GGP Course Coordinator

Professor Renuka Visvanathan
Professor of Geriatric Medicine
Telephone: 08 8222 8178
Facsimile: 08 8222 8593
Email: renuka.visvanathan@adelaide.edu.au 


GP Coordinator
Professor Nigel Stocks
Head of Discipline
Telephone: 08 8313 3462
Email: nigel.stocks@adelaide.edu.au 


Geriatric Medicine Site Coordinators


a) Adelaide G-TRAC/TQEH
Dr Kareeann Khow
Senior Lecturer
Telephone: 8313 2144
Email: kareeann.khow@adelaide.edu.au 



b) RAH
Dr. Jessica Huang
Geriatrician
Telephone:70742955
Email: jessica.huang@sa.gov.au 


c) Nothern Adelaide Local Health Network Sites
Dr Tanaya Singh
Geriatrician
Telephone: 8161 2000
Email: tanaya.singh@sa.gov.au 

The course timetable for the Geriatrics and General Practice placement is complicated due to the combining of two separately organised and co-ordinated rotations.

Geriatrics
A. On completion of Year 5 Geriatrics, students will demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the:
1. concepts and facts regarding problems of hospitalized patients and patients in the community
2. physiologic changes related to ageing
3. consequences of iatrogenesis on health outcomes
4. management of conditions common to older people, including geriatric syndromes
5. range of services for the elderly, including those outside the acute hospital setting
6. work of the various members of the healthcare, aged care and rehabilitation teams
7. influence of environmental, social and financial circumstance on the older person’s health outcomes

B. Students will demonstrate competency, as expected of a Year 5 student, in the following areas of clinical skills and reasoning:
1. obtaining a history, performing an appropriate physical examination and assessing elderly patients in all domains including cognition, emotion, physical function, falls, nutrition, integument, bone health and continence
2. documenting medications, discussing the evidence for and against the use of these medications, the adverse effects and drug interactions that may occur, and the monitoring requirements
3. performing supervised procedures as deemed appropriate by the preceptor
4. interpreting data commonly collected from patients
5. documenting the history and physical examinations and developing a problem list with proposed management and review plan
6. verbal presentation and discussion of assigned patients
7. the concept and application of advanced care planning and capacity assessment
8. communicating with general practitioners, allied health members in the community and family about management plans, ensuring clinical handover

C. Students will demonstrate the following professional attributes:
1. working and communicating with other members of the healthcare team to achieve best outcomes for their patient
2. interacting with the patient and the healthcare team in a professional manner that includes punctuality, attention to appropriate dress code, ensuring dignity in care and attention to confidentiality
3. understanding of and adherence to concepts of patient autonomy, benevolence, and distributive justice of healthcare

General Practice

D. On completion of Year 5 General Practice, students will demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
1. the normal structure and function of the body (at all levels from molecule to organism), epidemiological, social and behavioural sciences
2. the common problems presenting to general practice and the approaches for their recognition, investigation, treatment and prevention
3. integrating and applying core medical and scientific knowledge to individual patients, population and health systems
4. integrating the principles of disease prevention and health promotion into clinical practice
environmental and psychosocial issues and their effect on the patient
5. the care of people who have one or more chronic illnesses
6. identifying, accessing, critically appraising, interpreting and applying evidence from the medical and scientific literature

E. Students will demonstrate competency, as expected of a Year 5 student, in the following areas of clinical skills and reasoning:
1. diagnostic reasoning skills including integration and weighted interpretation of findings from history and physical examination to arrive at an initial differential diagnosis
2. selecting and justifying common investigations, with regards to the pathological basis of disease, utility, safety and cost effectiveness, and interpret their results
3. applying therapeutic reasoning skills including identification of appropriate therapeutic objectives in both differentiated and undifferentiated clinical problems
4. formulating and justifying appropriate management options, individually and as a member of a team
prescribing therapy safely, effectively and economically, using objective evidence, in acute, chronic and palliative care settings
5. performing and explaining to patients a range of procedures (listed in year 4/5 objectives)
assisting with completion of an Extended Primary Care assessment of a patient

F. Students will demonstrate the following professional attributes:
1. the ability to communicate effectively and professionally, in a variety of media, with patients, colleagues and others
2.accepting responsibility to protect and advance the health and wellbeing of individuals, communities and populations
3.understanding the environmental, social and psychological determinants of disease, including issues relating to health inequalities, 4.cultural diversity, and socio-economic and physical environment factors
5. the ability to contribute to the teaching and professional development of others

Please see MyUni

Geriatrics: The Course Handbook contains a wealth of journal articles, reports and links to online material that has been carefully selected to assist students in meeting clinical and placement learning objectives. Students are advised to consult the handbook.

GP: General Practice is a broad field, and students are advised to seek out resources that will assist them to consolidate their clinical learning.

