Unit 1 sets the stage for the theme of the Principles of Biomedical Science™ course and is meant to introduce students to the world of biomedical and forensic science. Students will be introduced to a college student, Anna Garcia, who is found dead in a lab on campus. In the first lesson (10-11 blocks), students will investigate the scene, gather evidence, and then move to the lab to analyze their findings in order to determine her manner of death. Evidence investigated will include witness testimony, hair, fingerprints, and blood found at the scene, and digital evidence. Students will also analyze the DNA found at the scene to definitively identify persons of interests through the use of extraction, restriction enzyme digestion, and gel electrophoresis. This lesson will culminate in students creating a status report regarding their initial findings and explanations for what happened to Anna Garcia. In the second lesson (8-9 blocks) students will be taken through the steps of performing an autopsy to learn more information about the death of Anna Garcia. They will learn how to measure time of death using markers such as algor mortis, rigor mortis, and livor mortis. They will also explore the digestive, nervous, and circulatory systems in more depth through various investigations, including analyzing the contents of Anna’s stomach, reviewing brain scans, and dissecting a heart. By the end of this lesson, students will have a finalized autopsy report and can use that in conjunction with what they learned in the first lesson to create a forensic report detailing the events surrounding the death of Anna Garcia. Students will put together all of the evidence collected and analyzed regarding Anna’s mysterious death throughout the unit in order to draw conclusions and create a report detailing the suspected manner of death. In the third lesson (2-3 blocks) students will investigate use the knowledge and procedures they have learned throughout the unit to analyze a second mysterious death. They will work through each step of the forensic and medical examination and present their findings as an evidence board.

In Unit 2, students explore the day-to-day operations of a primary care office. Students will take on the role of primary care physicians and visit with a series of patients. Along the way, they will compile resources to create a formal report containing patient files from each individual lesson. Throughout the unit, they will explore case studies of Type 1 Diabetes, basal cell carcinoma, neurofibromatosis, chromosomal abnormalities, and familial hypercholesterolemia. In Lesson 1 (9-10 blocks), students will learn how to conduct a doctor’s visit and fill out a patient chart. They will start by conducting interviews to learn a patient’s medical history and then take vital signs, and simulate routine testing done both in the office and in the lab. They will then consider aspects of primary healthcare including telehealth and patient privacy. In Lesson 2 (11-12 blocks), students will build on their learning in Lesson 1 by using their simulated patient information and test results to determine a diagnosis and provide recommendations for next steps. Students explore the processes of mitosis, meiosis, and protein synthesis as they visit with patients with cancer and chromosomal abnormalities. They learn how genetic disorders are inherited and construct pedigrees representing their patients’ families. In Lesson 3 (2-3 blocks), students put together everything they have learned in the unit to meet and diagnose a new patient from start to finish. At the end of the unit, students will submit their final culmination of patient files as a formal report.

Unit 3 introduces students to various types of emergencies that can occur and different strategies to assess and resolve them. In Lesson 1 (9-10 blocks), students are tasked with identifying the source of an outbreak of an infectious disease in a hospital. They must analyze patient, staff, and hospital information to determine the likely source of the infection. They will then use aseptic technique to isolate and gram stain the infectious agent to identify it. In Lesson 2 (9-10 blocks), students take on the roles of emergency first responders. They are called to assist a hiker who has been injured in the woods. They must address the hiker’s injuries, stabilize her, and bring her to safety. They will then analyze decisions that have to be made when triaging multiple patients and dealing with medical surges in an emergency department. The lesson will culminate with students designing a mobile medical facility that can be used to better serve the public. In Lesson 3 (3-4 blocks), students analyze and design apps that can be used to help individuals in circumstances of public health emergencies.