Public health and human rights

The editorial introduces the special issue of the journal that incorporates papers originally presented at the "Public Health and Human Rights" conference held at the Monash Prato Centre, Italy, in June 2007. It identifies the intersection between public health and human rights; access to health care services, particularly for marginalised groups such as indigenous peoples and persons with mental illnesses; and the role of international instruments in encouraging states parties to implement and monitor compliance with these rights.     

TOWARDS WORLD-BEST PRACTICE IN ENGINEERING EDUCATION

Abstract: As Australia struggles to become technologically competitive and to raise its productivity to international standards, several reports have suggested that such productivity depends critically on the existence of an appropriately structured and trained engineering workforce. As a result, engineering education at all levels has come under close scrutiny and rapid change in the period 1987–92. The scrutiny has come from governments, industry and from the engineering profession itself. Some of the changes are consequent to wider administrative changes in education; others are inspired by industry training needs; still others have been brought about by the engineering education community in order to attract more high-quality students. The binary system of higher education has given way to a unified system. The state-controlled TAFE colleges are being brought under national standards. In engineering education a new three-year BTech degree is being promoted to fill the gap between two-year associate diplomas from TAFE colleges and four-year professional degrees from the universities, because of a serious shortage of para-professional engineers in Australian industry. Recent reviews and reports on engineering education have called for rapid expansion at all levels and a greater variety of courses. The use of competency standards is spreading from the trade levels into the professions, including engineering, threatening some traditional concepts of university education. The government has funded three Advanced Engineering Centres, modelled on institutes in other countries. Quality in higher education is under discussion, bringing the concepts of total quality management and world-best practice to teaching in the universities. Continuing professional education is being rapidly expanded by the Institution of Engineers, Australia. Many more women are now entering the engineering profession, attracted by the humanisation of engineering courses. Environmental engineering and combined degree courses are proving very popular. The level of technological awareness is being improved by bringing engineering students to assist in classes in primary and secondary schools. Cooperative education programs between universities and industry are proving attractive and effective.     

Medico-legal knowledge of general practitioners: disjunctions,errors and uncertainties

This article discusses a survey of Victorian general practitioners which investigated doctors' legal knowledge, the impact of law on clinical practice, doctors' current medico-legal information sources and their legal education needs and preferences. Knowledge of legal standards was investigated in relation to three areas: disclosure of risk; ownership of, and access to, medical records; and proxy decision-making. Additionally, the impact of statutory reform in relation to proxy decision-making was explored. Further, doctors' past experience of medico-legal education, current sources of medico-legal information and preferences concerning future medico-legal information were explored. Results indicated that overall, respondents had a very inadequate understanding of relevant law and that relevant statutory standards have had little impact on clinical practice. Professional bulletins and journals were identified as major current legal information sources, whilst printed materials, seminars and conferences were preferred sources of legal information. The authors conclude that there is a significant disjunction between legal standards and doctors' awareness of those standards, thereby creating a significant source of liability for doctors. Results highlight an urgent need to develop legal education programs for general practitioners based on doctors' identified needs and preferences.