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McGraw-Hill Guide to Success for
Medisoft® Simulations in Connect Plus
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Table of Contents
1: Welcome
2: Connect Plus Functionality
3: Demo Mode
4: Practice Mode
5: Test Mode
6: Assessment Mode
7: Tips for Working with the Content
8: Instructor Resources
9: Technical Support
10: Best Practices
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1: Welcome
Welcome to our latest product offering—simulated versions of our Medisoft exercises!
Given the feedback we have received from our customers about the challenges of working with live
software, McGraw-Hill is pleased to now be able to offer simulated versions of our Medisoft exercises
through Connect Plus, which uses the latest technology and adaptive learning techniques to better
connect instructors to their students, and students to the information and customized resources they
need to master a subject. Connect Plus includes a variety of digital learning tools that enable professors
to easily customize courses and allow students to learn and master content and succeed in the course.
This Guide is meant to give you all the information you will need to successfully work with the
simulations in Connect Plus.



Medisoft Exercises include the following parts:
o Demo Mode—watch a demonstration of the exercise.
o Practice Mode—try the exercise yourself with guidance.
o Test Mode—complete the exercise on your own.
o Assessment—answer 2-3 conceptual questions about the exercise you just completed.
For each Medisoft Exercise, the data matches the data provided in the student data files used
with the live software for each of the products.
Sometimes exercises from the book are broken into multiple simulations due to length. When
this occurs, there will only be one Assessment assignment, which is applicable to all segments of
the exercise.
We have simulated versions of the Medisoft Advanced Version 17 exercises for the following titles:



Sanderson, Computers in the Medical Office (CiMO), 8e
Valerius/Bayes/Newby/Blochowiak, Medical Insurance, 6e
Newby/Carr, Insurance in the Medical Office, 7e
Supporting material for each title can be found in a variety of places:
Product
Exercise Steps
Sanderson
Listed in the book for
Chapters 2-10;
Simulation steps
(including Chapters 1114) also provided to
instructors for
Exercise
Scenarios
In
Chapters
2-14 in
the book
Source Documents
Assessment Questions
In the back of the book
Documentation of
questions and correct
answers available for
instructors at
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Valerius
Newby




distribution at
www.mhhe.com/cimo8
e
Provided to instructors
for distribution at
www.mhhe.com/valeri
us6e
Provided to instructors
for distribution at
www.mhhe.com/newb
ycarr
In
Chapters
8-12 & 15
in the
book
Included with the
exercises for Chapters
8-12 & 15 in the book
In
Chapters
3-12 in
the book
Available for students
and instructors at
www.mhhe.com/newb
ycarr
Documentation of
questions and correct
answers available for
instructors at
www.mhhe.com/valerius
6e
Documentation of
questions and correct
answers available for
instructors at
www.mhhe.com/newbyc
arr
In the case of Sanderson “Computers in the Medical Office, 8e,” you may notice that the
number of steps varies between the book and the simulation or that some steps are different.
o The number may vary because one step in the book may contain several actions that
each count as a single step in the simulation.
o An advantage of the simulation is that you can skip steps that would need to be done in
the live software for efficiency. For instance, you may have to press the “Tab” key to
move from box to box in the live software. However, in the simulation, we can delete
those steps so you can focus on the more critical actions.
o A number of the exercises in the live software require printing a report. It is not possible
to print something in a simulation. Instead, you will just preview the report on screen.
The specific exercises will explain and walk you through this process.
For Sanderson, you will also see that we have three exercises that can only be done in Connect
Plus and not the live software: Exercise 2-6: Restoring a Backup File, Exercise 3-10: Verifying a
Patient's Eligibility, and Exercise 7-6: Performing an Electronic Claim Edit Check. (Please note
that restoring a backup file can be done in the live software; we recommend that as a practice
exercise in Chapter 2, where no data has been entered yet, that the exercise be done as a
simulation only.)
In the case of Valerius, “Medical Insurance, 6e,” you may notice that the exercises for Chapter
16 are not available in Connect Plus. We determined that completing secondary claims would be
too complex a process to simulate for this edition.
In the case of Newby, “Insurance in the Medical Office, 7e,” you may notice that there are two
versions of many of the exercises for Chapters 7-12. This is because we created simulated
versions of completing the task in both Medisoft and using the CMS-1500 form. (There is only
one assessment that can be assigned with either version of the exercise.)
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2: Connect Plus Functionality
Before you get started with the course in Connect Plus, you will want to review the technical
requirements and specifics about the functionality of the online platform. This section will address
the following:



General technical requirements for Connect Plus
Technical requirements & functionality specific to the courses with Medisoft simulations
Information for creating assignments in this Connect Plus course
General Technical Requirements for Connect Plus
Connect Plus is a web-based platform accessible via Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, and Google
Chrome browsers. To ensure that you are able to use Connect Plus effectively, please review the
system information below against the programs currently available on your computer.
Checking Your Browser Settings
1.
The simplest way to ensure that your computer is ready to use Connect Plus is to
automatically perform a check of the system using the “Check My Computer” link for
Connect Plus. To check your computer:
a. Go to http://connect.mcgraw-hill.com. Scroll down the page, and click “Technical
Support” in the lower left corner.
b. You can review the supported browsers on this page. Scroll down on this page and
click “Check My Computer”
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c. After clicking “Check My Computer”, the system will automatically check to ensure
that the proper plug-ins and browser settings to run Connect Plus are available on
your computer. You’ll see a result similar to the screenshot below. In some cases,
this check may alert you to areas where an upgrade is needed to your settings to use
Connect Plus most effectively. In cases where you may need to upgrade a browser or
Adobe Flash, links are provided to update.
2. In addition, you may wish to review the following Connect Plus system requirements as of
March 2013 (we are always working to support the latest browsers and components, so
please use the “Check My Computer” link indicated in #1 above for the most accurate
information):
a. Operating Systems
i. Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition 2002 (Service Pack 2), Microsoft
Windows XP Professional 2002, Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium
Edition, Microsoft Windows 7
ii. Mac OS X Snow Leopard 10.6, Mac OS Lion 10.7
iii. *Please ensure that your browser accepts cookies and pop-ups from
http://connect.mcgraw-hill.com and that JavaScript is enabled.
b. Browsers
i. Firefox 12+ (this is the preferred browser)
ii. Internet Explorer 8, 9
iii. Google Chrome 18+
iv. Safari 5.x (Mac)
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c. Plugs-Ins
i. Flash 11+
ii. Java SE6, SE7 (required for instructors only)
iii. QuickTime 7.7+
If you encounter any system difficulties, you can access McGraw-Hill customer support anytime at
http://mpss.mhhe.com/connectlinks.php, www.mhhe.com/support, or (800) 331-5094. Please be sure
to also review the quick guides and general Connect Plus tips available at
http://mpss.mhhe.com/connectlinks.php for both instructors and students.
Some General Tips
1. The speed at which the Medisoft activities run on your computer is entirely dependent on your
computer’s capabilities and your Internet connection speed. In other words, if your computer is
generally slow with loading Internet applications, this won’t be any different. (Demo Mode is set
to have each screen appear and remain visible for three seconds before moving to the next
screen, but your experience may differ.) Once you begin each mode, you will see a screen
similar to the one below. Once it gets to 100%, the exercise will start.
2. It was important for us to include audio on the Demo and Practice Modes to assist those whose
learning style is best suited to audio guidance, as well as to comply with Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements. You can disable the audio in Demo Mode by clicking the
audio button.
In Practice Mode, you can also use the play button to re-play the audio for the step that you are
on, in addition to being able to disable the audio.
