Clinical Placement 3

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2011:

For the purposes of considering requests for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Students Experiencing Academic Disadvantage Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Description, Subject Objectives, Generic Skills and Assessment Requirements of this entry.

The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements, Further details on the disability support scheme can be found at the Disability Liaison Unit website: http://www.services.unimelb.edu.au/disability/

This 55 day placement has two components:

(i) 55 days of field placement and

(ii) participation in Clinical Case Conference held weekly during the teaching period as instructed by the Clinical Convenor.

(i) Filed Placement. Students are required to successfully complete a field placements of a total of 55 days. Field placements may occur in a variety of mental health agencies across Melbourne. students will typically be assigned to one placement context and, depending on availability, this may include child. Adolscent and adult, acute and rehabilition, and specialist services. It should be noted that over the course of the Masters program, students are expected to experience a range of placements (e.g. adult, child, older age, specialist services). Generally students will be required to commit two days per week to external placements for 27 weeks of the year.

Supervisors for the field placement component will be registered as both psychologists and supervisors with the Psychologists Registration Board of Vicotira. In most cases they will also be a member (or eligible for membership) of the College of Clinical Psycholoigsts of the Australian Psychological Society. The field supervisors will be responsible for ensuring that students are adequately introduced to the field setting and for day-to-day supervision of the student's placement. Field Supervisors will ensure that students are exposed to a range of clinical work, as far as possible allowing the student to function as a clinical psychologist within the facility.

(ii) Clinical Case Conference (Co-ordinator: Dr lisa Phillips). There are two major purposes for the clinical case conference.

The first is to provide the opportunity (structure, feedback) for students to gain skills in presenting case material in an effective, professional manner, with emphases on the following:

• selection of material (clinical content and focus of presentation)
• organisation of the material (format; use of overheads, etc)
• personal presentation skills
• physical environment
• timing of presentations
• evaluation/feedback

The second is to provide the opportunity for students to discuss selected clinical issues in a large group format, with emphses on the following:

• focus/purpose for formal case presentations
• integrations of clinical and research material within scientist-practitioner framework of professional practice
• discussion of broad professional and ethical issues
• implementation of professional skills

(1) A hurdle requirement of

(i) attendance at placement for 8 hours per day for at least two days per week over about 27 weekas and at

(ii) case conference (2 hours session scheduled fortnightly over the teaching semester) so that the placement period shall not be less than 440 hours in total

(2) Completion of placement goals assessed on a pass/fail basis. The assessment is undertaken by the Placement Coordinator, in consultation with the supervising clinician, on the basis of satisfactory attainment of placement goals following APAC accreditation placement standards. Placement goals are as follows: Experience in the administration and interpretation of a range of psychological assessment strategies and the writing of psychological reports; understanding of typical courses and prognoses of disorders, and capacity to develop appropriate treatment and management plans; experience with a variety of intervention strategies, which may include case management, individual therapy, family therapy and/or group interventions, and to be capable of evaluating those interventions; experience in functioning as an independent clinical psychologist within the facility, although closely supervised by field supervisors.

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

Advanced problem identification and problem solving skills

Advanced written, oral and interpersonal communication skills

Advanced information integration skills