B821 Medical Imaging (Diagnostic Radiography)
Programme Specification (2007/08 Intake)
This specification provides a concise summary of the main features of
the programme and the learning outcomes that a typical student might
reasonably be expected to achieve and demonstrate if they take full
advantage of the learning opportunities that are provided.
More detailed
information about the learning outcomes, content and teaching, learning
and assessment methods are published in the School
Handbook, and each module code below is linked to its detailed
description.
10. Programme structures and requirements, levels, modules, credits and awards
This programme is studied in three 'stages' usually over three years, each comprising
approximately 40 weeks divided into three terms,
and involves both University- and placement-based learning throughout that time.
In order to graduate, students must comply with the University's
Fitness to Practice Standards. Students on placement are required to comply with the School's
Code of Practice for Clinical Placements. All the modules
comprising this programme must be passed in order for the programme learning outcomes to be achieved and therefore
the University's rules for condoning and/or compensating failed modules are not applicable.
This programme leads to a joint award but, for administrative purposes, students on this programme are
registered by, and subject to the regulations of, the University of Exeter.
The programme is divided into units of study called modules. The credit
rating of a module is proportional to the total workload. 1 credit is
nominally equivalent to 10 hours of work. The 'level' of a module
indicates its position in the progressive development of academic
cognitive abilities, and/or practical skills. An 'elective' is an unspecified module
that allows the student to broaden their education, e.g. by
learning a foreign language. More details are given in
the module description template
specification.
The following tables describe the programme planned for delivery to students commencing Stage 1 in the academic
year 2007/08. Some modules
will be updated or replaced in future years as a consequence
of normal programme development activity, and staff rotation.
| Stage One (2007-2008) |
|---|
| Code | Title | Period | Credits | Level | Notes |
|---|
| PAM1008 |
Psychology for Health Studies |
Weeks 1-10 |
10 |
1 |
Pass without condonement required. PAHC shared learning. |
| PAM1011 |
Anatomy and Physiology |
Weeks 1-10 |
20 |
1 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| PAM1012 |
Interpersonal Skills and Sociology |
Weeks 12-20 |
10 |
1 |
Pass without condonement required. PAHC shared learning. |
| PAM1013 |
Evidence Based Professional Practice |
Weeks 1-10 |
20 |
1 |
Pass without condonement required. PAHC shared learning. |
| PAM1006 |
Clinical Imaging 1 |
Weeks 12-20 |
10 |
1 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| PAM1014 |
Introduction to Radiation Physics |
Weeks 1-10 |
10 |
1 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| PAM1015 |
Radiographic Anatomy |
Weeks 12-20 |
10 |
1 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| PAM1007 |
Practice Placement 1 |
Apr-Aug (16 weeks) |
30 |
1 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| Stage Two (2008-2009) |
|---|
| Code | Title | Period | Credits | Level | Notes |
|---|
| PAM2003 |
Clinical Imaging 2 |
Weeks 1-5, 7-10, 21-24 |
15 |
2 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| PAM2004 |
Clinical Imaging 3 |
Weeks 1-5, 7-10, 21-24 |
20 |
2 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| PAM2005 |
Project Studies 1 |
Weeks 0, 6 |
20 |
2 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| PAM2011 |
Science for Medical Imaging |
Weeks 1-5, 7-10, 21-24 |
15 |
2 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| PAM2012 |
Pathology for Radiographers |
Weeks 1-5, 7-10, 21-24 |
20 |
2 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| PAM2006 |
Practice Placement 2 |
Jan-Apr (14 weeks) |
30 |
2 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| Stage Three (2009-2010) |
|---|
| Code | Title | Period | Credits | Level | Notes |
|---|
| PAM3005 |
Practice Placement 3 |
Aug-Dec (18 weeks) and May-Jun (4 weeks) |
35 |
3 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| PAM3004 |
Project Studies 2 |
M1-M11,T0-T1 |
30 |
3 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| PAM3006 |
Skeletal Image Interpretation |
In Stage 2: T5-T6, in Stage 3: L0-L11 |
20 |
3 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| PAM3012 |
Digital Image Processing for Radiographers |
L0-L9 |
15 |
3 |
Pass without condonement required. |
| PAM3013 |
Clinical Imaging 4 |
L0-L9 |
20 |
3 |
Pass without condonement required. |
This programme is intended to:
- Provide the student with the skills to adapt and respond positively to change.
- Develop critical, analytical problem-based learning skills and the transferable skills to prepare the student for
graduate employment.
- Enhance the development of the students' interpersonal skills.
- Provide the student with opportunities for shared multidisciplinary and inter-professional learning with other
allied health professions.
- Assist the student to develop the skills required for both autonomous practice and team-working.
- Provide the students with the knowledge and skills to equip them for a career in diagnostic radiography.
- Develop the students' competence in applying clinical skills to the practice of radiography.
- Develop the critical and analytical powers of the student in relation to diagnostic radiography.
