieval subject matter experts will enhance its quality and strengthen the reputation of the CM12 degree overall.
It is recommended to engage with colleagues to identify and appoint domain subject matter experts to assist with this unit. Leveraging the expertise of retrieval specialists will not only strengthen the academic rigour and relevance of the unit but also contribute to enhanced student learning outcomes and the continued growth of the CM12 reputation.
In Progress
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- Explain the basic principles of aviation as they relate to the clinical retrieval of unwell patients
- Identify and discuss safety considerations associated with both rotary and fixed-wing retrieval platforms
- Evaluate the impact of flight on normal and altered physiology
- Distinguish the non-technical skills relevant to aeromedical retrieval that are used to complement technical skills
- Identify and mitigate retrieval challenges.
n/a
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Case Study | • | • | |||
| 2 - Case Study | • | • | |||
| 3 - Essay | • | ||||
| 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 | • | • | • | ||
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 | |
| 1 - Case Study | • | • | • | • | • | ||||
| 2 - Case Study | • | • | • | • | • | • | • | ||
| 3 - Essay | • | • | • | • | • | • | |||