Clinical Case Computer Tutorials in Biochemistry

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Clinical Case Computer
Tutorials in Biochemistry

Revised September 28th, 2002

In most of these tutorials the knowledge level expected is that of students in a health science biochemistry course. However, some knowledge of other medical sciences may be required. In a few of the tutorials, including "Frank" below, some familiarity with clinical biochemistry and pathological histology, and their use in diagnosis is useful but not essential.

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Design:

These tutorials are meant to
encourage students to teach themselves..

In some of the tutorials the student is moved through a fixed sequence of informational screens. In others the user is free to explore the tutorial's content as desired. In both types, questions are presented in appropriate places as various clinical and biochemical findings are encountered. Some questions are multiple choice in style but many require a typed entry of the student's response. Repeated incorrect responses elicit increasingly simpler corrective information until the student's level of knowledge is matched.

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Style:

In the tutorial "Plasma Lipids" animated sequences illustrate the complex sequential reactions of apoproteins with various plasma lipids
in the formation and disposal of plasma lipoproteins.
In the remainder of the tutorials interactive problem solving is stressed. The tutorial "Recombination" explores the student's knowledge and ability to use some of the basic concepts of molecular biology and genetics. The other tutorials deal with "real" patients. To simulate such encounters the student, as the health care provider, is given the patient's initial complaint but not its cause(s). She/he is then assigned the task of identifying the underlying problem, its cause(s) and in some cases, is asked to participate in the therapeutic management.

The style is self-testing, supportive and corrective rather than instructional.

Opportunities to learn/review basic terms and definitions when they are encountered in each patient's "story" are available through hypertext links.

The tutorials themselves can be downloaded
to a Macintosh in the "tutorialName.sea.hqx" format
and will need to be decompressed with the
Stuffit Expander or similar utility.

Some of these tutorials can be run on the Web

The whole website of others can be downloaded to run on your own Windows computer

The tutorials can be accessed from the menu.

http://www.umanitoba.ca/faculties/medicine/units/biochem/coursenotes/blanchaer_tutorials/

Comments & questions to: Marcel Blanchaer (blanch@cc.umanitoba.ca)