- Provide education and training that is accredited by the Society & College of Radiographers
and the Health Professions Council (Joint Validation Committee).
The School of Physics intends to provide students taking this programme with:
- Opportunities to engage with a range of advanced concepts and applications,
drawing upon the specialist expertise of the staff.
- Regular and frequent small-group contact with
staff with the appropriate teaching skills and experience, including either
current activity in high-level research or clinical expertise.
- An environment which is caring and supportive in both
academic and pastoral aspects and which will have encompassed an appropriate
range of teaching methods and broadened their learning experience.
12. Programme outcomes
On successful completion of this programme, it is intended that the student should be able to demonstrate:
- Subject knowledge and skills
- An understanding of the theoretical basis of diagnostic radiography practice.
- Knowledge of the anatomical, biomedical and physiological principles related to human health and disease.
- Awareness of current developments in the practice and theory of diagnostic radiography.
- Awareness of the fundamental concepts of psychosocial science relevant to the student becoming
a health team member, practitioner and healthcare educator.
- Awareness of legal and ethical considerations which relate to radiography
practice, and of the need to maintain professional integrity.
- An understanding of the theoretical basis of scientific research and clinical audit.
- Knowledge of the context of healthcare provision including the structure and policies of the NHS.
- Ability to analyse, evaluate and interpret the evidence underpinning diagnostic radiography practice critically and initiate change in practice appropriately.
- Ability to undertake skilled competent, safe, evaluative reflective diagnostic radiography practice.
- Ability to make judgements from the verbal and physical presentation of an individual and evaluate
and assess the undertaking of clinical examinations.
- Ability to reflect upon and make informed decisions about clinical practices consistent with accepted
protocols and individual patient's needs.
- Ability to effectively and safely apply transferable skills to the management of individuals, with continual analysis and evaluation of outcome and appropriate modification of intervention.
- Ability to make evaluative judgements on the technical outcomes from imaging procedures and report the findings accordingly.
- Ability to communicate effectively with individuals, relatives, carers, and healthcare professionals
establishing professional and ethical relationships.
- Core academic skills
- Ability to apply the skills needed for academic study and enquiry.
- Ability to evaluate research and a variety of types of information and evidence critically.
- Ability to synthesise information from a number of sources in order to gain a coherent understanding of theory and practice.
- Ability to apply strategies for appropriate selection of relevant information from a wide source and large body of knowledge.
- Ability to utilise problem solving skills.
- Effective use of appropriate IT packages/systems for the analysis of
data and the retrieval of appropriate information.
- Personal and key skills
- Ability to communicate effectively with a wide range of individuals using a variety of means.
- Ability to work effectively as a member of a team.
- Ability to evaluate his/her own academic, professional and clinical performance.
- Ability to utilise problem-solving skills in a variety of theoretical and practical situations.
- Ability to manage change effectively and respond to changing demands.
- Ability to take responsibility for personal (Personal Development Planning) and professional (Continuing Professional Development) learning and development.
- Ability to manage time, prioritise workloads and recognise and manage personal emotions and stress.
- Ability to understand career opportunities and challenges ahead and begin to plan a career path.
- Ability to information management skills, e.g. IT skills.
Reference points used to construct this specification:
13. Teaching, learning and assessment methods
Teaching/learning:
- Subject knowledge and skills
- Material is introduced by lectures and directed reading/research.
Students are given clear guidance in how to manage their learning and
are expected to take progressively more responsibility for their own
learning at each stage. Understanding is developed and consolidated in
tutorials, by laboratory work and private study
exercises, carried out individually and in pairs or groups. A mix of
self-assessed and tutor-marked work provides rapid feedback. Project
work is used to integrate material and make knowledge functional. A set
of compulsory modules cover radiography in
progressively greater depth at each stage of the programme.
- Core academic skills
- The radiography modules at stages 1 and 2 provide a thorough training
in the academic and clinical basis of radiography. These skills are
further developed in stage 3 projects which require students to plan and
execute research, present and defend their conclusions. The students at
stage 3 will also form an integral part of the radiography healthcare
team and develop their teamwork and management skills within the
clinical setting.
- Personal and key skills
- Initial training in health sciences, professional skills and
contexts, scientific background of radiography and practical experience
occurs in stage 1 and these skills are developed and used at
progressively higher levels throughout the programme.
Assessment methods:
- Subject knowledge and skills
- Direct assessment is through a range of tests, formal written examinations, and marked
coursework in the form of problem sheets, laboratory reports,
reports/essays based on directed reading and research. The Stage 3
project assessment is based on performance in research undertaken, oral
presentations, planning ability, a formal written report and a
poster presentation. Assessment criteria are published in the
School Handbook.
- Clinical competence is assessed with a range of practical exercises and written case studies.
