UnitLevel 5Postgraduate

FOR5016 Clinical forensic odontology

Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences

FOR5016 Clinical forensic odontology is a level 5, 6-credit-point, postgraduate unit from the Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, offered in 2020 in Semester 2 at Southbank. It has no prerequisites.

Credit points
6
Offered in 2020
Semester 2
Southbank
Assessment
No exam
4 tasks

This is the 2020 handbook entry. See the 2025 entry.

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Requisites

After FOR5016

No unit lists FOR5016 as a prerequisite in the 2020 handbook.

Enrolment rules

Must be enrolled in a postgraduate degree.

Overview

The aim of this unit is to provide students with a thorough understanding of all aspects of forensic odontology relating to the treatment of living people in a legal setting.

The unit is designed for practicing dentists and medical practitioners who wish to gain a greater understanding of how to deal with the examination and reporting of injuries caused by the teeth, and injuries inflicted to the oro-facial complex.

The unit will also cover dental age estimation techniques, identification of unknown living individuals and issues surrounding dental malpractice and fraud investigations.

Offerings in 2020

Teaching periodCampusMode
Second semesterSouthbankBlock on

Assessment

  • Case Report (2000 words)Competency hurdle
    25%
  • Case Study (2000 words)Competency hurdle
    25%
  • Oral Presentation (15 mins + 5 discussion)Competency hurdle
    20%
  • Essay (2400 words)Competency hurdle
    30%

Learning outcomes

When you finish this unit, you should be able to:

  1. 1

    Evaluate facial trauma giving consideration to the bio-mechanics of the bones of the facial skeleton.

  2. 2

    Analyse and interpret soft tissue injury in relation to bite mark evidence, applying skills in the discrimination and comparison of such injuries;

  3. 3

    Evaluate dental age estimation methods as applied to living individuals;

  4. 4

    Recognise and evaluate the dental manifestations of child abuse;

  5. 5

    Illustrate the limitations inherent in identification of individuals from CCTV images;

  6. 6

    Discuss the regulations of the Australian Dental Board as they relate to malpractice and fraud investigation;

  7. 7

    Construct dento-legal reports, and discuss the ramifications involved in presentation of clinical forensic odontology evidence before the courts.

Workload and teaching

It is expected that students will need to undertake approximately 12 hours of study per week over the semester. This will include contact time, private study, assessment tasks (case studies, assignments) and, where possible, involvement in casework. Students are required to attend all workshops offered at the Department of Forensic Medicine during the semester.

Learning resources

Required resources

See Moodle for details about required resources.

Contacts

Unit Coordinators
Dr Lyndall Smythe
Associate Professor Richard Bassed
Chief Examiners
Associate Professor Richard Bassed

Common questions

What are the prerequisites for FOR5016?

None, but you must take FOR4002, FOR4003 and FOR4001 before or alongside it.

When is FOR5016 offered?

In 2020, FOR5016 runs in Semester 2 at Southbank.

Does FOR5016 have an exam?

No. FOR5016 has 4 assessment tasks and no exam.

More details

Credit points
6
Level
5
Study level
Postgraduate
Faculty
Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences
Organisational unit
Forensic Medicine
Type
Coursework
EFTSL
0.125
Student contribution
SCA Band 2
Study abroad
Not available
Handbook years
202020212022202320242025