History of MD Design

The MD Design Project represents a major step in a longer-term evolution of the MD program and builds on from a range of improvement initiatives regarding admissions, introducing greater student choice into the program, and enhancing student academic guidance and support.

A structured and thorough approach has been taken to ensure that we provide a new medical program that is indeed progressive, innovative and sets UQ apart from other medical programs both domestically and internationally.

The design of the new MD program and preparation for implementation has taken place in three major stages:

• Stage 1: High Level Design (May 2019 – November 2020)
• Stage 2: UQ Submission and Detailed Design (November 2020 – September 2021)
• Stage 3: Detailed Pre-Implementation Planning (October 2021 – ongoing until all courses are designed and have an implementation plan).

Stage 1 of this multi-year transformative project commenced in May 2019 and was well progressed as of March 2020 when it was put on hold due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The project officially re-commenced in August 2020 with a view to completing the High-Level Design stage by mid-November 2020.

Stage 2 of the project was centred around Detailed Design and culminated in the formal endorsement of the new MD program by the UQ Academic Board and approval by the UQ Vice-Chancellor and President in August 2021.

Stage 3, currently almost complete, focussed on the development of the detailed course level design as well as the preparation for implementation. The work in Stage 3 comprises three key components: Program Design; Course Design; and Implementation Enablers. Each function, identified in the figure below, has a specific and defined responsibility and scope in relation to MD Design (Stage 3).

As part of the work undertaken in Stage 3, the Medical School sought accreditation of the new MD program by the Australian Medical Council (AMC). A detailed response to the accreditation standards relating to the new MD program was submitted to the AMC on 18 February 2022, with additional information provided on 5 May 2022. Further information was also provided when the AMC Assessment Team visited various Medical School sites from 9-13 May 2022, engaging with staff, students, and partners, either in person or on Zoom. The AMC Accreditation Report has now been approved by the AMC Directors and awaits Medical Board approval.

The plans for Year 1 of the new MD program are almost complete as we prepare to welcome the first cohort of students in January 2023. With the Year 1 syllabus finalised, several small working groups have developed the detail of the learning experiences and are working collaboratively with the design teams focussing on assessment, research, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health, rural and remote medicine, and the six vertical themes, to provide a learner-centred course.

Planning for the Year 2 course is also well underway, and a draft syllabus will be complete by late 2022.