- Core academic skills
- The programme
features a wide range of learning, teaching and assessment methods which
a specified in detail on the individual module descriptions. For the
academic radiography teaching blocks, learning and teaching is based on
lectures supported by
tutorials (every two weeks, in groups of around 10 students) and by
practical classes (including case scenarios in Stage 2 and
inter-professional workshops in Stage 3). The inter-professional modules
in Stage 1 and Stage 2 are based on lectures supported by seminars and
tutorials. The inter-professional Project Studies 2 module in Stage 3 is
based around practical research, supported by tutorials. Assessments
within the programme include clinical assessments, placement log books,
examinations, tests, coursework, essays, reports, oral presentations,
interviews and practical work.
- Personal and key skills
- Assessment of key skills is mostly through items of coursework:
written and oral presentations, project work, and through assessments in the clinical setting.
14. Support for students and students' learning
The University Library maintains its principal collections in the main library buildings on the Streatham and St Luke's campuses, together with a large library at Camborne School of Mines and a number of specialist collections in certain Schools. The total Library collection comprises over a million volumes and 3000 current periodical subscriptions.
Information Technology (IT) Services provide a wide range of services throughout the University including open access computer rooms, some of which are available 24 hours, 7 days a week. Helpdesks are maintained on the Streatham, St Luke's and CSM campuses, while most study bedrooms in halls and flats are linked via RESNET to the University's campus network. Additionally, the School of Physics has its own dedicated facilities.
The University provides a wide range of student support services including:
- Student Counselling Service
- Student Health Centres
- Study Skills Service
- Nursery (Streatham campus)
- Student Advice Centre (Guild of Students)
- Chaplaincy
- International Office
- English and Foreign Language Centres
The University Careers Advisory Service provides expert advice to all students to enable them to plan their futures, through guidance interviews, psychometric testing, employer presentations, skills events, practice job interviews and CV preparation.
Teaching staff can be easily contacted by e-mail, telephone, letter, or in person.
Further information about the above services is published on the WWW.
The School provides:
Candidates must satisfy the general
admissions requirements of the University.
The normal minimum entry qualifications required for this programme are
equivalent to two GCE A levels to include one science subject. Offers of places
typically require three GCE A Levels at grades BCC or equivalent (260),
or two GCE A Levels at grades AB equivalent (220).
The School has an Equal
Opportunities Policy and welcomes applications from students
with other types of qualifications or prior learning experience (for
example, an Access to Science course). For more information, refer
to the detailed entrance requirements School of Physics which are
published on the Physics Entry Data page of the University of Exeter Undergraduate
Prospectus, or contact the Admissions Tutor.
The clinical placements that are essential parts of this programme
require that students are in a satisfactory state of health and
are able to complete physical tasks including operating equipment and handling
patients.
16. Regulation of assessment and academic standards
Each academic programme in the University is subject to an agreed
School Assessment Marking Strategy, underpinned by institution-wide
assessment procedures. The security of assessment and academic
standards is further supported through the external examiners appointed
for each programme. Their responsibilities are described in the
University's Code of
Good Practice for External Examiners and include access to draft
papers, course work and examination scripts. Attendance at the Board of
Examiners and the provision of an annual report are both required.
Clear procedures are also in place for the monitoring of these annual
reports at both School and University level. See the University's Teaching
Quality Assurance (TQA) Manual for details of these processes.
School assessment marking strategy is published in the School Handbook.
The Handbook also publishes the rules governing degree awards and
classification for this programme. Briefly, an Honours Degree is awarded to
students who have passed all modules and it is classified based on a weighted average of marks, as follows:
| Class I | 70% + |
| Class II, Division I | 60-69% |
| Class II, Division II | 50-59% |
| Class III | 40-49% |
17. Indicators of quality and standards
The University and its constituent Schools draw on a range of data
in their regular review of the quality of provision. The annually
produced Performance Indicator Dataset details admission, progression,
completion and first career destination data, including comparisons over
a five-year timespan.
Progression statistics are included in routine internal monitoring
and review processes (see 18 below).
This programme is accredited by the Society & College of
Radiographers, and the
Health Professions Council Joint Validation Committee.
The Allied Health Professions provision offered by School of Physics was subject to Major Review by the Quality Assurance Agency in 2006, when confidence was expressed in
the standard of provision and all three elements of quality of learning opportunities evaluated were judged to
be 'comendable'.
QAA reports are published on the QAA website.
Research activity in Physics and Astronomy was classified as 5A by the RAE 2001 exercise.
18. Methods for evaluating and improving quality and standards
The University has procedures in place for the regular review of its
educational provision, including the annual review
of both modules and programmes which draw on feedback from such
sources as external examiners' reports, student evaluation, student
achievement and progression data, and the staff peer
appraisal scheme. In addition, subject areas are
reviewed every three years through a subject and
programme quality review scheme that includes external input. These
procedures are recorded in codes of practice contained in the TQA Manual.
Certain programmes are also subject to review and/or accreditation by
professional and statutory bodies, while nearly all subject areas are
reviewed from time to time by the national Quality Assurance Agency for
HE; see the QAA web site for review reports on subjects at Exeter. See section
17 for details of recent outcomes applicable to this programme.
