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HE Unit Template
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Foundations in Child and Family Health
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HEALM5001 - Foundations in Child and Family Health
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20260200
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Course
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1.1
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2026-06-16
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2026-06-16
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Midwifery
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Institute of Health and Wellbeing
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Midwifery
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Postgraduate - Coursework
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30
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.25
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060303
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Midwifery
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<a href="http://www.federation.edu.au/locate/unit/healm5001">060303 - Midwifery</a>
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Graded (e.g. HD, D, C, etc)
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8
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Bachelor Honours Degree, Graduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma
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Intermediate
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0
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20
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150
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<p>Upon completion of this unit, students will demonstrate foundational theoretical and practical knowledge and skills required for supervised clinical practice in Maternal and Child Health (MCH) community settings. Building on their existing knowledge and experience in Nursing and Midwifery, the unit focuses on developing collaborative partnerships with families to promote child health and overall family wellbeing. Students will apply the MCH Key Ages and Stages framework to assess and respond to child health and developmental concerns. This includes evaluating maternal and family wellbeing, providing anticipatory guidance, offering parenting support, and making appropriate referrals for parenting-related issues. Throughout the unit, students will engage with relevant legislation, guidelines, and ethical considerations in MCH practice. Clinical learning will be supported through 150 hours of supervised, supernumerary placement within Local Council MCH services and affiliated specialty services.</p>
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<p>ANMAC Midwife Accreditation Standards (2021); NMBA Midwife Standards for Practice (2018); NMBA Code of Conduct for the Midwife (2018), Code of Ethics for the Midwife (2014), NMBA Registered Nurse Standards for Practice (2016); NMBA Code of Conduct for nurses (2018), Code of Ethics for nurses (2012) and Maternal and Child Health Service Standards (2019); VAMCHN Professional Standards for Practice (2024) have substantially informed the syllabus/content of this unit.</p>
<ul>
<li>Introduction to Maternal and Child Health (MCH) and the Key Ages and Stages (KAS) framework.</li>
<li>Introduction to the legislation, ethical codes and professional guidelines that govern MCH professional practice</li>
<li>Child development and developmental assessments of the infant and child 0-6 years.</li>
<li>Physical assessment of the infant and child 0-6 years.</li>
<li>Communication and counseling.</li>
<li>The Key Ages and Stages visits.</li>
<li>The MCH nurse scope of practice.</li>
</ul>
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<p>Where supplementary assessment is available a student must have failed overall in the Unit but gained a final mark of 45 per cent or above, has completed all major assessment tasks (including all sub-components where a task has multiple parts) as specified in the Unit Description and is not eligible for any other form of supplementary assessment.</p>
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Overview
Key information
Requisites
Learning outcomes
Assessment
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Overview
Unit description
<p>Upon completion of this unit, students will demonstrate foundational theoretical and practical knowledge and skills required for supervised clinical practice in Maternal and Child Health (MCH) community settings. Building on their existing knowledge and experience in Nursing and Midwifery, the unit focuses on developing collaborative partnerships with families to promote child health and overall family wellbeing. Students will apply the MCH Key Ages and Stages framework to assess and respond to child health and developmental concerns. This includes evaluating maternal and family wellbeing, providing anticipatory guidance, offering parenting support, and making appropriate referrals for parenting-related issues. Throughout the unit, students will engage with relevant legislation, guidelines, and ethical considerations in MCH practice. Clinical learning will be supported through 150 hours of supervised, supernumerary placement within Local Council MCH services and affiliated specialty services.</p>
Unit content
<p>ANMAC Midwife Accreditation Standards (2021); NMBA Midwife Standards for Practice (2018); NMBA Code of Conduct for the Midwife (2018), Code of Ethics for the Midwife (2014), NMBA Registered Nurse Standards for Practice (2016); NMBA Code of Conduct for nurses (2018), Code of Ethics for nurses (2012) and Maternal and Child Health Service Standards (2019); VAMCHN Professional Standards for Practice (2024) have substantially informed the syllabus/content of this unit.</p> <ul> <li>Introduction to Maternal and Child Health (MCH) and the Key Ages and Stages (KAS) framework.</li> <li>Introduction to the legislation, ethical codes and professional guidelines that govern MCH professional practice</li> <li>Child development and developmental assessments of the infant and child 0-6 years.</li> <li>Physical assessment of the infant and child 0-6 years.</li> <li>Communication and counseling.</li> <li>The Key Ages and Stages visits.</li> <li>The MCH nurse scope of practice.</li> </ul>
Key information
Institute / school:
Institute of Health and Wellbeing
Discipline:
Midwifery
Study level:
Postgraduate - Coursework
Credit points:
30
EFTSL:
0.25
Field of education:
<a href="http://www.federation.edu.au/locate/unit/healm5001">060303 - Midwifery</a>
Grade scheme:
Graded (e.g. HD, D, C, etc)
Placement component:
Yes
Placement hours:
150
Requisites
Prerequisite
None
Corequisite
None
Exclusion
<p>must not have completed <a href="/ords/r/dev/fed_occ/course?p6_code=HEALM6301" target="_blank">HEALM6301</a> OR must not have completed <a href="/ords/r/dev/fed_occ/course?p6_code=HEALM6304" target="_blank">HEALM6304</a></p>
Learning outcomes
Learning outcomes
<p>On successful completion of this unit, students are expected to gain the following [K]nowledge, [S]kills and [A]pplication of knowledge & skills</p>
Learning Outcomes
Ref
Outcome
K1
<p>Analyse and synthesise knowledge of contemporary maternal and child health frameworks, with a focus on the structure, methods, and rationale underpinning child health assessments and interventions<em>.</em> </p>
K2
<p>Critically evaluate contemporary research and integrate evidence to deliver comprehensive, safe, and effective health care for children, families, and communities. </p>
S1
<p>Conduct physical and developmental assessments that are appropriate to a child’s developmental stage, cognitive level, cultural background, and the purpose of the assessment; interpret findings and contribute to planning ongoing care. </p>
S2
<p>Demonstrate effective communication skills to engage and collaborate with individual children, families, groups, other health professionals, and community organisations. </p>
S3
<p> Demonstrate emerging competence in supervised maternal and child health clinical practice across diverse community settings. </p>
A1
<p>Apply reflective thinking and critical analysis to professional practice in maternal and child health nursing, demonstrating a sound understanding of relevant legislation, ethical codes, and professional guidelines, while integrating feedback and supervision to support ongoing learning and development. </p>
A2
<p>Synthesise assessment findings to identify concerns, engage families in interim management discussions, and consult or refer to medical or allied health practitioners for review and development of ongoing care plans.</p>
Assessment
Learning Tasks and Assessment
Ref
Learning task
Assessment type
Weighting
Learning outcomes assessed
1
<p>Physical assessment of an infant or toddler demonstrating application of theoretical concepts and skills. </p>
<p>Practical Assessment (hurdle)</p>
<p>20-40%</p>
K1, K2, S1, S2, A1, A2
2
<p>Completion of short clinical scenarios or case studies, interview with a caregiver related to one of the clinical scenarios or case studies and an associated reflection. </p>
<p>Written Task</p>
<p>60-80%</p>
K1, S1, S2, A1
3
<p>Completion of 150 hours of supervised, supernumerary clinical placement. Minimum 120 hours in the Universal MCH service, and 30 hours in affiliated specialty services. </p>
<p>Clinical Placement (hurdle)</p>
<p>S/US</p>
K1, K2, S1, S2, S3, A1, A2
4
<p>Completion of mandatory training modules. </p>
<p>Training Modules (hurdle)</p>
<p>S/US</p>
K1, S1, S2, S3, A1, A2
Supplementary assessment available:
Yes
Supplimentary assessment information:
<p>Where supplementary assessment is available a student must have failed overall in the Unit but gained a final mark of 45 per cent or above, has completed all major assessment tasks (including all sub-components where a task has multiple parts) as specified in the Unit Description and is not eligible for any other form of supplementary assessment.</p>
Key information
Institute / school:
Institute of Health and Wellbeing
Discipline:
Midwifery
Study level:
Postgraduate - Coursework
Credit points:
30
EFTSL:
0.25
Field of education:
<a href="http://www.federation.edu.au/locate/unit/healm5001">060303 - Midwifery</a>
Grade scheme:
Graded (e.g. HD, D, C, etc)
Placement component:
Yes
Placement hours:
150
Disclaimer
<em>Information in the Federation Handbook is correct at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to alter any course, unit, procedure or fee.</em>
Additional information
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Internal reference: HEALM5001 - U1.1