MSc Medical Microbiology

This course unit will be delivered over a six week period and will include a significant amount of practical laboratory-based study. There will be a strong emphasis on how the clinical laboratory is crucial to timely and effective diagnosis, management and prevention of infectious disease.

Students will examine the microbiology, diagnosis and management of infections including, but not limited to, those listed below using case scenarios and evidence-based methods. Additionally, students will have the opportunity to select one of the disciplines (bacteriology, virology, mycology and parasitology) to explore clinical cases in depth.  

• Respiratory tract infections
• Community acquired infection
• Urinary tract infections
• Endovascular infections
• Device-related infections
• Skin and soft tissue infections
• Common agents of hospital acquired infection
• Infection in pregnancy

• Pre/co-requisites

  Unit title	Unit code	Requirement type	Description
  Understanding Infection	MEDN68621	Pre-Requisite	Compulsory
  Molecular Diagnostics	MEDN68631	Pre-Requisite	Compulsory
  Practical Microbiology	MEDN68511	Pre-Requisite	Compulsory

  Aims

  This unit will cover specialism material and aims to:

  • produce students with a sound understanding of the role of bacteria, fungi/yeasts, viruses and parasites in causing community and hospital acquired disease and travel related infections;
  • provide understanding and knowledge of the methods available for therapy of these infections and identification of the causative agents of disease; and
  • provide students with practical laboratory skills to allow accurate identification of the more commonly encountered microbial agents of infection.

  Teaching and learning methods

  A variety of learning and teaching methods will be included:

  • a knowledge framework will be provided in the form of lectures, seminars and guidance to electronic resources.  This will be used by students working together to embed and extend knowledge and understanding to meet specific ILO’s via self-directed learning (including the use of e-discussion forums) and via face-to-face seminars and oral presentations; and
  • intellectual and practical skills will be obtained via laboratory based practical sessions structured around individual patient case histories; students will be helped to design the laboratory investigation to diagnose the patient based on clinical information given in “real-time” during practical sessions.

  Knowledge and understanding

  Students should have or be able to:

  • understand the classification of microbial pathogens and be able to identify those that cause significant disease in humans;
  • have a broad knowledge of symptoms associated with microbial infection and how these present in different patient groups;
  • acquired detailed knowledge of the pathogenesis of bacterial and viral infections in the community and hospitals;
  • a conceptual understanding of the principles of infection and be able to relate them to current best practice in diagnosis;
  • a detailed understanding of all relevant aspects of antimicrobial chemotherapy;
  • understand the sources and route of transmission of microbial pathogens in relevant settings; and
  • understand the role of decontamination and the infection prevention and control team in disease prevention and management.

  Intellectual skills

  Students should have or be able to:

  • analyse, evaluate and interpret the results of controlled experiments;
  • able to identify and differentiate the symptoms associated with major microbial infections;
  • evaluate clinical case histories and be able to identify appropriate management and treatment strategies; and
  • integrate theory and practice with respect to laboratory aspects of medical microbiology.

  Practical skills

  Students should have or be able to:

  • safely and competently carry out a range of routine and advanced practical skills in laboratory based microbiology; and
  • present primary and secondary data in written and oral forms, including the safe recording of laboratory data.

  Transferable skills and personal qualities

  Students should have or be able to:

  • learn to improve their time and resource management by working in a laboratory environment where data is required within a given timeframe and using limited reagents;
  • learn to manage effective team working by carrying out tasks within a small group in a structured laboratory situation;
  • use information technology and appropriate related software to a high standard; and
  • present complex ideas to informed but non-specialist audiences in written and oral form.

  Employability skills

  Other

  The ability to work efficiently and safely in a working or research facility dealing with a wide assortment of microbial pathogens.

  Assessment methods

  Assessment task	Length	Weighting
  Practical examination	8 hrs over 3 days	30%
  Unseen written examination	1.5 hr	40%
  Case history report, discipline specific.	1500 words	30%

  Feedback methods

  • Formal summative assessments
     
  • Real time educative formative assessments during practical classes
     
  • Formal feedback end of unit FROM students 

  Recommended reading

  • Cowan and Steel’s Manual for the Identification of Medical Bacteria – 3^rd Edition
  • Mims Medical Microbiology - 5^th Edition
  • Clinical Bacteriology, Struthers & Westran
  • Microbiology (Lippincotts illustrated reviews)  Harvey et al., 
  • Disinfection in Healthcare – 3^rd Edition, Hoffman et al.,

  Study hours

  Scheduled activity hours
  Lectures	20
  Practical classes & workshops	50

  Independent study hours
  Independent study	230

  Teaching staff

  Staff member	Role
  Jenny Herbert	Unit coordinator
  Carol Yates	Unit coordinator

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