Medical Humanities
These programs are no longer open for admission. The following information is for continuing students only.
Bioethics offers an opportunity to study humanities through a health humanities pathway. See the Bioethics section of the handbook for further information.
Graduate Certificate in Medical Humanities
(GradCertMedHum) KG013 or GCMEDHUM2000
Graduate Diploma in Medical Humanities
(GradDipMedHum) KF050 or GNMEDHUM2000
Master of Medical Humanities
(MMedHum) KC070 or MAMEDHUM2000
| Course | Credit points for award | Duration full-time | Duration part-time |
|---|---|---|---|
| GradCertMedHum | 24 | 0.5 years | 1 to 4 years |
| GradDipMedHum | 36 | 1 year | 1.5 to 3 years |
| MMedHum | 48 | 1 year | 1.5 to 4 years |
Overview
The medical humanities program explores the human side of health and health care. It aims to overcome the separation of clinical care from the human experience of illness through the use of concepts and analytic tools from various arts and social science disciplines. The medical humanities provide insight into the human condition (for example suffering, personhood and our responsibility to each other) and offer an historical perspective on illness and healthcare.
Knowledge of literature and the arts helps to develop and nurture skills of observation, analysis, empathy, and self-reflection skills that are essential for humane medical care. The social sciences help us to understand how bioscience and medicine take place within cultural and social contexts and how culture interacts with the individual experience of illness and the way medicine is practised.
Course outcomes
Students will demonstrate the ability to:
- identify the differences between a biomedical view of health, illness and disease and the viewpoint of various disciplines in the arts and humanities
- describe how conceptions of medicine developed over time and continue to develop, and how these are likely to shape our understanding of health and well-being
- critically assess and respond to the individual and social circumstances in which ill health takes place
- improve their skills in the five areas of knowledge, thinking, personal skills, personal attributes and practical skills
- creatively approach understanding diverse experiences and responses to illness, health, and caring for others.
Further information
Candidates for the graduate certificate need to complete 24 credit points of study. Candidates for the graduate diploma need to complete 36 credit points of study. Candidates for the Master of Medical Humanities need to complete 48 credit points of study. Candidates need to chose their units of study from among those offered in the Medical Humanities program (units with code prefix MMHU), the Bioethics program (units with code prefix BETH) (sydney.edu.au/bioethics/) or the Qualitative Research program (units with code prefix QUAL)
(sydney.edu.au/medicine/public-health/future-student/study-program/coursework-degrees/qualitative-health-research.php).
Details of these are listed below. Candidates for the graduate diploma may include one, and candidates for the Master of Medical Humanities may include two, external unit of study, drawn from any department across the university, with the permission of both course coordinators. This is to allow students to explore or pursue their individual areas of interest.
Further enquiries
Dr Estelle Noonan
Phone: +61 2 9036 3417
Email: estelle.noonan@sydney.edu.au
Website:
http://sydney.edu.au/medicine/velim/pgcoursework/index.php
Degree resolutions
Sydney Medical School resolutions and the printed handbook are the official statement of faculty policy. The resolutions contained in the printed handbook are accurate as at August 2012. If a conflict is perceived between the content of the printed handbook and information available elsewhere, Sydney Medical School resolutions and the information available in the handbook online shall always take precedence. See the handbook online website:
sydney.edu.au/handbooks/medicine/
See the Policy Online website: sydney.edu.au/policy, for copies of University policies.
Master of Medical Humanities
These resolutions must be read in conjunction with applicable University By-laws, Rules and policies including (but not limited to) the University of Sydney (Coursework) Rule 2000 (the 'Coursework Rule'), the Resolutions of the Faculty, the University of Sydney (Student Appeals against Academic Decisions) Rule 2006 (as amended) and the Academic Board policies on Academic Dishonesty and Plagiarism.
Course resolutions
1 Course codes
| Code | Course title |
|---|---|
| KG013 | Graduate Certificate in Medical Humanities |
| KF050 | Graduate Diploma in Medical Humanities |
| KC070 | Master of Medical Humanities |
2 Attendance pattern
3 Master's type
0.
The master's degree in these resolutions is a professional master's course, as defined by the Coursework Rule.