Geriatrics: An extremely useful website is the Victorian Geriatric Medicine Training Program portal, which has a number of interactive modules that are extremely relevant: http://anzsgm.org/vgmtp/

GP: students are expected to have completed the e-learning module on Medicare and prescribing prior to attending their tutorials in the first week of the GP block. It is available here:http://www.medicareaustralia.gov.au/provider/business/education/e-learning.jsp

Other useful online resources are:
Therapeutic Guidelines: available via The University of Adelaide Library
The Clinical Practise Guidelines Portal: http://www.clinicalguidelines.gov.au/
Online databases such as UpToDate: available via The University of Adelaide

Geriatrics
Teaching during the Geriatrics component of the rotation is primarily delivered in the clinical setting but supplemented with tutorials and online teaching material.

Clinical teaching
Students are expected to attend and participate in ward rounds, outpatient clinics and academic teaching sessions such as unit meetings and hospital grand rounds. Students need to discuss with their preceptor when these activities take place and how they should engage themselves in them.

Students are also expected to work up and present patients and as part of the clinical learning experience. Students should be aware that the conduct of geriatric/rehabilitation assessment tools during this placement is part of skills development.

Lectures
Each week specific lectures will be provided at TQEH, RAH and Modbury Hospital. Students to refer to their master timetable.

Visits
May have exposure to: Nursing Home or Home Visits, Day Therapy Centres


General Practice
Teaching during the GP component of the rotation is delivered primarily in the clinical setting. It is supplemented by the tutorials and lectures in Week 1. There is also online material that might be useful.

As there is limited clinical session time in which to achieve the learning objectives for this program, it is important that time spent observing in clinics is kept to a minimum and that you take a hands-on role as much as possible, reflecting on your learning and making patient management decisions under supervision. You should make every effort to undertake an Extended Primary Care Assessment for a patient. Examples of this include the 75+ Assessment, Asthma 3+ assessment, Indigenous Health Assessment other chronic disease management items.

Workload for the individual students will vary from week to week but students can assume that on average they will work a 45 hour week which will include clinic sessions, lectures (both delivered and online), seminars, tutorials and private study but does not include after hours call.

See Teaching and Learning Modes above

Geriatrics: A copy of your valid (within 2 years) police check and the original (to be sighted) on the first day of placement.

• SUMMATIVE Assessment Tasks
  Supervisor Report Geriatrics 1 20%
  Supervisor Report Geriatrics 2 20%
  Supervisor Report General Practice 20%
  Geriatrics/Rehab Write Up And/OR Presentation 1 20%
  Geriatrics/Rehab Write Up And/OR Presentation 2 20%
  
  To pass this course, students must attend clinical placements (see Assessment related requirements) and obtain a overall satisfactory performance in the Summative Assessment Tasks outlined above.
  
  Where students have attended clinical placements and an overall borderline grade is achieved in the Summative Assessment Tasks, a student may be offered an opportunity to sit a Replacement/Additional Assessment examination, where applicable.
  
  Academic Progression Requirements
  Progression from one year to the next in the MBBS is dependent on the student successfully completing a compulsory annual examination course in which a full year’s learning is assessed.
  
  To successfully complete the MEDIC ST 5000AHO and MEDIC ST 5000BHO Fifth Year MBBS Examination Part 1 and Part 2 courses, the student must pass the end of year examinations and have successfully completed all year level component courses (24 units).
  
  IF a student fails the compulsory examination course no passing grade will be received for any core medical studies courses.
  
  IF a student has not completed all required MEDIC ST units of the year they must successfully complete an appropriate remedial course of the same or greater value as specified in Term 4 of the same academic year.
  
  
  

It is compulsory for students to attend clinical placements and their specific activities in line with the principles and guidelines outlined in the Medical Student Clinical Hours document.

Exemptions to mandatory clinical placement attendance requirements may be granted by the Program Coordinator in consultation with the relevant course coordinator and year level advisor if there are exceptional medical, compassionate or extenuating circumstances as defined by the Modified Arrangements for Coursework Assessment Policy.

The University has developed a Scope of Practice document which outlines appropriate activities for Year 5 students. Students should be familiar with this document, and adhere to its guidelines. The document can be found in MyUni and here.

The format of Case presentation/Case write up varies at each site - see MyUni (site specific information also) for further details and please adhere to the instructions provided by the site supervisors.

Electronically via MyUni.

Submission details will be outlined at the beginning of the attachment.

The MBBS Program has a regular program of evaluation. In addition, student representatives are appointed to MBBS committees and are encouraged to report on issues of importance to students.
Please refer to CANVAS with regards to the academic response to SELTs.

Students may access the University Health Practice, 61+ 08 83135050  http://www.adelaide.edu.au/student/health/

The MBBS Program website has details on Student Well-being resources which can be accessed.

Please read the MBBS Program Code of Conduct