Welcome to Medical Terminology and Common Diseases, a course designed for all students who plan to complete one of our twelve Health Technology programs and those who wish to enroll in just this one course. Allow me to introduce myself - Pat Hassel, instructor for this course. I have been a full-time faculty member of the Biology/Health Sciences Division of De Anza College since 1969 and program coordinator of the Health Technologies Department since 1984. I was an operating room nurse, cardiology and pulmonary staff nurse and pediatric advice nurse prior to and during my teaching tenure. And I squeezed in one more wonderful job: I was a travel study program coordinator for a local nursing magazine, traveling and teaching continuing education courses on cruise ships to Alaska, the Caribbean, Greece, and Hawaii, in addition to teaching in China, Australia, and New Zealand, and Europe. So, now you know where all my stories and examples will come from!

You can reach me by leaving a message on my voice-mail or e-mail and I will respond within 24 hours.

There are two methods of learning medical terminology - the easy way and the hard way. The hard way consists of memorizing each word after looking it up in the dictionary. I used this method in nursing school. The easier method consists of memorizing the word components - prefixes, suffixes, and roots. This course uses the easy method!

This course has three main objectives: identifying and defining the most common prefixes, suffixes, and roots; interpreting medical terms that would indicate diseases or conditions of the various body systems; and pronunciation and spelling of medical terms accurately.

The textbook, Medical Terminology: A Text/Workbook has everything you will need for this course. The front of the text contains the material to study, the assignments are in the back of the text and there is a glossary (dictionary) behind the assignments. You might wish to purchase a medical dictionary for additional reference use.

In order to successfully complete this course, you must complete three assignments (from the back of the text) after each of the nine teleclasses, take four examinations, and complete the take-home final exam. Our passing percent is 76 percent.

This quarter you will have the option of viewing the teleclasses on your home computer via videostreaming. The following gives you information on the hardware and software required in order to access this feature:

A high speed Internet connection is needed to view the videostreams. If you are connecting from home, this means a cable modem or DSL.

Please note on the "Webcasts and Videostreams" page, there is a link toward the top of the page to the RealPlayer download. If you do not have RealPlayer installed on your computer, selecting this link will take you to the RealPlayer web page where you can download the software. There are also links to the Real website with system requirements and a "Test Video Clip" to try once you have downloaded the software. The quality of the videostream can be affected by Internet congestion on the De Anza Campus or network congestion with your Internet service provider.

Note: Videostreaming gives you as a Distance Learning student a unique opportunity to review previous lessons while the course is in progress. Whereas you can only view Lesson 1 during the first week of classes, the following week you will be able to access Lessons 1 and 2 and so on throughout the quarter.

The videostreamed lessons are also available through iTunes. You can access them from the De Anza home page by clicking on the iTunes U icon on the left side of the page.

Webcasts and Videostreaming

The video lessons for this course are also available as videostreams. If you would like to access your video lessons from a computer you will need:

• RealPlayer installed on the computer.
• A high speed Internet connection.

To access the videostreams go to http://catalyst.deanza.edu and follow the logon instructions on this page. You will not be able to logon until the first day of instruction.

If you do not already have RealPlayer you may download it for free. Some courses use Quicktime instead of RealPlayer. Instructions for downloading are in your Catalyst course.

Keep in mind that network congestion either at De Anza College or with your ISP can affect the smooth delivery of the videostream.

• Apply for admission to De Anza College and register for this class, if you have not already done so. Completing this orientation DOES NOT enroll you in the course.
• EITHER complete the online orientation and submit the Student Information Form (part of the online orientation) OR attend the Orientation Meeting on Friday. All students are strongly advised to attend the on-campus orientation for more specific information about the course.
• Read the complete course syllabus available http://distance.deanza.fhda.edu and select "Online Syllabi".
• Obtain the required course materials from the De Anza College Bookstore. Course materials may be ordered online from the Bookstore.
• Determine your video program viewing schedule. If you plan to check out the video programs from the De Anza College Library West Computer Lab you must obtain a DASB Photo ID card (in the Hinson Campus Center Student Activities Office) and a Distance Learning ID card (in the Distance Learning Office, LC-107).
• Consult the Assignment Schedule in the syllabus and start your Weeks 1 and 2 readings and assignments.