Course Structure - Year Four

What is Involved?

The course is an eight week attachment in the discipline of Public Health & Primary Care. Four weeks of this is spent in attachments to two general practices and four weeks comprise classroom based seminars.

Student Experience

The student will understand the context of primary care and general practice in the community. They will become familiar with the process of professionalism and present and manage common problems encountered in general practice. They will be able to consult, which demonstrates appropriate medical interviewing skills, eliciting the patient’s ideas, concerns and expectations and arrive at a decision that involves the patient and their families.

I appreciated the rural and inner city placements and felt they allowed me to fully grasp core concepts of primary care

What is Involved?

The module aims to provide you with the core competencies in women’s health required for practice as a general practitioner or a non-specialist hospital doctor. The module also aims to facilitate your development of generic competencies required for practice as a doctor.

Student Experience

The programme provides a series of classroom-based activities that aim to facilitate the learning of core curricular topics. There is also a series of workplace-based activities that facilitates the acquisition and application of knowledge, clinical skills and development of professionalism within O&G. These activities include Self-Directed History-Taking Sessions, Bedside Tutorials, Outpatient Clinics, Labour Ward Shifts and Operating Theatre Sessions

I felt that the lectures were excellent. They covered the information we needed but also presented it to us in an easy to learn way. I really thought the standard of teaching in Obstetrics & Gynaecology was so high and really enjoyed my rotation.

What is Involved?

Paediatrics involves the medicine, surgery and psychology of the newborn, the infant, the toddler and the child up to the age of 18 years.

Student Experience

The student learns to communicate adequately with children and their parents. They should be able to take a good paediatric history and be able to examine the 4 ages of childhood, newborn, infant, toddler and older child. They student should be able to construct a reasonable differential diagnosis and to plan appropriate investigation and management.

The teaching both in the form of lectures and the tutorials was excellent. There was also time taken to answer our questions and explain concepts to us which I really appreciated.

What is Involved?

Undergraduate education in Psychiatry aims to develop the communication and observational skills and appropriate attitudes necessary to examine the mental state, and to provide the clinical and scientific knowledge to diagnose and treat common psychiatric conditions and distinguish them from normal psychological responses to life events. The integration of these observations is to be encouraged within the framework of the patient’s total environment, including physical health and social circumstances, whilst fostering an enquiring mind into the scientific basis of the field.

Student Experience

At the end of the two-month clerkship the student should be proficient in interviewing skills for accurate history taking with appropriate attitudes for developing an optimal doctor-patient relationship. They should be able to examine the mental state to elicit common psycho-pathology and to establish differential diagnoses and to assess the relative importance of biological, psychological and social factors in the aetiology of psychiatric illnesses and normal responses to life events, and being aware of appropriate investigations. They should be able to differeate severe, moderate and mild psychopathology and an understanding of how these influence the choice of treatments and the prognosis. They should have know of the major characteristics of the widely prescribed psychopharmacological agents and the principles and practice of community psychiatric services, including the work of other health disciplines.

The opportunities to learn by a variety of different methods and locations is fantastic. I really appreciated the TV interviews in particular. I thought they were a great way to evaluate yourself objectively. The feedback from my psychiatrist was useful.

What is Involved?

The teaching strategy involves a combination of didactic lectures, seminars and self-directed learning. Informal interaction is usual and students are expected to participate in question-and-answer and problem solving sessions.

Student Experience

The student should be able to identify relevant ethical and legal issues in medical practice and critically develop and defend morally, legally and professionally justifiable viewpoints. They should be able to think and reflect critically to understand and appreciate the strengths and weaknesses of views opposed to their own, acknowledge clinical and ethical uncertainty and seek help appropriately and to distinguish between factual knowledge and values.

The module was well taught, very good & engaging lecturers & covered a wide breadth of topics to give broad understanding on the course & ethical/legal issues likely to arise in our future practice

What is Involved?

The focus of this module is on the application of the principles of Professionalism as explored through the areas of Ethics, Medical Humanities and Jurisprudence previously taught in the undergraduate programme. The module content is integrated into the four Specialty modules and provides you with an opportunity to consider and apply this understanding to specific professional and ethical issues relevant to specialist practice.

Student Experience

The student will be able to apply principles of professionalism to clinical practice and to recognise the principles of insightful practice. They can discuss the role of feedback and reflection on practice and demonstrate the ability to identify the limitations of their expertise, to take advice from others as appropriate and to incorporate feedback into professional practice. They can explore ethical issues in medical practice and outline reasoned actions to case studies. They should demonstrate self-awareness of professional competence and appropriate professional behaviour in clinical settings. They should work as part of a team, showing respect for colleagues’ opinions and investigate the research evidence behind clinical practice and communicate these findings to their peers and supervisors.

What is Involved?

In addition to clinical rotations, students must also obtain credits by completing 8 weeks of clinical elective posts in order to rise to 5th year medicine. These eight weeks of elective posts are carried out during the summers of 3rd and 4th year medicine, with students typically completing four weeks of electives after 3rd year medicine and another four weeks after 4th year medicine. Students may opt to break down the eight weeks differently, but a minimum of two weeks of electives must be completed each summer.

Student Experience

An elective is defined as a clinical experience in the summer vacation period of the 3rd and 4th medical years obtained in one of the following:

• A general hospital in this country or abroad
• An overseas medical centre
• A laboratory (either service or routine)
• A clinical research unit
• A general practice