4 Embedded courses in this sequence
(2)
Providing candidates satisfy the admission requirements for each stage, a candidate may progress to the award of any of the courses in this sequence. Only the longest award completed will be conferred.
5 Admission to candidature
(1)
Available places will be offered to qualified applicants based on merit, according to the following admissions criteria. In exceptional circumstances the Dean may admit applicants without these qualifications who, in the opinion of the Faculty, have qualifications, evidence of experience and achievement sufficient to successfully undertake the award.
6 Requirements for award
(1)
The units of study that may be taken for the courses are set out in Table of Units of Study: Medical Humanities.
(2)
To qualify for the award of the Graduate Certificate in Medical Humanities a candidate must successfully complete 24 credit points, including:
(a)
a minimum 18 credit points of units of study selected from Part 1 of the Medical Humanities table of units of study; and
(b)
a maximum 6 credit points of units of study selected from Part 2 of the Medical Humanities table of units of study, or other postgraduate units of study as approved by the course coordinator.
(3)
To qualify for the award of the Graduate Diploma in Medical Humanities a candidate must successfully complete 36 credit points, including:
(a)
a minimum 30 credit points of units of study selected from Part 1 of the Medical Humanities table of units of study; and
(b)
a maximum 6 credit points of units of study selected from Part 2 of the Medical Humanities table of units of study, or other postgraduate unit of study as approved by the course coordinator.
(4)
To qualify for the award of the Master of Medical Humanities a candidate must successfully complete 48 credit points, including:
(a)
a minimum 36 credit points of units of study selected from Part 1 of the Medical Humanities table of units of study; and
(b)
a maximum 12 credit points of units of study selected from Part 2 of the Medical Humanities table of units of study, or other postgraduate unit of study as approved by the course coordinator.
7 Transitional provisions
Table of units of study: Medical Humanities
| Unit of study | Credit points | A: Assumed knowledge P: Prerequisites C: Corequisites N: Prohibition | Session |
|---|---|---|---|
Part 1 |
|||
| MMHU6902 Independent Study |
6 | Semester 1 Semester 2 |
|
| MMHU6910 Narrative, Literature and Medicine |
6 | Semester 2 |
|
| MMHU6913 Health in World History |
6 | Semester 1 |
|
| BETH5000 Critical Concepts in Bioethics |
6 | A A three-year undergraduate degree in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology/anthropology, history, or other relevant field, or by special permission. |
Semester 2 |
| BETH5101 Introduction to Ethical Reasoning |
6 | A A three-year undergraduate degree in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology/anthropology, history, or other relevant field, or by special permission. |
Semester 1 |
| BETH5102 Philosophy of Medicine |
6 | A A three-year degree in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology/anthropology, history, or other relevant field - or by special permission. |
Semester 1 |
| BETH5104 Bioethics, Law and Society |
6 | A A three-year undergraduate degree in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology/anthropology, history, or other relevant field, or by special permission |
Semester 1 |
| BETH5201 Ethics and Biotech: Genes and Stem Cells |
6 | A A three-year undergraduate degree in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology/anthropology, history, or other relevant field, or by special permission. |
Semester 1 |
| BETH5202 Human and Animal Research Ethics |
6 | A A three-year undergraduate degree in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology/anthropology, history, or other relevant field, or by special permission. |
Semester 2 |
| BETH5203 Ethics and Public Health |
6 | A A three-year undergraduate degree in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology/anthropology, history, or other relevant field, or by special permission. |
Semester 2 |
| BETH5205 Ethics and Mental Health |
6 | Semester 2 |
|
| BETH5207 Arts in Health |
6 | Semester 2 |
|
Part 2 |
|||
| GCST5902 Natures and Cultures of Bodies |
6 | Semester 2 |
|
| HPSC4103 Sociology of Science |
6 | P Available only to students admitted to HPS Honours, Graduate Diploma in Science (History and Philosophy of Science) and Graduate Certificate in Science (History and Philosophy of Science), or by special permission. Note: Department permission required for enrolment |
Semester 2 |
| PSYC5012 Health and Risk Communication |
6 | Semester 2 |
|
| SCWK6944 Death, Dying and Mourning This unit of study is not available in2013 |
6 | Semester 1 |
|
Units of study descriptions for 2013
Part 1
MMHU6902 Independent Study
Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 1,Semester 2 Classes: 1hr/week supervision Assessment: 1x research essay 4000-5000words; 2x 750word pass/fail exercises Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Supervision
This unit will provide an opportunity for approved candidates to pursue an extended project under supervision. Students will be expected to discuss and plan the project with their supervisor, then submit drafted material to an agreed timetable, and to discuss this drafted material with their supervisor before submitting a final draft.
