| CODE | MDS2039 | ||||||||
| TITLE | Psychological, Social, Environmental, Ethical and Legal Aspects of Health Care | ||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 02 - Years 2, 3 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 5 | ||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 5 | ||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Faculty of Medicine and Surgery | ||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | This study-unit has three major components: 1. It introduces psychological and sociological concepts, theories, and research as they apply to medicine. 2. It further expands on the ethical principles introduced in study unit MDS1023 and continues introducing the legal order underpinning healthcare. 3. It introduces the effect of contemporary society and the environment on the health of the individual and the community. Study-Unit Aims: The behavioural sciences, particularly the Psychological and Sociological aspects of health care part of the study-unit, explore ways in which health and illness make sense within person's lives and how people understand their relationships with doctors and other health professionals. The Ethics & Law part of the study-unit explores ethical and legal issues in relation to patienthood, beginning and end of life, principles of good care and professional vulnerabilities. The further Medical Sociology and Environmental part of the study unit explores how contemporary society, and the environment influences the health of the individual and the community. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: A: Psychological and Social Aspects of health care - Define the biopsychosocial model. - List issues related to the developmental life cycle and their relationship with health and the lack of it. Areas include pregnancy and childbirth, reproduction, childhood development and health, adolescence, middle age, and midlife, ageing and bereavement. - Explain the process of personality development. - Describe the process of development of emotions and sexuality. - Explain the processes of learning, perception, development of thinking and memory problems. - Describe changing patterns and measurement of Health and Illness. - Illustrate concepts related to health promotion and disease prevention. - Explain issues related to society and health including social class, groups, gender, ethnicity, housing, education, work, illness and disease, stigma, and quality of life. 2. Skills: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: A: Psychological and Social Aspects of Health Care - Utilize the principles of giving good and bad news. B: Ethics and law Apply their knowledge of rights and justice in health care about specific categories of patients. - Identify legal issues pertaining to the treatment and care of patients. - Recognize anthropological issues. - Recognize ethical issues related to telling the truth and confidentiality. - Recognize ethical issues related to vulnerabilities and challenges of doctors. - Utilize quality-improvement methods to improve care. C: Medical Sociology and Environmental issues - Think critically about contemporary social issues and use classical/contemporary theory to address them. - Recognise the complexity and interconnectedness of human-nature systems and related implications for human health. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: - VAN TEIJLINGEN E, HUMPHRIS G. Psychology and Sociology Applied to Medicine. Elsevier, 2019, 4th edition. [ISBN: 9780702062988] - BAXTER C, BRENNAN MG, COLICOTT Y, MOLLER M. Practical Guide to Medical Ethics and Law. PasTest, 2005, 2nd edition. [ISBN-13: 9781904627319 - eBook available at https://www.pastest.com/media/1124/9781904627319.pdf] - Mallia, P., BIOETHICS AND CLINICAL ETHICS. FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE, KITE publishers, 2022. - CAUCHI MN, AQUILINA K, ELLUL B. Health, Bioethics and the Law. Malta University Press, 2006. [ISBN-13: 9789990945409] - WHITE K., 2017. An introduction to the sociology of health and illness. Sage, 2017. [ISBN-13: 978-1473982086] - PURDOM P. Environmental Health. Academic Press, 2013. [ISBN: 9780080925318] |
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| ADDITIONAL NOTES | Pre-requisite Qualifications: Entry requirements for MD Course Pre-requisite Study-units: All MD study-units are compulsory |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture and Independent Study | ||||||||
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2024/5. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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