RTS5111 · Radiation therapy science and professional practice

Overview

This unit is a period of professional clinical experience undertaken in the workplace to enable you to develop competency in all areas of the MRPBA capabilities (radiation therapy). You will practice under the supervision of qualified staff. Students enrolled in the Master of Radiation Therapy must complete the placement in order to satisfy the professional requirements for eligibility to register as a radiation therapist upon successful completion of the course.

Offerings

Assessment

The Handbook does not list a final examination among the assessment items. That is not a guarantee there is none.

Assessment in this unit includes hurdle assessment tasks. Failure of any hurdle assessment task may result in failure of the unit.

Assessment details may change. Please refer to the assessment information in Moodle closer to the start of the teaching period.

Requisites

Learning outcomes

1. Apply your knowledge of scientific principles and the humanities to the practice of Radiation Therapy commensurate with the expectations of a registered radiation therapist.
2. Demonstrate initiative, problem solving and decision-making skills commensurate with the expectations of a registered radiation therapist.
3. Analyse the concepts of responsibility, autonomy, safety (including radiation safety), law, regulation, ethics and professionalism and apply these principles in your practice.
4. Demonstrate an evidence-based approach to practice and communicate evidence in a professional manner.
5. Evaluate the importance of cultural safety, diversity, equity and equality in radiation therapy service delivery and apply this to your practice.
6. Demonstrate critical reflection on practice, self-awareness and self-directedness and apply these to your practice.
7. Appraise the importance of effective collaborative, patient-centred care, and apply theories of communication and teamwork in practice with patients, carers, students and members of the health care team.
8. Demonstrate empathy and compassion in practice with patients, carers, students and members of the health care team.
9. Evaluate the impact of digital health systems in radiation therapy and apply this at the level commensurate with the expectations of a registered radiation therapist.
10. Analyse the importance of lifelong learning and demonstrate a range of evidence of continuing professional development.
11. Demonstrate competency, at the level of entry to practice graduating radiation therapy student across the MRPBA capabilities and be able to assume an independent role as a competent student/new graduate radiation therapist.
12. Apply your knowledge to provide effective pre-planning imaging and patient care in preparation for radiation therapy planning.
13. Apply your knowledge to effectively and efficiently plan, optimise and critically evaluate a range of treatment plans with respect to published guidelines.
14. Apply your knowledge to effectively treat and provide care to patients with a range of diagnoses with palliative or radical treatment techniques.
15. Apply your knowledge to effectively provide on-treatment imaging, analysing, documenting and communicating evidence of the imaging outcomes.
16. Apply your knowledge to provide timely and appropriate support and/or referral for patients experiencing side effects of radiation therapy and/or psychosocial effects of a cancer diagnosis.

Workload

You will be required to complete 34 weeks of full time clinical placement at two allocated clinical centres. You will also be required to participate in mandatory online clinical briefings and de-briefs, clinical progress reviews and one online tutorial per month (duration 1-2 hours) throughout the clinical placement period. 100% attendance at clinical placement and mandatory clinical briefings as required for professionally accredited courses.

Student experience, not official rules. Nothing here changes what the Handbook says.