POPLPRAC 723 : Advanced Symptom Management in Palliative Care

Medical and Health Sciences

2023 Semester Two (1235) (15 POINTS)

Course Prescription

Advanced concepts in the assessment and management of symptoms and situations, including the more challenging ones encountered within the palliative care approach to malignant and non-malignant advanced diseases.

Course Overview

Course Aims:
To increase the student's knowledge of complex symptom management and palliative care issues and to facilitate integration of this learning into clinical practice. To provide the student with greater knowledge-based confidence that supports patient care and advocacy
enabling the student to critically evaluate the skills applied to symptom assessment and management in the clinical setting. To develop a deeper assessment and management approach to particularly challenging symptoms in advanced disease.

Course Requirements

Prerequisite: POPLPRAC 722

Course Contacts

Course Director;
Dr. Elaine Rogers, 
Email: es.rogers@auckland.ac.nz

Professional Teaching Fellow;
Dr. Oleg Kiriaev ,
Email: o.kiriaev@auckland.ac.nz 

Course Administrator
Mrs Upendra Wickramarachchi
Group Services Administrator
Email: u.wicks@auckland.ac.nz

Capabilities Developed in this Course

Capability 1: Disciplinary Knowledge and Practice
Capability 2: Critical Thinking
Capability 3: Solution Seeking
Capability 4: Communication and Engagement
Capability 5: Independence and Integrity
Capability 6: Social and Environmental Responsibilities
Graduate Profile: Master of Health Sciences

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:
  1. Demonstrate the principles of palliative symptom management into care of patients with non-malignant and advanced chronic illness (Capability 1.1)
  2. Evaluate management strategies and opportunities to improve symptom management through a case study (Capability 2.2)
  3. Critique the pharmacological and the non-pharmacological options to manage symptoms, including those less frequently encountered or more challenging to manage successfully (Capability 3.1)
  4. Communicate with other team members and other health professionals the issues that require further exploration and management (Capability 4.2)
  5. Demonstrate palliative care leadership and education as part of an advanced practitioner's role (Capability 5.2)
  6. Critically analyse, identify and address gaps in patient care and to seek and utilise available resources through a case study (Capability 6.1)

Assessments

Assessment Type Percentage Classification
Practice Quiz 10% Individual Coursework
Assignment 1 30% Individual Coursework
Presentation 30% Individual Coursework
Assignment 2 30% Individual Coursework
Assessment Type Learning Outcome Addressed
1 2 3 4 5 6
Practice Quiz
Assignment 1
Presentation
Assignment 2

Workload Expectations

This course is a standard 15 point course and students are expected to spend 8-10 hours per week involved in each 15 point course that they are enrolled in.

For this course, you can expect two full days of lectures, plus two full days for oral presentations, 8-10 hours per week of reading and thinking about the content and work on test preparation, assignments and oral presentation.

Delivery Mode

Campus Experience

Attendance is expected at scheduled activities including oral presentation of a clinical case to complete components of the course.
Lectures will NOT be available as recordings. Other learning activities including powerpoint presentations will be available as recordings.
The course will include live online events including group oral presentations.
The activities for the course are scheduled as a block delivery.

Learning Resources

Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).

Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

Access to other digitised course readings will be available on the University Canvas website.

Student Feedback

At the end of every semester students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions.

Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students.

Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.

From previous feedback a 30 point paper has been generated.

Other Information

Where possible, visiting lecturers are invited to discuss specific topics.

Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed against online source material using computerised detection mechanisms.

Class Representatives

Class representatives are students tasked with representing student issues to departments, faculties, and the wider university. If you have a complaint about this course, please contact your class rep who will know how to raise it in the right channels. See your departmental noticeboard for contact details for your class reps.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.

Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website http://disability.auckland.ac.nz

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due.

If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.

This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

Learning Continuity

In the event of an unexpected disruption, we undertake to maintain the continuity and standard of teaching and learning in all your courses throughout the year. If there are unexpected disruptions the University has contingency plans to ensure that access to your course continues and course assessment continues to meet the principles of the University’s assessment policy. Some adjustments may need to be made in emergencies. You will be kept fully informed by your course co-ordinator/director, and if disruption occurs you should refer to the university website for information about how to proceed.

The delivery mode may change depending on COVID restrictions. Any changes will be communicated through Canvas.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html.

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.

In this course students may be asked to submit coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. In exceptional circumstances changes to elements of this course may be necessary at short notice. Students enrolled in this course will be informed of any such changes and the reasons for them, as soon as possible, through Canvas.