Students

CHIR6510 – Diagnostic Sciences

2022 – Session 2, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Co-convenor
Christopher Burrell
Contact via Email
75 Talavera Rd, Rm 2229
By appointment Wednesdays 10am-12pm
Unit Co-convenor
Amber Beynon
By appointment
Lecturer and tutor
Suzanne Saks
By appointment
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
CHIR6302 or CHIR604
Corequisites Corequisites
CHIR6303 or CHIR605
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

In this unit, students are introduced to the concept of clinical problem solving and differential diagnosis. It aims to provide students with the knowledge and skills to assess the health status of a patient. Using this information, possible problems that may exist for that patient can then be outlined. This unit focuses on diagnosis from a 'symptom' and 'sign' based approach, where students will analyse the information given, and hence formulate a differential diagnosis.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

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

  • ULO1: Describe the principles and purpose of the diagnostic process.
  • ULO2: Explain the relationship between the clinical presentation of a patient, the underlying disease processes, and the diagnostic process.
  • ULO3: Formulate differential diagnoses, based on history and examination findings.
  • ULO4: Demonstrate an understanding of the inter-professional nature of health care, the need for various investigations in the diagnosis of pathological conditions and the role of referral.

General Assessment Information

Grade descriptors and other information concerning grading are contained in the Macquarie University Assessment Policy.

All final grades are determined by a grading committee, in accordance with the Macquarie University Assessment Policy, and are not the sole responsibility of the Unit Convenor.

Students will be awarded a final grade and a mark which must correspond to the grade descriptors specified in the Assessment Procedure (clause 128).

To pass this unit, you must demonstrate sufficient evidence of achievement of the learning outcomes, meet any ungraded requirements, and achieve a final mark of 50 or better.

Late Submissions

For any late submissions of time-sensitive tasks, such as scheduled tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, and/or scheduled practical assessments/labs, students need to submit an application for Special Consideration.

Further details for each assessment task will be available on iLearn.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Final written exam 50% No University Exam Period
Online quizzes 20% No Ongoing - see iLearn
Mid-session exam 30% No Week 7 (during 1st half of lecture)

Final written exam

Assessment Type 1: Examination
Indicative Time on Task 2: 25 hours
Due: University Exam Period
Weighting: 50%

 

This will cover the content of the entire semester. Questions will include Multiple choice questions and Short answer questions.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Describe the principles and purpose of the diagnostic process.
  • Explain the relationship between the clinical presentation of a patient, the underlying disease processes, and the diagnostic process.
  • Formulate differential diagnoses, based on history and examination findings.
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the inter-professional nature of health care, the need for various investigations in the diagnosis of pathological conditions and the role of referral.

Online quizzes

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: Ongoing - see iLearn
Weighting: 20%

 

5 online multiple-choice quizzes spread throughout the session. Each quiz is worth 4%.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Describe the principles and purpose of the diagnostic process.
  • Explain the relationship between the clinical presentation of a patient, the underlying disease processes, and the diagnostic process.
  • Formulate differential diagnoses, based on history and examination findings.
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the inter-professional nature of health care, the need for various investigations in the diagnosis of pathological conditions and the role of referral.

Mid-session exam

Assessment Type 1: Examination
Indicative Time on Task 2: 15 hours
Due: Week 7 (during 1st half of lecture)
Weighting: 30%

 

The mid-session exam will consist of short-answer questions and will cover material up to the mid-session break.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Describe the principles and purpose of the diagnostic process.
  • Explain the relationship between the clinical presentation of a patient, the underlying disease processes, and the diagnostic process.
  • Formulate differential diagnoses, based on history and examination findings.
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the inter-professional nature of health care, the need for various investigations in the diagnosis of pathological conditions and the role of referral.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

As a student enrolled in this unit, you will engage in a range of face-to-face learning activities, including readings, lectures and tutorials.

1. A 2-hour lecture (See iLearn page for more details)

2. A 2-hour tutorial (See iLearn page for more details)

3. 4-5 hours per week of self-directed learning, set readings from the text and exercises on lecture topics

Further details can be found on the iLearn site for this unit.

Required Readings

Unit workbook for CHIR6510 - available on iLearn unit page in PDF format

Recommended Readings

Souza T.  Differential Diagnosis and Management for the Chiropractor 4TH ed Jones and Bartlett

Beirman R & Engel R. An A-Z of Symptoms and Signs Palgrave Macmillan 2009

Technology Used

Active participation in the learning activities throughout the unit will require students to have access to a tablet, laptop or similar device. Students who do not own their own laptop computer may borrow one from the university library.

Unit web page: CHIR6510 iLearn site - https://ilearn.mq.edu.au/ 

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Inclusion and diversity

Social inclusion at Macquarie University is about giving everyone who has the potential to benefit from higher education the opportunity to study at university, participate in campus life and flourish in their chosen field. The University has made significant moves to promote an equitable, diverse and exciting campus community for the benefit of staff and students. It is your responsibility to contribute toward the development of an inclusive culture and practice in the areas of learning and teaching, research, and service orientation and delivery. As a member of the Macquarie University community, you must not discriminate against or harass others based on their sex, gender, race, marital status, carers' responsibilities, disability, sexual orientation, age, political conviction, or religious belief. All staff and students are expected to display appropriate behaviour that is conducive to a healthy learning environment for everyone.

Professionalism

In the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, professionalism is a key capability embedded in all our courses.

As part of developing professionalism, students are expected to attend all small group interactive sessions including clinical, practical, laboratory, work-integrated learning (e.g., PACE placements), and team-based learning activities. Some learning activities are recorded (e.g., face-to-face lectures), however you are encouraged to avoid relying upon such material as they do not recreate the whole learning experience and technical issues can and do occur. As an adult learner, we respect your decision to choose how you engage with your learning, but we would remind you that the learning opportunities we create for you have been done so to enable your success, and that by not engaging you may impact your ability to successfully complete this unit. We equally expect that you show respect for the academic staff who have worked hard to develop meaningful activities and prioritise your learning by communicating with them in advance if you are unable to attend a small group interactive session.

Another dimension of professionalism is having respect for your peers. It is the right of every student to learn in an environment that is free of disruption and distraction. Please arrive at all learning activities on time, and if you are unavoidably detained, please join the activity as quietly as possible to minimise disruption. Phones and other electronic devices that produce noise and other distractions must be turned off prior to entering class. Where your own device (e.g., laptop) is being used for class-related activities, you are asked to close down all other applications to avoid distraction to you and others. Please treat your fellow students with the utmost respect. If you are uncomfortable participating in any specific activity, please let the relevant academic know.


Unit information based on version 2022.03 of the Handbook