The mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through one's thoughts, experience, and senses.
Knowledge and cognitive skills: Acquired skills that reflect an individual's ability to think. Cognitive skills include verbal and spatial abilities, concentration, memory, perception, reasoning, planning and organisation, flexible thinking, and problem solving.
- Introduction
Consistent knowledge and effective cognitive skills must be demonstrated to provide safe, effective, and timely paramedic care. - Description of inherent requirement
Student demonstrates:
- Capacity to locate appropriate and relevant information
- Ability to process information relevant to practice
- Ability to integrate and implement knowledge in practice
- Capacity to solve problems and think laterally with regard to clinical and logistical issues.
- Justification of inherent requirement
Safe and effective paramedic care is based on comprehensive knowledge that must be sourced, understood, and applied appropriately. - Adjustments
Adjustments must ensure that a clear demonstration of knowledge and cognitive skills is not compromised or impeded. - Exemplars:
- Conceptualising and using appropriate knowledge in response to academic assessment items
- Appropriately applying knowledge of theory, research evidence, policies, and procedures in a clinical setting
- Managing multiple tasks and priorities in distracting, dynamic and time-sensitive environments.
Literacy (language): This relates to the ability to acquire, understand, and apply information in a scholarly manner.
- Introduction
Competent literacy skills, in English, are essential to develop and deliver professional, appropriate, and effective responses to academic assessment tasks. - Description of inherent requirement
Student demonstrates:
- Ability to acquire information and convey appropriate, effective messages
- Ability to read and comprehend a range of literature and information
- Capacity to understand and implement academic conventions to construct written text in a scholarly manner
- Justification of inherent requirement
The ability to acquire information and to accurately convey messages is fundamental to ensure safe and effective assessment, treatment, and delivery of care. The ability to read, decode, interpret, and comprehend multiple sources of information is fundamental for safe and effective delivery of paramedic care. - Adjustments
Adjustments must enable demonstration of a capacity to effectively acquire, comprehend, apply, and communicate accurate information. - Exemplars:
- Conveying spoken instructions to a client accurately and effectively in a clinical setting
- Paraphrasing, summarising, and referencing in accordance with appropriate academic conventions in written assignments
- Producing accurate, concise, and clear documentation which meets legal requirements.
Numeracy: This relates to the ability to understand and work with numbers.
- Introduction
Competent and accurate numeracy skills are essential for safe and effective calculations in delivery of services in paramedic care. - Description of inherent requirement
Student interprets and correctly applies data, measurements, and numerical criteria. - Justification of inherent requirement
Competent application of numeracy skills is essential to facilitate the safe and effective delivery of paramedic care. - Adjustments
Adjustments must enable demonstration of a capacity to interpret and apply concepts and processes appropriately in a timely, accurate and effective manner. - Exemplars:
- Calculating the percentage of body surface area affected in a patient with burns
- Calculating the rate at which a volume of intravenous fluid is to be administered over a period
- Accurately calculating the required dosage of medications for paediatric patients based on their weight and age.