Doctor of Medicine (WA)

Why study this degree?

Are you curious about medical research and/or clinical practice? Do you have an innate need to help your fellow human? Or maybe you have a calling to help poorly-serviced communities with special health needs? If so, our Doctor of Medicine degree program has special appeal for you.

At the School of Medicine, we are committed to providing an education that not only teaches the science and craft of medicine, but also develops passionate and devoted medical practitioners. It is for this reason that our entry requirements are based on so much more than your test scores, with traits such as passion, motivation and purpose highly regarded.

The first two years of your degree are underpinned by Problem Based Learning (PBL) and include the study of basic clinical sciences, population and preventive health, bioethics, therapeutics and more.

Your third and fourth years are clinically based and present the opportunity to explore the different disciplines of medicine such as paediatrics and surgery. You are required to complete eight to nine week discipline-based rotations in a clinical setting, and further develop your research skills with a translational research project based in the health sector. There are rural/remote training opportunities and for some students, placement with the Rural Clinical School in third-year.

Essential elements of our Medical postgraduate degree include:

• Access to innovative clinical skills training
• Learning from clinical academics who are experts in their fields
• Aboriginal health, rural and remote placements
• A problem-based learning curriculum delivered in small groups in years one and two
• Clinical placements in both the public and private sector hospitals in years three and four
• A liberal arts education in bioethics
• Applied research project in an area of interest to you

Learning outcomes

• Upon successful completion of the Doctor of Medicine, graduates will be able to:
• Provide quality patient-centred care through the application of safe clinical skills and judgment in the context of evidence-based practice
• Apply integrated medical and scientific knowledge to individual patients, populations, and health systems
• Communicate with patients, their families, and their advocates with compassion, respect, and empathy
• Advocate for the health of Aboriginal Peoples* and exercise leadership to reduce inequalities and disparities in health and healthcare delivery in rural, remote, and other under-served populations
• Consider, apply, and evaluate strategies which address and reduce the impact of global health issues on the Australian population
• Work professionally and collaboratively as a member of an interprofessional healthcare team
• Use initiative and self-regulation strategies to address knowledge and skill limitations and commit to lifelong learning, reflective practice and the management of personal health and wellbeing
• Systematically retrieve, critically appraise, evaluate, and synthesise information in health related literature and clinical systems to inform practice
• Engage in research and scholarly inquiry to advance health, health care and health systems
• Appreciate the intrinsic dignity of each human, and exhibit ethical, legal, and professional behaviour in all their actions
• Evaluate the Australian healthcare system in the broader context of governance, and local, national, and international societal values
• Demonstrate leadership in accepting responsibility for health promotion and education of health professionals and the community
• Integrate prevention, early detection, health maintenance and chronic disease management principles into clinical practice
• Apply a high-level knowledge of therapeutic interventions and treatments to ensure safe and quality patient care; and
• Communicate effectively with their profession, their peers, and the wider community.