Trauma Care - Initial Assessment and Management

This module is designed for experienced practitioners involved in the emergency care of polytrauma patients. It focuses on the initial assessment and management of traumatic injuries in the emergency department. Key topics include pathophysiology, trauma protocols, and the management of life-threatening injuries across various patient groups including children, older adults, and pregnant patients.

The module is part of the Advanced Clinical Practice MSc, and can also be taken as a stand-alone module.

Timetable

• Wednesday 28 October 2026
• Wednesday 4 November 2026
• Wednesday 11 November 2026
• Wednesday 18 November 2026 (formative OSCE)
• Wednesday 25 November 2026

Assessment dates and type:

• Wednesday 2 December 2026 (OSCE)
• Wednesday 16 December 2026 (OSCE resit)
• Wednesday 13 January 2027 (Essay).

Who is it for?

This course is aimed at emergency care professionals, particularly paramedics, nurses and doctors, who have experience in the pre-hospital environment or emergency departments and have completed core emergency care education. It is also suitable for trainee Advanced Clinical Practitioners (ACPs) who are engaged in regular supervised practice.

Benefits

Completing this module will enable you to:

• Deepen your expertise in polytrauma assessment and care
• Improve your clinical leadership in emergency situations
• Enhance your ability to critically evaluate trauma protocols and service provision
• Build confidence in managing complex trauma cases in diverse populations.

This short course module is designed to be flexible in allowing you to study and reach your goals at your own pace. Our health CPD courses are credit-bearing modules that may contribute to a University degree or award.

Transfer course credits towards postgraduate taught degree

As a health care professional, once you've completed this course you could offset 15 credits as part of a postgraduate programme, continuing your study with further modules to make up a Postgraduate Certificate (PGCert) 60 credits.

Upon completion of the course, you will be able to:

• Enhance your knowledge-base and demonstrate expertise specific to polytrauma care
• Critically evaluate service provision and care for patients with polytrauma in the emergency department
• Critically discuss the pathophysiology of polytrauma across diverse patient groups
• Demonstrate advanced initial assessment skills and evaluate clinical data
• Appraise trauma protocols and apply management strategies in emergency settings
• Evaluate the evidence base for trauma interventions
• Critically assess ethical and legal considerations in polytrauma care.

This module is delivered onsite at the Tooting Campus. Teaching methods include a blend of didactic lectures, group discussions, simulation and moulage.

To successfully complete the course, you will be required to complete the following:

• Two simulated patient assessments, twenty minutes each, in the simulation suite
• One 1,500 word in-depth critical reflection on their performance of the simulated summative assessment and how it relates to their clinical practice.

Credits

This course is worth 15 credits toward eligible programmes.

Apply for this module by completing this online form.

If applying for this module, you MUST state the Module Title and Course Code in the personal statement tab. Without this we will be unaware of what module you are applying for and will delay your application decision.

You are expected to have previous core emergency care education or equivalent experience. Trainee ACPs should document supervised clinical practice and reflections aligned with the module outcomes.

You should be registered health professionals with a minimum of 2 years post qualifying experience in a healthcare setting.

You must also possess:

Students with UK qualifications

You should have all of the following:

• Honours degree (2:2 or above) from the UK or Republic of Ireland
• recognised healthcare/health-related professional qualification and current professional registration
• at least one years full-time clinical experience (or the equivalent in part-time hours) in health or social care employment (for example nursing, paramedics, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, pharmacy, radiology, etc).

Students with International qualifications

We accept equivalent qualifications gained in other countries. Please see our Entry Requirements page. For countries not on this list, we use UK ENIC to assess. Please see our International Student Support pages for more information.

If you have any questions, you can contact us at pec@sgul.ac.uk

English requirements

If your first language is not English, you will require one of the following:

• A first degree from a UK university
• A first degree from an overseas institution recognised by City St George's, University of London as providing adequate evidence of proficiency in the English language, for example, from institutions from Australia, Canada or the United States of America
• International English Language Test Service (IELTS) a score of 7.0 is required with no subtest below 7.0
• Pearson Test of English (Academic) score 72 required
• TOEFL 100 overall with 24 in Writing, 20 in Listening, 19 Reading and 20 Speaking
• Other evidence of proficiency in the English language, which satisfies the board of studies concerned, including registration with your professional regulator.

Full details can be found on our English Language requirements webpage.