No longer offered from 2011
The Master of Remote Health Practice is a 72-unit program which is offered by the Faculty of Health Sciences.
The course articulates with the Graduate Certificate in Remote Health Practice and the Graduate Diploma in Remote Health Practice and the sequentially developed topics allow progression through the three awards. Students in the programs undertake a range of core topics and are then able to select a specialty stream in either Nurse Practitioner or Management. Students who do not wish to undertake either of the above specialty streams can compile their own individual study plan comprising elective topics.
The program was developed in collaboration with the Council of Remote Area Nurses and is offered on an external basis through the Centre for Remote Health in Alice Springs.
Students who hold the graduate certificate or the graduate diploma are granted credit for topics already taken.
Admission requirements
Applicants who do not hold either the Graduate Certificate in Remote Health Practice or the Graduate Diploma in Remote Health Practice must normally hold an approved degree or an equivalent qualification from an approved tertiary institution and have had not less than two years experience as a practising health professional in a remote area.
However, the Faculty Board may, under certain circumstances and subject to specific conditions, admit others who can show evidence of fitness for candidature.
Course aims
The Master of Remote Health Practice is designed for health professionals experienced in working within the remote and Indigenous context to advance their knowledge of the discipline of Remote Health. It aims to further extend their current knowledge across three major content areas that underpin practice within the discipline of Remote Health locally, nationally and internationally. These content areas are:
- the remote context – an inseparable work and living environment characterised by unique cultural, linguistic, social, economic, geographical, and climatic conditions
- public health – a population based framework for planning, developing, managing and evaluating initiatives and programs to promote health and prevent disease
- application to practice – the inter-professional and profession specific skills, knowledge and attributes required for competent, confident, accountable remote and Indigenous health practice within a primary health care framework.
Learning outcomes
At the completion of the course students are expected to be able to:- practice autonomously within their own professional boundaries, contributing unique skills and knowledge to the multi-disciplinary team providing health care within isolated, remote and Indigenous contexts
- extend their knowledge of the remote context, social determinants and public health through development of research capabilities and clinical expertise
- apply knowledge and skills to work competently and confidently with the people and professionals of remote areas to keep remote and Indigenous people well and manage ill-health
- be considered an expert in their field with leadership capacities that will be applied in specific areas of remote health service delivery
- listen well, respond constructively and convey their knowledge, understanding, reasoning and decision making in both written and spoken form and in a culturally safe manner
- advocate for sustainable, efficient, accessible and equitable health service delivery to improve health outcomes for remote, isolated, marginalised and Indigenous people worldwide
- possess a high level of resourcefulness in regards to organising their activities, prioritising their tasks, managing their time productively, and utilising goods and services in a socially and environmentally responsible way
- recognise that the world is dynamic and changing, and that isolated practice requires a commitment to continually updating skills and knowledge in response to the changing health technologies and health care needs of remote and Indigenous people locally, nationally and internationally
- work cooperatively and productively across the diverse geographical, cultural, social and economic settings of Remote and Indigenous Health practice showing respect to the ideas and perspectives of Indigenous persons and negotiating and resolving conflict or difficulties in a culturally safe and decolonising way.
Program of study
To qualify for the Master of Remote Health Practice, a student must complete 72 units with a grade of P or NGP or better in each topic, according to the following program of study.
Not all topics are necessarily available in a given year.
The research project and elective topics must be chosen in consultation with the course coordinator and must be in an area relevant to the student's present or future practice.
Core - Year 1 & 2 topics
31.5 units comprising
REMH8001 Context of Remote & Indigenous Health (4.5 units)
REMH8002 Remote & Indigenous Primary Health Care (4.5 units)
REMH8013 Public Health Principles for Remote & Indigenous Practice (4.5 units)
REMH8014 Ethics Power and Practice (4.5 units)
REMH8015 Research and Evidence Based Decision Making (4.5 units)
REMH8022 Research and Evaluation for Remote & Indigenous Health (4.5 units)
REMH8023A Remote & Indigenous Research Dissertation (4.5 units)
Plus either a Management or Nurse Practitioner specialty stream or Option topic and Elective topics:
Stream - Management - Year 1 & 2 topics
18 units comprising:
REMH8016 Foundations of Remote Health Management; People, Planning and Money (4.5 units)
REMH8017 Remote Health Services: Organisation, Resources and Workforce (4.5 units)
REMH8018 Remote Health Management; Policy and Leadership (4.5 units)
REMH8024 Remote Primary Health Care Governance, Quality and Safety (4.5 units)
Plus 22.5 units from Elective topics:
Stream - Nurse Practitioner - Year 1 & 2 topics
36 units comprising:
HLTH8011A Remote Nurse Practitioner 1A - Family Nursing (3 units)
HLTH8011B Remote Nurse Practitioner 1B - Family Nursing (3 units)
HLTH9012A Remote Nurse Practitioner 2A- Chronic Disease and Ongoing Health Problems (3 units)
HLTH9012B Remote Nurse Practitioner 2B - Chronic Disease and Ongoing Health Problems (3 units)
HLTH9015A Nurse Practitioner 3A: Extended Practice and Professional Issues (3 units)
HLTH9015B Nurse Practitioner 3B: Extended Practice and Professional Issues (3 units)
HLTH9019 Pharmacotherapeutics 2 for Extended Practice (4.5 units)
REMH8006 Remote Advanced Nursing Practice & Pharmacotherapeutics 1A (4.5 units)
REMH8007 Remote Advanced Nursing & Family Practice (4.5 units)
REMH8018 Remote Health Management; Policy and Leadership (4.5 units)
Plus 4.5 units from Elective topics:
Stream - Option topic
4.5 units comprising:
REMH8017 Remote Health Services: Organisation, Resources and Workforce (4.5 units)
Plus 36 units from Elective topics:
Electives - Year 1 & 2 topics
REMH8003 Fundamentals of Remote Allied Health Practice (4.5 units)
REMH8004 Remote Medical & Indigenous Health Practice 1 (4.5 units)
REMH8005 Remote Medical & Indigenous Health Practice 2 (4.5 units)
REMH8008 Remote Child Protection Practice 1 (4.5 units)
REMH8009 Remote Child Protection Practice 2 (4.5 units)
REMH8010 Remote & Indigenous Individual Practice (4.5 units)
REMH8011 Remote Pharmacy in Practice (4.5 units)
REMH8012 Project Management (4.5 units)
REMH8019 Health Economics (4.5 units)
REMH8020 Remote & Indigenous Health Promotion (4.5 units)
REMH8021 Chronic Disease in Remote and Indigenous Primary Health Care (4.5 units)
REMH8023B Remote & Indigenous Research Dissertation (4.5 units)
REMH8023C Remote & Indigenous Research Dissertation (4.5 units)
REMH8023D Remote & Indigenous Research Dissertation (4.5 units)
REMH8025 Recognising and Responding to Dementia in Indigenous Communities (4.5 units)
REMH8026 Working with People with Disability in Remote and Indigenous Communities (4.5 units)
Other topics may be selected from other programs within Flinders University and from other universities in consultation with the course coordinator.
Except with permission of the Faculty Board:
- the program must be completed within 12 consecutive semesters
- no topic may be attempted more than twice.
The award of a grade of Fail (F) in 18 or more units may constitute prima facie evidence of unsatisfactory progress for the purposes of the University's Policy on Student Progress.