Changes to Year 3
May 2010
The JMPs first students commenced Year 3 in 2010. The revised Year 3 curriculum was first implemented during 2009, and incorporated subspecialty practice and chronic disease management, with clinical placements in specialist clinics and general practices across our urban and rural footprint.
"Undertaking placements in general practices gives students access to a broad range of clinical experiences and is in keeping with the programs community orientation," said Dr Graeme Horton, Program Convenor.
"It has also given many Year 3 JMP students the opportunity to experience and learn clinical medicine on placement in locations remote from their university campus," said Dr Horton. A structured program of debriefing tutorials facilitates the sharing of experiences between students once they return from placement.
Prior to undertaking clinical placements, students are provided with an intensive two-week clinical skills tutorial program. The clinical skills tutorial program supports the professional skills tutorials, attachments and placements which in Year 3 include dermatology, ophthalmology, diabetes, sexuality counselling and Indigenous health.
The Year 3 curriculum involves PBL interwoven with clinical placements. For some weeks all or most students of a PBL group are on remote placement at the time of their tutorials. These students use Elluminate web-based conferencing to enable contact with the Newcastle and Armidale campuses to continue whilst they are away on placement. Students communicate with their tutor and group members via their laptop, microphones and headsets.
The curriculum is fully integrated, with self directed learning well supported by: laboratory sessions in infectious diseases and anatomy which relate to working problems, specialist teaching of sexuality counselling including feedback on student prepared videos, and clinical skills teaching and formative assessment provided by clinician tutors.
