510-211 Health Practice 3

Credit Points

HECS Band

Coordinator

Semester

Contact

Subject Description

This subject is a continuation of Health Practice 2. Objectives are to develop an understanding of the relationship between psychology and physical illness, the application of the biopsychosocial model to clinical situations, the conceptual basis of diagnostic processes, continued development of communication skills and medical interviewing and performance of the cardiovascular and respiratory examination, the determinants of health risk and promoting behaviours, the interaction of genes and the environment in disease and injury, ethics of resource allocation, the ethical and medico-legal aspects of the doctor-patient relationship and introduction to clinical decision making. Content includes groups, family and illness, normal and abnormal psychological symptoms, psychology and physical illness, psychology and pain, health risk behaviours, health promotion, legal requirements in medical practice, the medical interview and physical examination, diagnostic strategies and critical appraisal skills.

Assessment

Health and society and human mind and behaviour: up to 3 hours written examination (60%); up to 2000 word written assignment (10%); Introduction to clinical medicine: performance-based assessment in the form of an objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) which includes direct observation of medical interview, communication skills and physical examination (30%).