Course Details in 2025/26 Session

Module Title	LH Clinical Core 3
School	Institute of Clinical Sciences
Department	Birmingham Medical School
Module Code	01 36121
Module Lead	Dr Robert Barry
Level	Honours Level
Credits	120
Semester	Full Term
Pre-requisites
Co-requisites
Restrictions	None
Exclusions
Description	This module builds on the general clinical experience gained during Clinical Core 2 and introduces students to the more specialised areas of medicine and surgery in the MBChB programme. The module itself provides a foundation for entry into the final year of the programme. Students have five hospital rotations lasting five weeks each (25 weeks in all plus one week of consolidation added to the final rotation) – spread across each semester and there is a Head of Academy who oversees the provision of experience in each hospital. Specialty Medicine There are two Specialty Medicine rotations which are delivered in a single NHS Teaching Academy (usually as two consecutive blocks) lasting a total of 10 weeks. Students will be exposed to a broad range of medical specialties, but will have a single overall clinical supervisor able to guide their learning and assess their progress / behaviour. Psychiatry This is a 5 week rotation in which students will undertake a clinical placements in psychiatry, spending time in a variety of community-based and acute inpatient clinical settings. Surgery and Perioperative Care A further 5 week rotation in which students will be based at one Teaching Academy for specialist surgical, anaesthetic and peri-operative care experience. Neuromuscular Medicine and Palliative Care Students will spend 2 weeks at the Royal Orthopaedic Hospital undertaking a placement in orthopaedics, and 2 weeks at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham undertaking a placement in neurology. The final week of this rotation will be spent in a palliative care setting, with students spending time with a variety of community-based and acute inpatient palliative care teams. Community-Based Medicine Throughout the academic year, students will also continue to attend their community-based medicine (CBM) placements (10 days total, including 7 days of practice-based clinical experience, and 3 days of classroom-based lectures and tutorials). In their placement students continue to observe and participate in GP consultations helping students to develop a more rounded view of the patient journey. Independent learning is vital in both hospital and community settings, in which learning is often determined by the particular patients and problems present, rather than by a set timetable. Through their independent interaction with patients, students gain confidence and competence in communication and physical examination. They learn about the common problems presenting to doctors in the more specialised branches of medicine and surgery and the ways in which they are managed. They also develop more understanding of the thinking processes that underlie diagnosis and the way in which management decisions are made and further develop the skills in these areas that they require. In doing this they are utilising, applying and building on the knowledge of clinical sciences delivered during the first two years and on the introduction to clinical practice delivered in the third year. Academic Activities In addition, students will complete 3 weeks of classroom-based lectures and group tutorials to supplement their placement-based learning. Students will receive additional teaching on general topics including prescribing, medical ethics, and professionalism, in addition to clinical teaching on topics directly relevant to the placements described above.
Learning Outcomes	By the end of the module students should be able to: The doctor as a scholar and scientist Demonstrate an understanding of the basic sciences and the key concepts of clinical sciences and apply them in their clinical learning in specialist clinical settings: recognising the importance of both to the study of medicine and to clinical practice in all settings Demonstrate a scientific understanding of an agreed range of common and less common diseases, their causes and prevention, mechanisms and clinical presentation and their investigation and evidence-based management in the specialist clinical setting Demonstrate an understanding of the physical, psychological, sociological factors influencing mental health and the psychological and social effects of serious physical illness and hospitalisation. The doctor as a practitioner Demonstrate good interpersonal/communication skills when interviewing and negotiating with patients and their families in a range of specialist settings and competence in undertaking and recording a physical and mental state examination that is appropriate to the setting and the circumstance. Demonstrate critical thinking in synthesising the information gained from the patient, considering possible diagnoses and proposing investigations which may confirm a diagnosis / narrow the diagnostic field Demonstrate an understanding of the therapeutic options available in specialist clinical placements in relation to an agreed range of presentations / conditions and of the decision making processes whereby clinical management decisions are made. Demonstrate a commitment to the involvement of the patient and their family in decisions about their clinical management and a recognition of the particular responsibilities placed on the doctor in those limited circumstances where this is not possible Demonstrate the required progress / competence in the range of clinical procedures as set out in the Clinical Skills Passport, showing an understanding of the use of the procedure in common situations. Practice as a clinical learner in a manner that demonstrates awareness of and commitment to the patient safety agenda as it applies to the particular circumstances of their specialist clinical placements: ensuring that all precautions are taken to minimise the particular risks inherent in the individual clinical environment. The doctor as a professional Use information effectively in a clinical learning context, making use of ICT to support clinical learning and recognising the growing importance of ICT in the management of clinical care. Meet the requirements of confidentiality / data protection legislation and codes of practice for the Trust and the programme, demonstrating a recognition of the importance of these matters in professional learning and practice. Demonstrate knowledge of and commitment to the ethical and legal principles which inform and regulate professional learning and practice, and behaviour in relation to patients, fellow health care workers and the general public. Demonstrate the skills and attitudes required to make appropriate use of the opportunities presented by a range of specialist clinical learning environments and in the primary care setting. Demonstrate a developing knowledge of the roles fulfilled by other health care professionals in a range of specialist clinical environments and a commitment to working effectively as part of the multi-professional team. Demonstrate an understanding of the organisation of the NHS and health care provider bodies in primary, secondary and tertiary care, and an awareness of and commitment to the service improvement agenda. Demonstrate an understanding of the current limits of their professional competence and a commitment to working within these.
Assessment	36121-01 : Clinical Core 3 Overall Module Mark : Exam (School Arranged) - Mixed (100%)
Assessment Methods & Exceptions	Assessment: The knowledge components of the learning outcomes for the module are assessed through written examinations (spread over two examination events). Designed to test the capacity of students to apply knowledge in the clinical situation. Clinical, communication and practical procedural skills are assessed with an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE), and workplace-based assessments. Standard setting is required by the GMC and an exemption from University regulations has been granted to allow this to take place. In terms of the award of credits and an overall mark, the questions in the written examination, which samples all the clinical fields equally, are assessed as a single undifferentiated block. The actual pass mark for the exam is determined through an Angoff approach and then scaled to the MBChB pass mark of 50%. The pass mark for the OSCE examination is also standard set and then scaled to the MBChB pass mark of 50%. Due Diligence: Although the academic grade is determined on the basis of student performance in the questions en bloc and overall performance in the OSCE, students need to demonstrate due diligence in relation to each of the clinical experience components. For the purposes of this module, the requirement for demonstration of due diligence is to have gained at least 40% of the available marks in each section of the written examination and a minimum of 8 out of 12 OSCE stations must be passed. If a student fails to meet this threshold in any section, they will be considered to have failed the examination and will have to resit (i.e. an academic sanction applied on the basis of failure to demonstrate due diligence). Reassessment: Both the written examination, workplace-based assessment and the OSCE are repeated in full as a re-sit loop
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