This 20-credit module is designed to advance students knowledge and practical skills required to plan and conduct an assessment and lead on holistic, innovative, individualised management plans for patients presenting with complex pathologies in musculoskeletal, medical, surgical and neurology settings and other patient groups including those with learning disabilities and mental health disorders. Students will have the opportunity to enhance their contemporary theoretical knowledge and understanding of complex or multiple co-existing pathologies encountered in practice and the supporting evidence based practice. They will develop specific skills and knowledge in relation to completing individually tailored subjective and objective assessment with complex patients based on highly advanced clinical reasoning skills. Students will utilise advanced management strategies for these patients based on their evaluation of the best available current evidence. The module builds on PHTY411, PHTY412 and PHTY413 and addresses the four pillars of physiotherapy practice: Clinical, Education, Leadership and Research. The learning and teaching strategy for this module uses a combination of self-directed study, eLectures, tutorials and practical classes and presented in a hybrid manner with a mix of online and face-to-face teaching. Theoretical content will be delivered by eLectures and tutorials will support this material and assist the student with their understanding. Practical sessions will give students the opportunity to apply knowledge and skills under the supervision of experienced physiotherapists developing practical skills in relation to assessment and management. Knowledge and skills will be put into practice by completing two, 5-week placements, Placement 4 and Placement 5 which will count towards the 1000 hours of practice placement hours required to be eligible to obtain accreditation with the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy. Marks will be given using the Common Placement Assessment Framework (CPAF) format and provided to the student via the Online Placement Assessment Record and Evaluation (OPARE) platform.
Achievement of the learning outcomes will be assessed by a poster presentation submitted as a single PDF slide with a 1000 word limit, and a 60 minute Oral Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) relating to a clinical prioritisation task (20 minutes preparation, 40 minutes examination) providing the opportunity for students to demonstrate their skills and theoretical / evidenced based knowledge in relation to the management of complex patient presentations and prioritisation. With the clinical assessment being a pass/fail element for each placement.
The teaching for the module takes place within Semester 2 and starts in February, however as there are two placements attached to the module which take place in July and August. As such, it is considered both a Semester 1 and Semester 2 module for the purposes of the assessment board.