About this course: What are some of the skills required when interviewing patients? What information is required when taking a patient history or completing a mental state examination? These are just some of the questions you'll seek answers to as you work through the course material. Mental health is an important public issue across the world, and the role of the psychiatrist is crucial in helping to address these. This course aims to give you a more nuanced understanding of the role of a psychiatrist, developing clinical skills and therapeutic relationships. Understanding the impact of mental illness in society and ethics in medicine are some of the key themes central to this course. This course is designed to provide essential background knowledge and practical skills that apply to any mental health clinical setting.
Who is this class for: The modules in this course have been designed for health care professionals who are working with patients who have mental health difficulties and for those planning to undertake further studies in this vitally important but exciting field of mental health. This course will also be of interest to medical and nursing students planning on working in this field in future.
Created by: The University of Melbourne
Taught by: Greg Shields, Dr.
Department of Psychiatry
Taught by: Mahesh Jayaram, Dr
Department of Psychiatry
| Level | Advanced |
| Commitment | 5 weeks of study, 1 -3 hours per week. |
| Language | English |
| How To Pass | Pass all graded assignments to complete the course. |
| User Ratings |
Syllabus
WEEK 1
Course introduction & communication
Welcome to The University of Melbourne Massive Open Online Course in International Psychiatry. This course has been designed to provide essential background knowledge and practical skills for health professionals working with mentally unwell patients. In this first week of the course, you will learn about the importance of good communication skills.
Working effectively and collaboratively with patients is the goal of every mental health professional. This can often be challenging for practitioners, especially when patients are very unwell or reluctant to seek help. Good communication skills are essential to engage patients and families, and to build therapeutic relationships with our clients. In this module we will look at skills and concepts that come in useful when interviewing patients.
2 videos, 5 readings
- Reading: Course outline
- Reading: Your teaching team
- Discussion Prompt: Getting to know one another
- Reading: Start-of-course survey
- Video: Building a Therapeutic Relationship
- Discussion Prompt: Good interviewing technique
- Reading: The Therapeutic Relationship
- Reading: Interview and engagement techniques
Graded: Week 1 Quiz (worth 10% of your final grade)
WEEK 2
Clinical skills
Welcome to the Clinical Skills module. The focus of this week's learning will on skills and concepts that come in useful when documenting a psychiatric patient history.
2 videos, 1 practice quiz
- Video: Case Study - Depression
- Discussion Prompt: The importance of proper documentation
- Practice Quiz: The psychiatric patient history (optional non assessed quiz)
Graded: Documenting a psychiatric patient history (worth 35% of your final grade)
WEEK 3
Mental state examination
The Mental State Examination (MSE) is a core skill in psychiatry, and an integral part of the patient interview. This week we will look at each component of the MSE, and how to classify, interpret, and document the patient’s presentation
4 videos, 6 readings
- Reading: Background to the Mental State Examination
- Ungraded Plugin: Mental State Examination interactive exercise
- Reading: Appearance
- Reading: Behaviour and speech
- Discussion Prompt: Mental illness summary
- Reading: Mood and Affect
- Video: The Affect in the Mental State Examination
- Reading: Perceptual Disturbance
- Discussion Prompt: Blunting of affect: a variety of descriptions
- Video: The Thought Process in the Mental State Examination
- Ungraded Plugin: Matching Exercise
- Reading: Assessment of Thought, Language and Communication activity
- Discussion Prompt: Assessment of Thought, Language and Communication
- Video: Thought Content and the Delusion
WEEK 4
The Biopsychosocial Model
Now that you are familiar with the Mental State Examination, you will be required to write and submit your second peer reviewed assignment for this course - documenting a mental state examination.
Later this week, we'll take a closer look at 'the biopsychosocial model' - a framework for integrating different aspects of the patient’s life into a wholistic understanding of their mental illness. In this module, you will learn about the model, and apply it to a clinical scenario.
2 videos, 1 practice quiz
- Video: The Biopsychosocial Model
- Ungraded Plugin: The Biopsychosocial model interactive exercise
- Practice Quiz: Biopsychosocial Model (optional non assessed quiz)
Graded: Documenting the Mental State Examination (worth 35% of your final grade)
WEEK 5
Psychiatry in Society
Health professionals occupy an important role in society, and there are expectations about how they conduct themselves in this role. Sufferers of mental illness can be particularly vulnerable, and it’s important that the law and professional ethics are followed to protect them. Furthermore, societal and cultural factors have a significant influence on the manifestation and management of mental illnesses. In this module we will explore these important topics.
5 videos, 6 readings
- Reading: What is Culture
- Video: Culture and Mental Health
- Reading: Culture and Mental Health
- Video: Introduction to Cultural Competence
- Reading: Cultural Competence
- Video: Cultural Competence: Assessment Skills
- Video: Cultural Competence: The Competent Clinician
- Reading: Cultural issues in the clinic
- Reading: Take your learning further
- Reading: End of course survey
Graded: End of course quiz (worth 20% of your final grade)
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The University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne is an internationally recognised research intensive University with a strong tradition of excellence in teaching, research, and community engagement. Established in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest University.
Ratings and Reviews
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JP
Very good at reinforcing the basics of a psychiatric assessment, and gives a broad understanding of issues in international psychiatry. Overall, a thoroughly enjoyable and useful course