Open Learning News and Updates

New OER: Building a Medical Terminology Foundation 2e

The open educational resource (OER) Building a Medical Terminology Foundation has expanded. This second edition now includes a Student Companion Webbook, an interactive Anatomical Colouring Book, and instructor ancillaries. The ancillaries include chapter slide decks, an instructor planning guide, and assignment documents in Word format.

The first edition of this OER was published in 2020. Kimberlee Carter, a Conestoga College faculty member, championed the first edition. Carter, with considerable medical administration experience, was soon joined by Marie Rutherford, Georgian College faculty in Office Administration Health Services. They combined forces to crowd source a much-needed medical terminology resource for first-year college students in medical office administration.

A robust overview of how to pronounce medical terms and what they mean, the original publishing featured terminology cards and audio recordings. The resource also has a strong focus on anatomy and physiology.

Widespread adoption made this resource align with a wide range of fields - more than Rutherford had imagined. Paramedics, nurses, occupational therapists, and more have learned medical terminology with this OER. 

As more instructors adopted the first edition, Carter and Rutherford noticed something. Instructors were creating their own assignments and supplementary resources to accompany the text.

Seeing this as an opportunity, Rutherford partnered with Open Learning at Conestoga College and Sheridan College to execute a multi-pronged expansion that would improve the textbook and add interactive workbooks. 

In reflecting on her career which began as a nurse and operating room technician, she can clearly recall the most impactful learning resource she's ever used.

"It was my first day in my OR program and I was handed a colouring book and told to follow along," Rutherford says. "There I was, a graduate nurse shading in the anatomical structures before I was permitted to work in the operating room. And it was such a helpful tool that I've never forgotten it - or the anatomy."

A natural fit for this medical terminology OER, the Building a Medical Terminology Foundation 2e virtual Anatomical Colouring Book was born. Rutherford envisions students filling it in during lecture, or while studying. 

A Student Companion Workbook with over 65 downloadable worksheets that map to chapter content was created for this new edition. This will take away the need for instructors to create their own. Additionally, the refreshed textbook now includes chapters on oncology and mental health, and over 130 accessible H5P interactives. 

Together, these 3 resources create a robust learning experience for college students in medical and medical-adjacent fields. Rutherford is hopeful they will create an impact like she had in her first learning program.