Textbooks
A course reader will be supplied
MMHU6910 Narrative, Literature and Medicine
Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: Dr Estelle Noonan Session: Semester 2 Classes: 1x 2 hr seminar weekly (evening) or online Assessment: 500-1000 word online assessment (10%); 1 x 1,500 word essay (25%); 1 x 3,500 word essay (50%); 1 oral presentation (15%) Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) Evening or On-line
This unit of study explores the connections between literature, narrative and medicine. From writings by Leo Tolstoy, Franz Kafka, and Virginia Woolf, to contemporary texts by Vincent Lam and Jean-Dominique Bauby, students will encounter and analyse a wide range of literary and non-literary narratives concerned with illness, embodiment and healing. The unit will provide a space for informal discussion and reflection on the texts we encounter, while also introducing students to influential theories of narrative and modes of cultural, literary and linguistic analysis that can further enrich our understandings of these texts. Students are encouraged to probe the limits (the 'what', 'how', and 'who') of knowledge issuing from literary and other modes of narrating health. Topics or themes covered during the course include: narrative theory (narratology); narrative competence; literary/cultural representations of health practitioners; rhetoric (semiotics) of health; literary/cultural constructions of disability and femininity; narrative ethics; language and embodiment; medico-literary 'genres' (e.g. autopathography and the medical [anti]bildungsroman); narrating death and dying; and the limits of narrative.
MMHU6913 Health in World History
Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: Dr Alex Cameron-Smith Session: Semester 1 Classes: 1x 2 hr seminar weekly or online response to readings Assessment: 2x 2500 word essay (100%) Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) Evening
This unit of study offers the student an overview of the history of health, both as a changing concept in medicine and society and as evolving practices of public health. The unit traces the main historical developments in public health and medicine from ancient and modern preoccupations with geography and climate, through the development of hospitals, the effects of imperialism and globalisation, and the involvement of states and international organisations in health. It will examine the influence of scientific and laboratory revolutions between the seventeenth and twentieth centuries, before considering medicalisation and social discourses of health in the twentieth century. In addition to the history of ideas, this unit will focus on health practices and patient experiences as they interacted with changes in medical knowledge and broader society. Students will thus learn to examine the history of health within political, economic and cultural contexts, including those of class, religion, race and gender.
BETH5000 Critical Concepts in Bioethics
Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: Dr Robert Irvine Session: Semester 2 Classes: 13 x 2 hr seminars Assumed knowledge: A three-year undergraduate degree in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology/anthropology, history, or other relevant field, or by special permission. Assessment: 1 x 750wd review (15%) and 1 x 1500wd essay (35%) and 1 x 2000-2500wd essay (50%) Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) Day or On-line
This unit of study offers an introduction to the field of bioethics. The course canvasses different ways that bioethics is 'made-up' in discourse, thought and practice, and the meaning of 'bioethics' historically and in contemporary society. Mapping some of the key literature on current on-going debates and contentions, the seminars explore different perspectives that people have of bioethics from points within and outside of the discipline and why bioethics and bioethical dilemmas have become important objects of popular and professional concern. Topics include voluntary euthanasia, human rights, animal research, the pharmaceutical industry, globalization, environmental bioethics and public health. Learning activities will include seminars and small group discussion.
Textbooks
Students are provided with a book of readings (in digital format). Most supplementary readings can be accessed through the library or online.
