Semester 2, 2023 External | |
Units : | 1 |
School or Department : | School of Health and Medical Sciences |
Grading basis : | Graded |
Course fee schedule : | /current-students/administration/fees/fee-schedules |
Staffing
Course Coordinator:
Requisites
Pre-requisite: BIO2215
Overview
Medical laboratory scientists working in Clinical Biochemistry laboratories interact with clinicians and other healthcare professionals to generate and interpret data from the biochemical analysis of clinical specimens. These investigations assist in determining the metabolic status of patients, the diagnosis of a wide range of disease states and the monitoring of therapeutic interventions. This course builds on the knowledge of clinical biochemistry acquired in BIO2215 Clinical Biochemistry 1 and will prepare graduates for employment in the clinical biochemistry department or core laboratory of a clinical pathology service.
As part of the UniSQ accreditation agreement with the Australian Institute of Medical and Clinical Scientists (AIMS), students are required to attempt and submit all assessment items in this course. Students are also required to attend the mandatory residential school and obtain at least 50% of the marks allocated to the practical/laboratory skills assessment in this course.
This course builds on the theoretical knowledge of human biochemistry and associated laboratory investigations acquired in BIO2215 Clinical Biochemistry 1 with a focus on the laboratory assessment of organ function, endocrine function, metabolic disorders and tumour markers. BIO3215 Clinical Biochemistry 2 extends the students' knowledge of clinical chemistry and the applications of specific manual and automated techniques in the screening, diagnosis and prognosis of disease and the monitoring of therapeutic interventions. This course will use a case-based learning approach to aid in connecting theory to clinical laboratory practice and to help students develop interpretive skills.
This course will increase the students' knowledge of the sources of error in biochemistry testing, enhance their understanding of quality assurance and their ability to trouble-shoot quality control failures and consolidate their understanding of work health and safety issues and professional responsibilities associated with working in a clinical biochemistry laboratory.
This course contains a mandatory residential school for both external and on-campus students.
Course learning outcomes
On completion of this course students should be able to:
- Outline the theory and application of a wide range of manual and automated clinical biochemistry tests and employ a systematic approach to the interpretation of analytical results and the monitoring of associated quality control;
- Outline the role of hormones in metabolic processes and the pathophysiology of specific endocrine disorders and analyse the results of associated laboratory investigations;
- Outline the principles of enzyme measurement and illustrate the relationship between the concentration of specific enzymes in body fluid samples and damage to specific body tissues;
- Apply advanced knowledge of pathophysiology and clinical biochemistry testing to differentiate between various forms and stages of renal, hepatic, cardiac, pancreatic, and musculoskeletal disease;
- Demonstrate a high level of academic, scientific and professional literacy;
- Outline workplace health and safety issues, patient confidentiality considerations, quality control and quality assurance procedures and the professional and ethical responsibilities associated with working in a clinical biochemistry laboratory.
Topics
Description | Weighting(%) | |
---|---|---|
1. | An overview of clinical chemistry automation, point-of-care-testing and immunoassays, as well as associated work health and safety | 15.00 |
2. | Endocrinology and the laboratory investigation of endocrine disorders | 30.00 |
3. | The pathophysiology and laboratory investigation of renal, hepatic, cardiac, exocrine, pancreatic and musculoskeletal diseases | 40.00 |
4. | Clinical applications of circulating tumour markers and therapeutic drug monitoring | 15.00 |
Text and materials required to be purchased or accessed
Student workload expectations
To do well in this subject, students are expected to commit approximately 10 hours per week including class contact hours, independent study, and all assessment tasks. If you are undertaking additional activities, which may include placements and residential schools, the weekly workload hours may vary.
Assessment details
Description | Group Assessment |
Weighting (%) | Course learning outcomes |
---|---|---|---|
Quiz | No | 20 | 1,4 |
Practical | No | 20 | 1,3,5,6 |
Presentation (ind, grp, mltmd) | No | 20 | 2,4,5,6 |
Invigilated examination | No | 40 | 1,2,3,4,5 |