You will master medical calculations in and engaging environment in these fun and practical lessons. You will gain the medical math skills you need for anything from calculating dosages to using scientific formulas. Whatever medical field you are in, the hands-on activities in this course will help you perform day-to-day math tasks quickly and easily.
You will brush up your basic math skills by reviewing fractions, decimals, and percentages. Then you will dive into measurement systems and conversions used in the medical field. You will do dosage calculations for oral, parenteral, and intravenous medications. You will explore three different methods you can use for dosage calculations. You will also learn an easy formula that you can apply to many dosage calculations. Then you will get an introduction to basic statistics and probability. You will find out how to interpret the latest medical findings for your patients. Whether you are new to the field of medicine or want to enhance your skills, this is the course for you. By the time you finish these lessons, you will have a solid grounding in basic medical math.
Ben Sellers has more than 17 years of teaching experience both online and in the traditional classroom. He has taught college students, working professionals, adult learners, and K-12 students. He has also taught a wide variety of students in the medical field, including lab technicians, nurses, pharmacists, and aspiring physicians. Sellers holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in the mathematical sciences and has worked as a mathematical and statistical consultant.
The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment and will be available online.
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Lesson 1
Has it been a while since you multiplied fractions? Converted decimals to percents? Used exponents or powers of 10? Today we’ll review these math topics—and more—because they’re what medical professionals commonly need to use. You’ll get lots of practice in this lesson, so if you’re a little rusty, don’t worry—you’ll be back up to speed in no time!
Lesson 2
Do you remember how to convert centimeters to inches and pounds to kilograms? We’ll cover the metric system along with the U.S. customary system of measurement. You’ll become a master at making conversions within and between the two systems, and you’ll learn how medical professionals use these measurements every day.
Lesson 3
“Amoxicillin 500 mg PO b.i.d.” What does this medication order mean? In Lesson 3, we’ll unlock some of the jargon and abbreviations these orders use. You’ll interpret ratios, determine rates, and set up and solve proportions—all of which will help you as you determine medication dosages and make other medical calculations.
Lesson 4
Can you convert liters per hour to milliliters per minute? Do you know how to calculate body surface area to use in a pediatric dosage calculation? You’ll learn these skills and more in Lesson 4. We’ll cover the basics of dimensional analysis and then use it to solve problems that are more complex. We’ll also focus on several key formulas that medical professionals use. And you’ll learn different ways to solve the same problem, so you can choose the method that’s easiest and fastest for you!
Lesson 5
What are the three forms of oral medications? Do you know how to calculate the dose of an oral liquid medication based on body weight? And what does “mEq” mean? In Lesson 5, we’ll apply what you’ve learned in previous lessons as you master new skills. You’ll calculate doses of oral medications in solid and liquid form. You’ll also learn to dose oral medications based on body weight and body surface area.
Lesson 6
Can you interpret the percent strength of a solution and use it in a dosage calculation? Do you know how to prepare dilutions from stock solutions? In Lesson 6, you’ll learn about solution strengths as ratios and percentages, and you’ll practice the calculations necessary to prepare solutions.
Lesson 7
Do you know how to reconstitute a powdered medication? Can you calculate dosages for medications that you have to inject? In Lesson 7, you’ll learn to formulate doses of parenteral medications. You’ll do calculations for liquid parenteral medications measured in milliliters and in units.
Lesson 8
Have you ever calculated the flow rate for an intravenous infusion? What's an enteral infusion? In Lesson 8, you'll learn the basics of intravenous and enteral solutions and infusions. You'll learn to calculate the flow rates for both kinds of infusions. You'll also figure out how long it will take a solution to infuse.
Lesson 9
What do IVP and IVPB mean? How do you calculate an IV flow rate based on a patient's body weight or body surface area? In Lesson 9, you'll learn how medical professionals give medications intravenously, and you'll practice calculating flow rates in different circumstances.
Lesson 10
Should you round dosing calculations up or down for pediatric patients? What are the best dosing practices for children and older adults? In Lesson 10, you'll learn about special dosing concerns for your younger and older patients. You'll calculate doses for pediatric and geriatric patients using body weight and body surface area. We'll also cover additional age-specific issues, like daily fluid maintenance and dosing of patients with reduced kidney function.
Lesson 11
How do you measure what's typical or average in a data set? And what's a standard deviation? In Lesson 11, you'll learn basic statistics that you can apply in the medical field. You'll see how to use statistics to summarize a data set. You'll also understand how people use data and statistics to make decisions, improve quality, and develop best practices in medicine.
Lesson 12
How do you collect good data? What's a p-value, and what does p < 0.05 mean? In Lesson 12, you'll work with examples from the medical field as you calculate and interpret probabilities. You'll also learn about ways to collect data. When you've finished this lesson, it'll be easier for you to understand and evaluate research results.
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