There are two reasons why healthcare professionals, in particular nurses, need mathematical literacy (numeracy). First, math errors can and do kill. A review of fatal adverse drug events reported to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration from 1993 to 1998 reveals that 13% resulted from miscalculation of dosage. Second, healthcare professionals need more than just a mechanical understanding of math, because patient safety cannot be proven nor can performance improved unless it can be measured. Whether qualitative or quantitative, meaningful measurements and analysis of those measurements requires selection of appropriate methods based on conceptual understanding.
This self-study course, written by David Birnbaum, PhD, MPH, provides conceptual math fundamentals pertinent to healthcare professionals. Dr. Birnbaum developed the program as a study aid for nursing or other students starting a biostatistics course, or as a quick refresher course for nurses, nurse practitioners, or other healthcare professionals. It addresses the following areas:
- Representing quantities as numbers;
- Representing quantities as algebraic entities;
- Numeric and algebraic operations; and
- Math in nursing and public health practice.
Practice problems in each area, plus an overall self-assessment section are provided, with answers given and explained in an appendix.
|