BETH5101 Introduction to Ethical Reasoning
Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: A/Prof Ian Keeridge Session: Semester 1 Classes: 13 x 2hr seminars.This course is offered in face-to-face or distance mode (fully online Assumed knowledge: A three-year undergraduate degree in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology/anthropology, history, or other relevant field, or by special permission. Assessment: 1 x 2000wd essay (35%); 1x 4000wd essay (55%); participation (10%) Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) Day or On-line
In this unit of study students gain the background in ethical philosophy necessary to engage in advanced analyses of issues in bioethics. Introduction to Ethical Reasoning familiarises students with classical theoretical frameworks such as virtue ethics, Kantian deontology, and utilitarianism that have been influential in the history of Western philosophy. The unit also examines more contemporary approaches to ethics, such as the capabilities approach, feminist ethics, human rights doctrines, and poststructuralist approaches. Across these different theoretical frameworks, discussions will focus on topics such as cultural relativism, universalism in ethics, difference and power.
Textbooks
Students are provided with a book of readings (in digital format). Most supplementary readings can be accessed through the library or online.
BETH5102 Philosophy of Medicine
Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: Dr Christopher Jordens Session: Semester 1 Classes: 13 x 2hr seminars.This course is offered in face-to-face mode or distance mode (fully online). Students must opt for one mode or the other. Assumed knowledge: A three-year degree in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology/anthropology, history, or other relevant field - or by special permission. Assessment: 1 short written exercise ( Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) Day or On-line
This unit of study introduces some key philosophical questions and debates concerning medicine and the biomedical sciences. It is divided into three sections. The first explores key concepts and distinctions such as health, disease, mental illness and disability. The second section deals with topics that lie at the heart of a scientific approach to medicine, namely, causation, experimentation, evidence and clinical reasoning. The final section of the course invites students to reflect critically on the preceding section by exploring the rationality claims of non-orthodox approaches, by inquiring closely into the meaning of medical terms, and by taking a broad view of the notion of risk.
Textbooks
Students are provided with a book of readings (in digital format). Most supplementary readings can be accessed through the library or online.
BETH5104 Bioethics, Law and Society
Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: A/Professor Cameron Stewart Session: Semester 1 Classes: 4 x 8hr intensives. This course is offered in face-to-face mode OR distance mode (fully online). Assumed knowledge: A three-year undergraduate degree in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology/anthropology, history, or other relevant field, or by special permission Assessment: 1 x problem 1500 wds (40%); 1 x 2000wd essay (60%) Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Block Mode or On-line
This unit of study begins by introducing students to intersections amongst health care, ethics, and the law. In particular students will explore the moral basis of law and the means by which law influences moral norms, clinical practice, and health policy. Students learn how to critically read and analyse primary sources of law relevant to bioethics. Students will then examine a number of areas of law that have particular significance for bioethics and society including consent, tort law, competence, advance directives, maternal-foetal conflicts, abortion, reproduction, end-of-life-decision-making, genetics and infectious disease.
Textbooks
: The text is the 4th edition of Kerridge, Lowe and Stewart, Ethics and law for the health profession (Federation Press), to be released before the start of Semester 1, 2013. All other readings are provided to students on a CD ROM and most are also available online through the university library. Most supplementary readings can be accessed through the library or online.
BETH5201 Ethics and Biotech: Genes and Stem Cells
Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: Dr Ainslie Newson Session: Semester 1 Classes: 6 x 2hr seminars, 1 x 8 hr intensive. This course is offered in face-to-face mode or distance mode (fully online). Assumed knowledge: A three-year undergraduate degree in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology/anthropology, history, or other relevant field, or by special permission. Assessment: 3 x 400wd tutorial assessments (3 x 10%); 1 x 1200-1500wd essay (30%); 1 x 2200 - 2500wd essay (40%) Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) Day or On-line
This unit of study introduces students to the broader ethical, philosophical, social, political, legal and regulatory issues that underlie genetics, stem cell research and the emerging biotechnologies. The unit will begin with a brief overview of the relevant science before considering differences between scientific, cultural and religious understandings of life and human identity. The unit also focuses on the political, regulatory and commercial context of biotechnology and the control of information. Students will examine the ethical issues that arise in clinical and population genetics, stem cell research and cloning as well as explore the boundaries of research and knowledge and the issues raised by emerging biotechnologies, such as nanotechnology and proteomics.
Textbooks
Students are provided with a book of readings (in digital format). Most supplementary readings can be accessed through the library or online.
BETH5202 Human and Animal Research Ethics
Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: A/Professor Ian Kerridge Session: Semester 2 Classes: 3 x 8 hr intensive. This course is offered in face-to-face mode or distance mode (fully online). Assumed knowledge: A three-year undergraduate degree in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology/anthropology, history, or other relevant field, or by special permission. Assessment: Continuous assessment (20%); Briefing paper (30%); Position Paper (50%) Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Block Mode or On-line
This unit of study introduces students to research ethics in its social context. It explores the philosophical underpinnings of the research endeavour including the justifications for engaging in research, research priorities and research integrity. The unit also reviews the history of research and the impact of research abuse on subjects, both human and animal. International and national guidelines for ethical human and animal research will be covered and participants are encouraged to develop practical skills in relation to their own research. The second part of the unit investigates current areas of controversy and public interest in research.
Textbooks
Students are provided with a book of readings (in digital format). Most supplementary readings can be accessed through the library or online.
BETH5203 Ethics and Public Health
Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: A/Professor Ian Kerridge Session: Semester 2 Classes: 4 x 8hr Intensives. This course is offered in face-to-face mode or distance mode (fully online). Assumed knowledge: A three-year undergraduate degree in science, medicine, nursing, allied health sciences, philosophy/ethics, sociology/anthropology, history, or other relevant field, or by special permission. Assessment: 12 x Online tasks 250-400wds (20%); 1 x 1000 wd essay (30%); 1 x 2500 wd essay (50%) Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Block Mode or On-line
This unit of study provides students with an overview of the broader philosophical, ethical, socio-political and cultural issues that underlie public health and public health research. Students will first review the history of public health and examine the values that underpin health promotion and disease prevention. The second part of the unit examines the place of facts and values in public health and the construction and use of information, with particular reference to evidence-based-medicine. The third part of the unit examines the cultural, moral and social context of public health including the social determinants of health, the construction of health services, the determination of research priorities and issues relating to human rights and global health.
Textbooks
Students are provided with a book of readings (in digital format). Most supplementary readings can be accessed through the library or online.
BETH5205 Ethics and Mental Health
Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: A/Professor Michael Robertson Session: Semester 2 Classes: 3 x 8hr Intensives. This course is offered in face-to-face mode or distance mode (fully online). Assessment: 1 x 1500wd essay (25%); 1 x 2500wd essay (50%); online learning participation (15%); and attendance (10%) Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Block Mode or On-line
Mental health and mental illness are unique in the field of health care and bioethics. The very nature of psychiatric disorder and its relationship with prevailing social and cultural factors, in addition to the unique status of the mental health patient, necessitate a specific discourse in biomedical ethics in the area of mental health. This course will provide participants with a broad perspective of issues in bioethics applied to mental health and mental illness. Students will examine the history of the psychiatric profession and consider the adequacy of current safeguards against the abuses of power seen in the history of the profession of psychiatry. Other areas considered in the course include the current ethical dilemmas in mental health care, the implications of technological advances in the neurosciences, the philosophical basis of the concept of mental disorder, the relationship between power and the psychiatric profession and the complex relationship between morality, mental health and the law. The course aspires to inform future decision makers in health, public policy, clinical settings and academia in the unique aspects of biomedical ethics in the field of mental health.
Textbooks
Students are provided with a book of readings (in digital format). Most supplementary readings can be accessed through the library or online.
BETH5207 Arts in Health
Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: Dr Claire Hooker Session: Semester 2 Classes: Block mode, 2 x 2 days (4 hour combined lectures/tutorials) Assessment: 2 x 300-400 word online assignments (25%), 1x 1,500 word essay (25%), 1 x 2,500 word essay (50%) Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Block Mode
The 'art of health' is more than an historic catchphrase; it is a literal phenomenon. In the past century the visual, literary and performing arts have emerged as vital components of a blossoming 'arts in health' movement which values the contribution of the arts to human health and wellbeing. This unit gives students practical examples of how to incorporate the arts into public health and health care. The course offers a rich and detailed exploration of varying debates in the scholarly and practice-based fields of arts-and-health, which include but are not limited to: status and uses of art therapy; music,
psychology and medicine; narrative, literature and the 'narrative medicine' movement; hospital art, design and architecture; and the role of art in public health, health research, and social marketing campaigns. Students will be treated to a diverse range of guest lecturers from the fields of visual performing arts and related areas of expertise. This course will appeal to students of public health; literary, visual and performing arts; social work; psychology; and related disciplines, who want to understand more about the interconnectedness of the arts with human health.
