University of Technology Sydney

91613 Professional Issues in Traditional Chinese Medicine

Warning: The information on this page is indicative. The subject outline for a particular session, location and mode of offering is the authoritative source of all information about the subject for that offering. Required texts, recommended texts and references in particular are likely to change. Students will be provided with a subject outline once they enrol in the subject.

Subject handbook information prior to 2025 is available in the Archives.

UTS: Science: Life Sciences
Credit points: 6 cp
Result type: Grade and marks

There are course requisites for this subject. See access conditions.

Description

This subject acquaints students with the current requirements for the practice of Chinese medicine (CM) in Australia. The subject is split into two modules and features guest lecturers. In addition to the lectures, there are several group collaborative activities that involve role plays and debates.

Module A focuses on aspects of the regulation of CM in Australia; interprofessional activities and integration with other registered health professionals; current research; professional ethical, legal and safety issues; and examination of the development of CM in a national and global framework. Module B delves into the principles and practice of running a business and its finances, recordkeeping, reporting, taxation obligations, etc.

The subject also encourages students to individually pursue areas of personal interest and research, and see themselves as part of the nationally registered healthcare community.

Subject learning objectives (SLOs)

Upon successful completion of this subject students should be able to:

1. Exercise the responsibilities relating to the practice of CM - regulatory, professional, legal, peer group, social and general practice management
2. Apply your understanding of the current socio-political status of the CM profession in Australia to professional practice.
3. Evaluate the legal issues, insurance and taxation (including GST) requirements as related to registration requirements and running a small business.
4. Recognise, relate to and reflect on the professional factors that impact on the practice of acupuncture and herbal medicine such as national regulation, professional accreditation, associations, Infection control procedures, patient records and confidentiality, ethics of practice and health professional interaction.
5. Apply the Chinese Medicine Board of Australia codes and guidelines to ensure safe, ethical and professional practices of CM.
6. Critically analyse the current research into CM and its scientific implications.
7. Integrate the Western and Chinese research approaches in CM and the acupuncture effect with an analytical appreciation of methodological issues.
8. Identify major factors influencing the establishment and sustainability of a small business.

Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)

This subject also contributes specifically to the development of following course intended learning outcomes:

  • Synthesise: Integrate information and data to inform health care delivery and monitor outcomes to support patients and the community. (1.3)
  • Synthesise: Navigate the related business, legal, social, and ethical landscape of practice in different contexts, and apply principles of quality assurance and risk management to maintain and improve professional safety. (3.3)
  • Analyse: Investigate and evaluate clinical experience and research to reflect on and enhance your clinical practice. (4.2)
  • Synthesise: Integrate methods of inquiry to derive data and reflect on information to adapt innovatively to different and changing industry. (4.3)
  • Analyse: Integrate information from patients, community, and other health disciplines to support patient care models and quality health care practice. (5.2)
  • Synthesise: Engage proactively with communication media, including social and online media platforms, to provide factual, evidence-based Chinese medicine disciplinary knowledge in support of quality health care delivery with patients, community, and other health disciplines. (5.3)
  • Analyse: Develop cultural awareness for ethical and respectful practices, and when developing community relations. (6.2)

Contribution to the development of graduate attributes

1. Disciplinary knowledge
By end of the session, this subject will establish a firm understanding of the basics of establishing and maintaining a small business practice. Within this practice, the multiple issues of safety, ethical behaviour, statutory requirements, the standing of TCM on an international level, research, need to maintain the currency of practice and the integration of western and traditional medicine is addressed. Disciplinary knowledge acquisition and/or testing is covered in all four assessments.

2. Research, Inquiry and Critical Thinking
Both the essay and reading assessments have requirements for an investigation into researching complex information and its application to a real private clinical situation.

3. Professional Ethical and Social Responsibility
Generic professional skills are thoroughly covered in Module B which is dedicated to issues surrounding the establishment and maintenance of a private business. The essay and group presentation assignments examine disciplinary skills surrounding the professional practice of TCM (Module A) from several perspectives.

5. Communication
Skills for communication are developed within all four assessments. These range from computer literacy, public speaking, academic writing to time and personnel management.

Teaching and learning strategies

The subject incorporates a variety of teaching and learning strategies. Breakout interactive group work, role plays and debates, that focus on ethical and professional scenarios, are incorporated into the weekly classes. You will need to access Canvas and the subject manual for some background documents such as the published Chinese Medicine Board of Australia (CMBA) codes and guidelines that will assist understanding and provide information for the role plays and debates. Feedback will be given following your role play and debate activities where you will identify the most appropriate and ethical response. This will serve as a good basis for the take home assignment (Assessment Task 3), which requires critical reflection and consideration of the professional and regulatory requirements for the practice of Chinese Medicine in the Australian regulated health care environment.

To prepare for Week 1, you will need to access the CMBA website (http://www.chinesemedicineboard.gov.au) and identify (the number and name) the current codes and guidelines available on the website. You will report back this information during Week 1, and sit a low stakes informal quiz on the CMBA guidelines and regulations. Feedback will be given for the quiz in Week 2. You will use your pre-class preparation each week (reading the lecture notes and other resources available in UTSOnline) to participate in subject learning activities and class discussions.

Students must or should prepare before coming to lectures and or tutorials by reading learning materials uploaded into Canvas. These materials include lecture handouts and PowerPoint presentations, journal papers, links to websites and videos. This preparation is essential for classroom participation every week.

In addition you will be involved in group learning, including searching the relevant research databases for relevant content for your chosen presentation area (Assessment Task 1).

