Outline

Overview

This capstone unit for the Master of Medicine (Critical Care) degree aims to develop students' reflective ethical and critical thinking skills, required to inform best clinical practice. The unit is divided into two parts: an introduction to key ethical concepts and methods of ethical analysis; and an overview of evidence relevant to health care practice and research. Students initially apply ethical principles to examine a series of case studies. Students will then critically appraise the evidence base related to an area of practice in their workplace or a clinical guideline. This will require the development of a clinical question, a literature review, then an appraisal of the literature and application of evidence to individual patient care. Learning modules will include applying decision analysis to facilitate shared decision-making in practice, how to conduct a literature review, an example of how clinical practice and guidelines have changed based on changing evidence and review, and further refinement of clinical epidemiology and critical appraisal skills developed in CEPI5100 Introduction to Clinical Epidemiology.

Unit details and rules

Academic unit	Critical Care
Credit points	6
Prerequisites ?	None
Corequisites ?	CEPI5100 and 18 credit points of stream specific units of study from any of (CRIT5001, CRIT5002, CRIT5003, CRIT5004, CRIT5005, CRIT5006, CRIT5007, CRIT5009, CRIT5010, CRIT5011, CRIT5012, CRIT5014, CRIT5015, CRIT5016, CRIT5017, PAIN5021, CLNP5005, INTM5014, PAED5007)
Prohibitions ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	This unit of study is only available to medical graduates. Clinical experience in a critical care discipline such as: emergency medicine, intensive care, anaesthesia, surgery or retrieval medicine.
Available to study abroad and exchange students	No

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Doug Elliott, doug.elliott@sydney.edu.au
Tutor(s)	Doug Elliott, doug.elliott@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Online task	Ethics online tasks Online task	10%	Multiple weeks	300-400 words each
Outcomes assessed:
Online task	Evidence based medicine online tasks Online task	70%	Multiple weeks	300-1000 words each
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Ethics essay Essay	20%	Week 07	1000-1200 words
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Evidence: major written assessment Weighting included as part of the 70% EBM weighting.	0%	Week 13	2500-3000 words
Outcomes assessed:

Assessment summary

Ethics online tasks: Short ethics task in response to a question posed in the relevant week’s content module. These on-line tasks are not ‘marked’ but students will receive a participation mark for their satisfactory and timely completion.
Ethics essay: Topic to be provided closer to the date.
Evidence based medicine online tasks: Sequential and related tasks on evidence-based medicine project. Students will select a clinical scenario, construct a focused clinical question, list information sources they intend to search, provide the intended search strategy, list selected articles, and critically appraise 2 selected articles.
Evidence: major written assessment: Students will incorporate work from previous online tasks to appraise the evidence on a selected clinical scenario. Work will be assessed according to its application of evidence, identification of biases in literature, and provision of a final decision.

Detailed information for each assessment can be found on Canvas.

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a high distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

Result name	Mark range	Description
High distinction	85 - 100
Distinction	75 - 84
Credit	65 - 74
Pass	50 - 64
Fail	0 - 49	When you don’t meet the learning outcomes of the unit to a satisfactory standard.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

This unit has an exception to the standard University policy or supplementary information has been provided by the unit coordinator. This information is displayed below:

Please note, for this unit of study (CRIT5008) the late submission penalty will be 5% of the maximum awardable mark for each calendar day after the due date for 5 calendar days only. This is to ensure that timely feedback is provided to students. If the assessment is submitted more than 5 calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and automated writing tools

You may only use generative AI and automated writing tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator. If you do use these tools, you must acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section. The assessment instructions or unit outline will give guidance of the types of tools that are permitted and how the tools should be used.

Your final submitted work must be your own, original work. You must acknowledge any use of generative AI tools that have been used in the assessment, and any material that forms part of your submission must be appropriately referenced. For guidance on how to acknowledge the use of AI, please refer to the AI in Education Canvas site.

The unapproved use of these tools or unacknowledged use will be considered a breach of the Academic Integrity Policy and penalties may apply.

Studiosity is permitted unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission as detailed on the Learning Hub’s Canvas page.

Outside assessment tasks, generative AI tools may be used to support your learning. The AI in Education Canvas site contains a number of productive ways that students are using AI to improve their learning.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	Module 1: ethics	Online class (10 hr)
Week 02	Module 1: ethics	Online class (10 hr)
Week 03	Module 1: ethics	Online class (10 hr)
Week 04	Module 1: ethics	Online class (10 hr)
Week 05	Module 2: evidence	Online class (10 hr)
Week 06	Module 2: evidence	Online class (10 hr)
Week 07	Module 2: evidence	Online class (10 hr)
Week 08	Module 2: evidence	Online class (10 hr)
Week 09	Module 2: evidence	Online class (10 hr)
Week 10	Module 2: evidence	Online class (10 hr)
Week 11	Module 2: evidence	Online class (10 hr)
Week 12	Module 2: evidence	Online class (10 hr)
Week 13	Module 2: evidence	Online class (10 hr)

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. explain and compare the features of predominant ethical theories relevant to evidence based health care practice and research
LO2. describe and critically evaluate ethical principles and concepts such as autonomy, capacity, vulnerability, best interests and consent and their role in health care practice and research
LO3. apply these ethical concepts to relevant contemporary issues or challenges in health care practice and research
LO4. formulate a clinical question so that it fits into one of the four main areas (diagnosis, prognosis, intervention, harm) and can be answered by finding and using the best evidence
LO5. select sources of EBM material appropriate for a given question
LO6. retrieve appropriate evidence through optimal querying of selected sources
LO7. critically appraise retrieved evidence for validity, importance and applicability including how the limitations of retrieved evidence modifies its applicability to patient care
LO8. apply the factors involved in clinical decision making as they relate to an individual patient.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

We value your feedback about any aspect of the unit of study and your experience as a student of Sydney Medical School. To help ensure our courses meet your needs and maintain a high standard, we welcome your feedback at any time and we ask you to complete the Mid-Semester Evaluation Survey and the unit of study Evaluation Survey at the end of the semester. You can also rate any component of the unit using our star rating system found at the bottom of many pages as you progress through the unit. Your ratings and comments are anonymous and specifying what you liked and didn’t like about any of the learning materials, assessment items, discussion forums, feedback etc will help us to target our improvement efforts. Please note that your participation in this unit of study permits de-identified information about your learning experience and interaction with learning resources to be used for the purpose of improving the student learning experience.

Additional information

Student hub - Professional Medical Education

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Study commitment

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Additional information

Additional information

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect

Current students

CRIT5008: Evidence and Ethics in Critical Care

Semester 2 Early, 2020 [Online] - Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Study commitment

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Additional information

Additional information

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect