Course Outline

HLT111 Allied Health Assistance A

Course Coordinator:Kerri-Anne Von Deest (kvondeest@usc.edu.au) School:School of Health - Occupational Therapy

2026Session 5

UniSC Sunshine Coast

Blended learning Most of your course is on campus but you may be able to do some components of this course online.

Please go to unisc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.

What is this course about?

Description

In this course you will develop introductory skills to work as an Allied Health Assistant. The focus of this course will be on assisting physiotherapists, occupational therapists and speech pathologists in clinical practice. You will learn how to conduct client interviews and screening assessments, implement individual exercise and therapy programs, utilise technology and assistive equipment, and manage workplace risks.

How will this course be delivered?

Activity Hours Beginning Week Frequency
Blended learning
Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Online 1-hour workshop in weeks 1-6. 1hr Week 1 6 times
Tutorial/Workshop 2 – Online 2-hour workshop in Weeks 1-6. 2hrs Week 1 6 times
Learning materials – Weekly online learning activities, approx. 1 hour per week. See Canvas for details. 1hr Week 1 8 times
Laboratory 1 – Intensive on campus teaching at Sunshine Coast campus - daily classes (approx. 6 hours per day) for 1 week. See Canvas for details of each session offering and class times. 30hrs Week 6 Once Only

Course Topics

  • Roles and responsibilities of allied health assistants 

  • Physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech pathology professions

  • Booking appointments, electronic notes and practice management

  • Conducting client intake interviews and taking a brief history

  • Performing screening assessments and monitoring client health status

  • Introduction to augmentative and assistive communication and telehealth

  • Educating clients in the use of assistive technology, managing, maintaining and fitting technology 

  • Reporting on client history, health status, and progress and liaising with health professionals

  • Implementing exercise programs, daily living skills training, structured therapy program 

  • Assisting client movement, posture and function

  • Infection control, manual handling principles and risk management 

  • Reflection on learning and skills and planning continuing professional development 

What level is this course?

100 Level (Introductory)

Engaging with discipline knowledge and skills at foundational level, broad application of knowledge and skills in familiar contexts and with support. Limited or no prerequisites. Normally, associated with the first full-time study year of an undergraduate program.

What is the unit value of this course?

12 units

How does this course contribute to my learning?

Course Learning Outcomes On successful completion of this course, you should be able to... Graduate Qualities Completing these tasks successfully will contribute to you becoming...
1 Demonstrate knowledge in allied health theory and practice Knowledgeable
2 Implement basic screening tools safely in an occupational and speech therapy and physiotherapy environments. Empowered
3 Implement therapy programs prescribed by an allied health professional. Empowered
4 Self-reflect on your learning needs as a future allied health assistant. Creative and critical thinker
5 Communicate professionally and ethically with clients and other health professionals. Engaged

Am I eligible to enrol in this course?

Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.

Pre-requisites

Not applicable

Co-requisites

Not applicable

Anti-requisites

Not applicable

Specific assumed prior knowledge and skills (where applicable)

Not applicable

Microcredential Information

Not applicable

How am I going to be assessed?

Grading Scale

Standard Grading (GRD)

High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL).

Details of early feedback on progress

This course involves an assessment at the end of the second week which will provide you with feedback on your performance on task one.

Assessment tasks

Delivery mode Task No. Assessment Product Individual or Group Weighting % What is the duration / length? When should I submit? Where should I submit it?
All 1 Practical / Laboratory Skills Individual 20%
20 minutes
Week 2 To Supervisor
All 2 Quiz/zes Individual 20%
1 hour
Refer to Format Online Test (Quiz)
All 3 Practical / Laboratory Skills Individual 40%
15 minutes
Refer to Format To Supervisor
All 4 Portfolio Individual 20%
Variable - Depends on student collation of evidence. The reflective report, however, is limited to 500 words, and should include SMART goals related to career aspirations.
Refer to Format Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check
All - Assessment Task 1:Client interview and booking
Goal:
You will demonstrate your skills as an allied health assistant and complete an intake interview and book a new client using an online booking system.
Product: Practical / Laboratory Skills
Authorship Statement:
Format:
You will undertake a simulated phone call where you book a client for a telehealth appointment. During the phone call you complete a new client intake interview. Subsequent to the phone call you will book the client into an electronic medical record system and populate their profile with the information you have gathered. You will send the relevant allied health professional an email informing them of the new client booking. You will complete a clinical note documenting the phone call.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1
Professional communication with clients and allied health professionals
5
2
Accurate screening of a change in health status
2
3
Application of time management to client bookings
2
Generic Skills:
Communication, Applying technologies
All - Assessment Task 2:Online Exam
Goal:
In this task, you will need to demonstrate the knowledge you have gained from this course in the context of allied health assistant practice with specific application to physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech pathology professions.
Product: Quiz/zes
Authorship Statement:
Format:
You will participate in a 1 hour online exam that will be scheduled prior to your on campus intensive week of teaching. This will test your theoretical understand and knowledge regarding allied health practice and roles of an allied health assistant. Feedback from this assessment will assist you preparing for your intensive week of teaching on campus.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1
Knowledge of allied health theory and practice
1
2
Understand role, limitations and scope of practice as an allied health assistant
5
Generic Skills:
Communication, Collaboration, Problem solving, Organisation, Applying technologies, Information literacy
All - Assessment Task 3:Telehealth session
Goal:
You will demonstrate your skills as an allied health assistant, conducting a screeening assessment and/or implementing a therapy program as prescribed by an allied health professional. This will be undertaken after you completed your on-campus intensive week of learning.
Product: Practical / Laboratory Skills
Authorship Statement:
Format:
You will undertake a simulated telehealth session where you will conduct a screening assessment or implement a therapy program that has been prescribed by an allied health professional. This will be scheduled after you intensive week of learning on campus. Please see CANVAS for details.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1
Demonstrate ethical and professional communication with the client, allied health professional, and examiner
5
2
Safely and effectively implement a therapeutic intervention prescribed by a physiotherapist, occupational therapist or speech pathologist
3
3
Safely conduct a screening assessment with the client as directed by a physiotherapist, occupational therapist or speech pathologist
2
Generic Skills:
Communication, Collaboration, Problem solving, Organisation, Applying technologies, Information literacy
All - Assessment Task 4:E-Portfolio
Goal:
To facilitate student learning, reflection, and development of employability skills and to gather evidence of capabilities and experiences relevant to future practice as an allied health assistant. Students will be given a series of professional development activities and learning to undertake during the session, and completion of these tasks should be evidenced in the e-portfolio.
Product: Portfolio
Authorship Statement:
Format:
Online electronic Portfolio due at the end of the session. Due dates will be provided on CANVAS.
Criteria:
No. Learning Outcome assessed
1
Demonstrate understanding of allied health practice and reflect on career goals and opportunities
1 4 5
2
Demonstrate commitment to professional development by undertaking prescribed learning activities, and reflecting on relevance and outcomes
1 4 5
3
Apply effective communication, organisational skills, and technological expertise to collate and present evidence in a professional e-portfolio
1 5
Generic Skills:
Communication, Collaboration, Problem solving, Organisation, Applying technologies, Information literacy

Directed study hours

A 12-unit course will have total of 150 learning hours which will include directed study hours (including online if required), self-directed learning and completion of assessable tasks. Student workload is calculated at 12.5 learning hours per one unit.

What resources do I need to undertake this course?

Please note: Course information, including specific information of recommended readings, learning activities, resources, weekly readings, etc. are available on the course Canvas site– Please log in as soon as possible.

Prescribed text(s) or course reader

You need regular access to the resource(s) below. Many texts are available as ebooks through the Library at no additional cost.

Required? Author Year Title Edition Publisher
Recommended Karen Sladyk,Sally E. Ryan 2015 Ryan's Occupational Therapy Assistant n/a Slack
Recommended Mark Dutton 2022 Dutton's Introductory Skills and Procedures for the Physical Therapist Assistant n/a McGraw-Hill Education / Medical

Specific requirements

* You will require access to a stable internet connection, and two devices with cameras (e.g., a laptop and a smartphone) in order to take part in the workshops and Telehealth simulation components of this course, including assessment tasks.

How are risks managed in this course?

Health and safety risks for this course have been assessed as low. It is your responsibility to review course material, search online, discuss with lecturers and peers and understand the health and safety risks associated with your specific course of study and to familiarise yourself with the University’s general health and safety principles by reviewing the online induction training for students, and following the instructions of the University staff.

What administrative information is relevant to this course?

Assessment: Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is the ethical standard of university participation. It ensures that students graduate as a result of proving they are competent in their discipline. This is integral in maintaining the value of academic qualifications. Each industry has expectations and standards of the skills and knowledge within that discipline and these are reflected in assessment.

Academic integrity means that you do not engage in any activity that is considered to be academic fraud; including plagiarism, collusion or outsourcing any part of any assessment item to any other person. You are expected to be honest and ethical by completing all work yourself and indicating in your work which ideas and information were developed by you and which were taken from others. You cannot provide your assessment work to others. You are also expected to provide evidence of wide and critical reading, usually by using appropriate academic references.

In order to minimise incidents of academic fraud, this course may require that some of its assessment tasks, when submitted to Canvas, are electronically checked through Turnitin. This software allows for text comparisons to be made between your submitted assessment item and all other work to which Turnitin has access.

Assessment: Additional Requirements

Eligibility for Supplementary Assessment

Your eligibility for supplementary assessment in a course is dependent of the following conditions applying:
(a) The final mark is in the percentage range 47% to 49.4%; and
(b) The course is graded using the Standard Grading scale

Assessment: Submission penalties

Late submissions may be penalised up to and including the following maximum percentage of the assessment task’s identified value, with weekdays and weekends included in the calculation of days late:
(a) One day: deduct 5%;
(b) Two days: deduct 10%;
(c) Three days: deduct 20%;
(d) Four days: deduct 40%;
(e) Five days: deduct 60%;
(f) Six days: deduct 80%;
(g) Seven days: A result of zero is awarded for the assessment task.

The following penalties will apply for a late submission for an online examination:
Less than 15 minutes: No penalty
From 15 minutes to 30 minutes: 20% penalty
More than 30 minutes: 100% penalty

Links to relevant University policy and procedures

For more information on Academic Learning & Teaching categories including:

  • Assessment: Courses and Coursework Programs
  • Review of Assessment and Final Grades
  • Supplementary Assessment
  • Central Examinations
  • Deferred Examinations
  • Student Conduct
  • Students with a Disability

For more information, visit https://www.usc.edu.au/explore/policies-and-procedures#academic-learning-and-teaching

Student Charter

UniSC is committed to excellence in teaching, research and engagement in an environment that is inclusive, inspiring, safe and respectful. The Student Charter sets out what students can expect from the University, and what in turn is expected of students, to achieve these outcomes.

General Enquiries

For course-specific questions, contact your teaching staff or Course Coordinator.  

For other enquiries or to access support, please contact Student Central: