Study-Unit Description

Study-Unit Description


CODE MDS3010

 
TITLE Integrated Clinical Skills

 
UM LEVEL 03 - Years 2, 3, 4 in Modular Undergraduate Course

 
MQF LEVEL 6

 
ECTS CREDITS 3

 
DEPARTMENT Faculty of Medicine and Surgery

 
DESCRIPTION This study-unit offers students in their early phase of clinical training the opportunity to clerk patients and present cases to a clinical tutor on a regular basis. After practical demonstrations, students are expected to practice the clinical skills of history taking and clinical examination.

Students are divided into very small groups so as to encourage the acquisition of basic clinical, communication and examination skills using real patients as well as a simulator. The teaching programme is structured on the basis of a specific workbook that leads students along the small-group, interactive and hands-on teaching.

Log-book spanning all three years of the clinical course is driven by learning objectives and expected competencies, and gives precise details for the acquisition of clinical skills. The logbook also gives direction for a voluntary summer project to be undertaken between Years 3 and 4.

Study-unit Aims

This study-unit aims to provide the core knowledge and skills required in the clinical assessment of patients. The unit will present an integrated approach to clinical skills involving the clinical disciplines of Medicine and Surgery.

Learning Outcomes

1. Knowledge & Understanding:

By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:
1. Explain the importance and need for careful and accurate history taking.
2. Describe the techniques for clinical examination of all body systems.

2. Skills:

By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:
1. Elicit a focused and structured medical history from patients.
2. Perform a systematic examination.
3. Assess a patient’s mental status.
4. Clearly present the history and clinical findings elicited from the history and clinical examination.

Main Text/s and any supplementary readings

Textbooks:

1. Macleod's Clinical Examination. Graham Douglas, Fiona Nicol, Colin Robertson. Churchill Livingstone. 12th Edition, 2009.
2. Hamilton Bailey Physical Signs Lumley JSP

 
STUDY-UNIT TYPE Independent Study and Group Learning

 
METHOD OF ASSESSMENT
Assessment Component/s Assessment Due Sept. Asst Session Weighting
Clinical Assessment (30 Minutes) SEM2 Yes 100%

 
LECTURER/S

 

 
The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints.
Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice.
It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2023/4. It may be subject to change in subsequent years.

https://www.um.edu.mt/course/studyunit