psychology and medicine; narrative, literature and the 'narrative medicine' movement; hospital art, design and architecture; and the role of art in public health, health research, and social marketing campaigns. Students will be treated to a diverse range of guest lecturers from the fields of visual performing arts and related areas of expertise. This course will appeal to students of public health; literary, visual and performing arts; social work; psychology; and related disciplines, who want to understand more about the interconnectedness of the arts with human health.
Part 2
GCST5902 Natures and Cultures of Bodies
Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: Dr Kane Race Session: Semester 2 Classes: 1x2-hr seminar/week Assessment: 1x4000-5000wd (case studies) (90%) and in-class presentation (10%) Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) Day
This unit explores various approaches to embodiment in the wake of contemporary theories of biopolitics, or the politics of life. The body is approached as an object of knowledge and power, as always implicated with technologies, as an organisation of affects and a medium of experimentation. Beginning with Foucault's work on sexuality, we consider various approaches that address the changing natures and cultures of bodies. We also develop ways of accounting for the action of nonhuman actors in forms of activity in which humans participate. The unit combines theoretical reflection with case studies of bodily practices, cultures, subcultures and technologies.
HPSC4103 Sociology of Science
Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: A/Prof Hans Pols Session: Semester 2 Classes: One 2 hour seminar per week, individual consultation. Prerequisites: Available only to students admitted to HPS Honours, Graduate Diploma in Science (History and Philosophy of Science) and Graduate Certificate in Science (History and Philosophy of Science), or by special permission. Assessment: 5000wd essay (50%) Seminar presentation (50%) Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Normal (lecture/lab/tutorial) Day
Note: Department permission required for enrolment
This unit explores recent approaches in the social studies of scientific knowledge. Students evaluate various sociological approaches by conducting their own research on topics relevant to their own major thesis. The unit starts with an overview of the development of history and philosophy of science since 1945, to put the emergence of the sociology of science into perspective, before moving on to a selection of readings from the field. Topics will include: the strong program critique of traditional philosophy of science, the sociology of technology, the impact of feminism on the study of science, and the actor-network approach developed by Bruno Latour and Michel Callon.
Textbooks
Weekly Readings
PSYC5012 Health and Risk Communication
Credit points: 6 Session: Semester 2 Classes: lectures, videos, interactive exercises, case study discussions and small group-work. This unit will be taught in a block intensive mode over five days Assessment: Major or two minor essays (100%) Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: Block Mode
In this unit of study students will consider health communication in the context of the health professional-patient relationship and in the public sphere. This unit of study seeks to develop a critical awareness of the determinants of effective communication, particularly in relation to health risks to the individual and society. The unit of study will investigate: theories of health communication, including patient centred care and shared decision making; evidence regarding the impact of good and poor communication on patient and health professional outcomes; research paradigms in this area including interaction analysis; cross-cultural communication issues in health care; risk communication in the context of informed consent to clinical trials, discussing prognosis and responding to public health risk events; and theories of risk perception and communication. The aim of this unit of study is to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the key issues related to communication in health care and health policy settings.
SCWK6944 Death, Dying and Mourning
This unit of study is not available in 2013
Credit points: 6 Teacher/Coordinator: Dr Lindsey Napier Session: Semester 1 Classes: on-line Assessment: 6x500wd postings (30%) and participation (10%) and 1x3000wd essay (60%) Campus: Camperdown/Darlington Mode of delivery: On-line
The purpose of this unit of study is to introduce students to the various, often competing discourses both constituting and challenging notions of self around death, dying and mourning. An important focus is sociological approaches to these issues as they reflect broader cultural understanding of such issues as community relations and continuity, sex and sexuality, disease, stigma and social control. This unit is also available as a single unit of study to professionals who wish to undertake this as a stand-alone unit.