You will use Canvas to facilitate the group work for your presentations, to disseminate student group PowerPoint presentations to your classmates following the presentations, and as an information resource (web links and research papers) for self directed learning and assessment tasks.

Content (topics)

The material presented includes:

Module A: National and state regulatory bodies and regulations and adjunct documents: code of conduct, infection control, social media and advertising, mandatory notification, scheduled herbs, patient records continuing professional education, registrations standards including English language skills, criminal history and recency of practice. Additional content includes requirements and procedures for safe herbal medicine dispensing and practice, the role of the Therapeutic Goods Administration in regulating complementary medicines, scheduling of medicines and herbal substances and the Convention of Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) organisation, interdisciplinary health practitioner communication and interaction, Chinese Medicine organisations: professional registration, health funds and indemnity insurance, peer group associations - Australian and international and the current status of acupuncture and CM internationally;

Module B: Essentials of good business practices: product, presentation, salesmanship and public relations; Market planning and location surveys: how, where, when and what; Development of a business plan; Principles of business management: record keeping, financing, insurance, legal requirements and taxation (including GST).

Assessment

Assessment task 1: Module A: Group Presentation

Intent:

This assessment task contributes to the development of the following graduate attributes:

1. Disciplinary Knowledge.

2. Research, inquiry and critical thinking.

5. Communication.
Objective(s):

This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s):

1 and 5

This assessment task contributes to the development of course intended learning outcome(s):

1.3 and 6.2

Type: Presentation
Groupwork: Group, group assessed
Weight: 30%
Length: 20 minutes presentation, 10 minutes question time
Criteria:
  • Objectives clearly stated
  • Accuracy of factual material presented during the presentation
  • Depth of critique of key concepts
  • Degree of creative approach
  • Adherence to time allotment (appropriate length)
  • Effective use of A/V aids
  • Degree of originality and interest
  • Entertaining and Interesting

Assessment task 2: Module A: Safety, Professional and Ethical Dilemmas in the Practice of CM and Acupuncture

Intent:

This assessment task contributes to the development of the following graduate attributes:

3. Professional, Ethical and Social Responsibility.

5. Communication.
Objective(s):

This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s):

1, 2, 4 and 5

This assessment task contributes to the development of course intended learning outcome(s):

4.2, 4.3, 5.2 and 5.3

Type: Report
Groupwork: Individual
Weight: 40%
Length:

2000 words +/- 10%
Criteria:

Your responses should:

  • Identify the relevant section of the CMBA code or guideline that addresses the question or scenario;
  • Explain what the most appropriate response would be using the CMBA codes and guidelines as a reference;
  • Analyse strategies and risk minimisation approaches that would have stopped the scenario from occurring;
  • Evaluate the role of professional ethical conduct and behaviour during the practice of acupuncture and Chinese medicine in the current Australian regulatory environment.

Assessment task 3: Module B: Report

Intent:

This assessment task contributes to the development of the following graduate attributes:

3. Professional, Ethical and Social Responsibility.
Objective(s):

This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s):

3 and 8

This assessment task contributes to the development of course intended learning outcome(s):

3.3

Type: Report
Groupwork: Individual
Weight: 30%
Length:

Approx 1000 words
Criteria:

Correct responses.

Minimum requirements

To successfully complete this subject you must:

  • attempt, complete, and submit all assessment tasks; and
  • achieve an overall subject total of 50% or more for the subject.

Recommended texts

Module A

  • The current CMBA codes and guidelines are available online for this module.

Module B

  • Michael E. Gerber, 1995 The e-myth [revisited]: why most small businesses do not work and what to do about it, Harper Business. ISBN 0-88730-728-0

Other useful texts

  • Medhurst, R. (2002), The Business of Healing, Hyde Park Press, Adelaide, SA
  • English, J. W (2001, 8th Edition) How to Organise and Operate a Small Business in Australia. Allen and Unwin, Sydney

References

Electronic Resources

  • Chinese Medicine Board of Australia http://www.chinesemedicineboard.gov.au/
  • Evidence based Complimentary and Alternative Medicine. Available at http://www.oxfordjournals.org/ecam/about.html
  • World Health Organisation Publications on Traditional medicines http://www.wpro.who.int/health_topics/traditional_medicine/publications.htm
  • Cochrane Collaboration and CAM http://www.campain.umm.edu/Cochrane/index.html
  • National Centre for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NIH) http://nccam.nih.gov/
  • BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine Open Access Journal http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmccomplementalternmed

In addition the following high quality journals are available in full text on the UTS journal database
1. Complementary Therapies In Medicine
2. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine
3. Alternative Therapies in Health and Medicine

Outcome measure website resources

  • Victorian Workcover http://www.workcover.vic.gov.au/dir090/vwa/home.nsf/pages/outcomes
  • South Australia http://www.unisa.edu.au/cahe/Outcomecalculator.asp

Useful web sites for the small business module:

  • Australia's Business Entry Point: www.business.gov.au
  • Handy business advice and guides: www.stgeorge.com.au/promos/open-for-business
  • NSW government web site for small businesses: www.smallbiz.nsw.gov.au
  • Australian Taxation Office: www.ato.gov.au
  • NSW Office of Industrial Relations: www.industrialrelations.nsw.gov.au
  • Business Licence Information Service: blis.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au
  • Legal Issues Guide for Small Business: sblegal.innovation.gov.au
  • Information about negotiating agreements, employing staff and contracts: www.workplace.gov.au