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Test Mode does not have any audio, nor do the Assessments.
Information for Instructors on Creating Assignments for the Simulated Exercises
1. If you want to assign the Medisoft exercises, you will select the “Medisoft Simulation Exercises”
option on the assignment creation page. (If you are familiar with Connect Plus, this is different
than where you would normally go to create assignments: “create new from question bank.”)
2. You will then see each exercise broken out into the four modes. You can choose to assign each
mode separately, one at a time. However, we recommend you assign all four modes of an
exercise together. To do this, you’ll want to select “Assign All.”
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[Please note that the “manual grading” heading does not apply to these exercises. If there were
an icon in that column next to an exercise, it would require manual grading.]
When you get to the policies page for these exercises, you can do the following:
 Under “basic settings” you can set the number of attempts allowed for the activity,
which defaults to Unlimited
 Under “set score” you can set the number of points for the assignment, which defaults
to 100 points
 Under “available” you can set whether the assignment is available now or later—if later,
you will select the date and time
 Under “due” you must set a due date for the assignment.
 Once you are done on this page, you will click the “assign” button.
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If the modes don’t come through in the proper order when you assign them, you can drag and
drop them to put them in the right order for your students once they show up on your home
page.
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Note: we recommend that instructors click “switch to student home view” before viewing the
exercises. Otherwise, if you use the preview in the instructor home view, the Exercise window
will be smaller and more difficult to read.
3. Due to the number of exercises in each book (especially CiMO), we recommend that when you
set up your assignments you only make a few chapters available at a time for the students. You
can use the “show/hide” button on your assignment home page to control this. Put a check
mark in the right-hand boxes for the assignments you want to show or hide, and then click the
drop-down menu at the top. If the eyeball icon has a slash through it, it means the assignment
will not appear on the student assignment list. You can adjust these settings as needed
throughout the duration of your course.
4. The next sections of this Guide get into more details on each of the four modes. You will find
some additional tips in Section 7 of the Guide.
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3: Demo Mode
Demo Mode is the first mode for each simulated exercise.
Here is what the opening screen will look like:
Here is the text, which will be the same for every exercise:
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In Demo Mode, you can watch a task being completed in Medisoft. You will watch the steps being
performed - you will not need to do any clicking to complete the steps. You can use the navigation bar at
the bottom of the screen to pause the demo. You must complete the entire demo in order to receive a
grade for this activity. Click the Begin Demo Mode button at the bottom of this box to start. **NOTE #1:
If you close out of the browser before clicking the Return to Assignment List button at the end of the
exercise, your assignment will show as In Progress and no score will be reported to your instructor.
**NOTE #2: You can see the set-up information for this exercise, along with the steps, in the textbook
that accompanies this online course.
Here are the highlights of what you can expect with this mode:


Watch a task being completed in

You can also follow along with the steps provided in the Step Window on the right of your
screen.
Medisoft—no clicking required to complete the steps.
You can follow along with the steps in the book. (This applies to Sanderson Computers in the
Medical Office, 8e only.)
o
o
o
The Step Window shows the text of the steps along with any images. You will also see
various headings for different groups of steps (i.e. Medisoft Advanced 17 – CIMO8e).
These are automatically captured when recording the simulations and have no bearing
on the steps the user needs to complete.
The Step Window may appear differently in terms of location on the screen for each
person, depending on monitor size and browser window size.
If you want to move the Step Window, you can click on it with your mouse and drag it to
another spot on your screen. (Just be careful that you do not drag so far to the right that
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o
o
you cannot see it the next time you open an exercise, as the system may “remember”
where you last had it.)
You can also close the Step Window in two ways:
 Click the “Hide Steps” button at the bottom of the screen. (You can click the
button again to “Restore Steps”).
 Click the “Close” (“x”) button at the top right of the Step Window.
You can also print the Steps by clicking on the Printer button at the top right of the Step
Window.


You can use the navigation bar at the bottom of the screen to pause and re-start the demo.


You will receive a grade of 100% for completing this mode.

If you use the progress bar at the bottom of the screen to skip steps, your submission will only
show as In Progress. You must view all of the steps in order for it to show as submitted.
You will also hear audio narration of the steps. As noted in the previous chapter of this Guide,
you can mute the audio if you prefer.
If you start the exercise but close out of the exercise before completing it, you will see the
opening screen again. After the exercise loads again, you will then see a box asking if you
want to start again from where you left off. If you click “Yes” it will take you to where you
stopped. If you click “No” it will take you back to the beginning.
Here is what the closing screen will look like:
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Here is the text, which will be the same for every exercise:
You have completed Demo Mode and will receive full credit. Click the Return to Assignment List button at
the bottom of this box to return to your assignment list in Connect. **Note: If you used the progress bar
at the bottom of the activity to skip ahead to the end, your assignment will show as In Progress and no
score will be reported to the grade book.
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4: Practice Mode
Practice Mode is the second mode for each simulated exercise.
Here is what the opening screen will look like:
Here is the text, which will be the same for every exercise:
In Practice Mode, you can complete a simulated Medisoft task yourself. (If your instructor assigned the
Demo Mode for this exercise, it will be the same activity that you will see here.) Simply follow the onscreen text prompts to complete the steps. You must complete the entire Practice in order to receive a
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grade for this activity. Click the Begin Practice Mode button at the bottom of this box to start. **NOTE
#1: If you close out of the browser before clicking the Return to Assignment List button, your assignment
will show as In Progress and no score will be reported to your instructor. **NOTE #2: You can see the setup information for this exercise, along with the steps, in the textbook that accompanies this online
course.
Here are the highlights of what you can expect with this mode:



Complete the same simulated

In addition, you can follow along with the steps provided in the Step Window on the right of
your screen.
Medisoft task yourself.
Follow the audio and on-screen text prompts to complete the steps.
You can also follow along with the steps in the book. (This applies to Sanderson Computers in
the Medical Office, 8e only.)
o
o
o
The Step Window shows the text of the steps along with any images. You will also see
various headings for different groups of steps (i.e. Medisoft Advanced 17 – CIMO8e).
These are automatically captured when recording the simulations and have no bearing
on the steps the user needs to complete.
The Step Window may appear differently in terms of location on the screen for each
person, depending on monitor size and browser window size.
If you want to move the Step Window, you can click on it with your mouse and drag it to
another spot on your screen. (Just be careful that you do not drag so far to the right that
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o
o
you cannot see it the next time you open an exercise, as the system may “remember”
where you last had it.)
You can also close the Step Window in two ways:
 Click the “Hide Steps” button at the bottom of the screen. (You can click the
button again to “Restore Steps”).
 Click the “Close” (“x”) button at the top right of the Step Window.
You can also print the Steps by clicking on the Printer button at the top right of the Step
Window.


You can use the navigation bar at the bottom of the screen to move forwards and backwards.

If you start the exercise but close out of the exercise before completing it, you will see the
opening screen again. After the exercise loads again, you will then see a box asking if you
want to start again from where you left off. If you click “Yes” it will take you to where you
stopped. If you click “No” it will take you back to the beginning.

If you use the progress bar at the bottom of the screen to skip steps, your submission will only
show as In Progress. You must view all of the steps in order for it to show as submitted.

If you perform a step incorrectly, the simulation will not move forward until you do it correctly.
(For instance, if you are typing in a text box and make a typo, the simulation will delete the
wrong letter and will not advance until you type the correct letter.) Please note that the
simulation is NOT case sensitive.

Information boxes will sometimes appear to give additional information. You may be
instructed to click anywhere on the screen to advance if no other action is required for that
step.

You will receive a grade of 100% for completing this mode.
You will also hear audio narration of the steps. As noted in the previous chapter of this Guide,
you can mute the audio if you prefer.
Here is what the closing screen will look like:
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Here is the text, which will be the same for every exercise:
You have completed Practice Mode and will receive full credit. Click the Return to Assignment List button
at the bottom of this box to return to your assignment list in Connect. **Note: If you used the progress
bar at the bottom of the activity to skip ahead to the end, your assignment will show as In Progress and
no score will be reported back to the grade book.
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5: Test Mode
Test Mode is the third mode of each simulated exercise.
Here is what the opening screen will look like:
Here is the text, which will be the same for every exercise:
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In Test Mode, you will test your knowledge by completing a simulated Medisoft task on your own,
without on-screen guidance. (If your instructor assigned the Demo Mode or the Practice Mode for this
exercise, it will be the same activity that you will complete here.) **You can use your textbook to review
the steps as you go along. Please be very careful what you do as the system will register any misspelled
entries and wrong clicks and reduce your score accordingly. Your total score will be displayed at the end
of the test. Click the Begin Test Mode button at the bottom of this box to start. **NOTE #1: If you close
out of the browser before clicking the Return to Assignment List button, your assignment will show as In
Progress and no score will be reported to your instructor. **NOTE #2: There is no audio with Test Mode.
Here are the highlights of what you can expect with this mode:

Test your knowledge by completing the same simulated
Medisoft task on your own, without
on-screen guidance.

You can also follow along with the steps in the book, if allowed by the instructor. (This applies
to Sanderson Computers in the Medical Office, 8e only.)

At the end of the test, you will be scored based on the number of correctly completed steps.
Each step is worth 1 point. (Please note that while the simulation is NOT case sensitive, if you
make a typo, you will be marked wrong.)
o If you perform the step correctly on the first try, you will receive the point for that
action.
o If you perform the step incorrectly, a box will pop up with two options. Regardless of
which you select, you will lose the point for that action. (However, if you keep making
a mistake on the same step, you only lose the one point—you will not be penalized
additional points.)



If you click on “Yes”, the simulation will tell you the correct action. You will
need to do the step correctly in order to advance to the next step.
If you click on “No”, you can just do the step yourself. Again, you will need to
do the step correctly in order to advance. (The box above will appear each
time you make a mistake.)
At the end of this mode, you will see a box with the total number of steps, how many steps
you got incorrect, your percentage score, and the specific step numbers for any steps you got
incorrect. Only the percentage will go into the instructor’s grade book. If a student wants to
make note of the details, they could take a screenshot of the window or use their cursor to
highlight the text in the box, and then copy and paste the text into another file. That file can
then be printed or emailed as needed.
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After scrolling:

If you close out of the browser before clicking the Return to Assignment List button, your
assignment will show as In Progress and no score will be reported to your instructor.
The closing screen is shown in the preceding two screenshots.
Here is the text, which will be the same for every exercise:
You have completed the Test Mode. You can see your results below. Your percentage will be reported to
your instructor. Click the Return to Assignment List button at the bottom of the box to return to your
assignment list in Connect.
Passing Feedback
Total Step(s) (number will vary)
Total Incorrect (number will vary)
Score (number will vary)
Incorrect Step Number(s) (numbers will vary)
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6: Assessment Mode
Assessment Mode is the fourth and final mode of each simulated exercise. The look and feel of this
mode is different than the other modes.
The first two screens for each exercise will always be the same. Here is the first screen:
You will need to click the “Next” button in the bottom right corner to move to the second screen. (The
Progress bar in the bottom left corner simply indicates your progress through the first two screens. This
is part of the software we used to create the simulations and does not indicate your progress through
the questions themselves.)
Here is the second screen:
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You will need to click the “Continue” button in the middle of screen to get to the questions.
Here are the highlights of what you can expect with this mode:





Further test your knowledge by completing assessment questions related to the simulated
Medisoft exercise.
You may see a variety of question types:
o Multiple Choice
o Fill in the Blanks
o Matching
o Sequencing
o Select each Correct Answer
o Hotspot—this question type asks the student to specify a certain area on a screenshot.
You will receive a point for each question you answer correctly.
You will click the “Continue” button after you answer a question in order to advance to the next
question.
For the Matching, Sequencing and Hotspot questions, you will see a “Reset” button. You can
click this to re-do your actions before moving forward.
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
Your total score will be translated into a percentage (out of 100%) that is displayed at the end of
the test, along with your Incorrect Question Results. You can then see what your answer was
and what the correct answer was. Only the percentage will go into the instructor’s grade book.
If a student wants to make note of the details, they could take a screenshot of the window.


If you close out the assessment in the middle, you will have to start over when you go back to
the assignment, but it will show as In Progress.
You must answer each question; you cannot skip a question or go back to a previous question.
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7: Tips for Working with the Content






Be patient when starting the modes—the load time will depend on the number of steps in the
exercise.
Sometimes in Practice and Test Modes, it may seem like your first click has not registered. Give
the simulation a moment and try again. (It just means that it was still finishing loading.)
Due to the software we are using to capture the activities in Medisoft, it may sometimes appear
that an item is already selected or highlighted. You may also notice a label near an icon or step
that we call “hover text” because that label appears when your mouse hovers over that item.
These items are very common with simulations.
Sometimes you may need to scroll on your browser window in order to see a step. This will
depend on your monitor size, your resolution, and your browser window size.
Sometimes you may need to move the Step Window out of your way to see a step.
Sometimes you may see a note similar to the following after you complete a mode:
This is a known bug in Connect Plus. However, your screen should quickly go back to your
assignment list without consequence.

It is up to each instructor if they want to assign all modes for an exercise. In the case of
Sanderson’s Computers in the Medical Office the steps are not included in the book for Chapters
11-14. In that case, an instructor may just assign some of the modes.
8: Instructor Resources
A variety of instructor resources for each book can be found at their respective websites:
www.mhhe.com/cimo8e, www.mhhe.com/valerius6e, www.mhhe.com/newbycarr. Instructors can
request a password through their sales representative.
Key supplements include:

Instructor’s Manual (organized by Learning Outcomes)
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www.mhhe.com/cimo8e
www.mhhe.com/valerius6e
www.mhhe.com/newbycarr
27




o Lesson Plans
o Answer Keys
PowerPoint Presentations (organized by Learning Outcomes)—includes Teaching Notes
Electronic Testbank
o EZ Test Online (computerized)
o Word version
Tools to Plan Course
o Correlations of the Learning Outcomes to Accrediting Bodies such as CAHIIM, ABHES and
CAAHEP
o Conversion Guide from previous edition to this edition
o Sample Syllabi
o Asset Map—clickable PDF with links to all key supplements, broken down by Learning
Outcomes, as well as information on the content available through Connect Plus
Medisoft Tools Pages (tools for using the live software)
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28
9: Technical Support
NEED SUPPORT? Contact the Customer Experience Group (CXG). They are available Sunday through
Friday.

CXG Representatives can be reached @ 800-331-5094

The CXG Self-Service site can be found @ www.mhhe.com/support
o
o
o
View product frequently asked question (FAQs)
Submit a support request using our contact us form http://mpss.mhhe.com/contact.php
View instructor orientation schedule
Want to learn more about these products?
Attend one of our regularly scheduled online webinars. To learn more about the webinars, please
contact your McGraw-Hill sales representative. To find your McGraw-Hill representative, go to
www.mhhe.com and click Find My Sales Rep.
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29
10: Best Practices


Assigning the entire scenario
o To save time, you can assign the entire scenario of exercises by doing the following prior
to assigning any modes:
 From the course home page, click “Add Assignment.”
 Click on “Medisoft Simulation Exercises.” It may take a moment to load.
 In the upper right corner, click on “Assign Scenario.”
 Note: This must be done before assigning any exercises. Once exercises
have been assigned, the “Assign Scenario” option is no longer available.
 Be patient as the scenario takes some time to load.
 Once the scenario is loaded, you will see all of the Medisoft exercises in the
course home screen.
 From here, you can create “groups” and “move” your assignments to
each group. For example, if you wish to have Chapters 3 and 4 assigned
in the first week of class, you can create a group named “Week One
Simulations,” then click the boxes next to all of the Chapter 3 and 4
exercises and move them to that group.
 You can also “hide” or delete assignments.
o If you only want to assign specific exercises from the scenario, it still saves time to assign
the entire scenario, and then simply delete the unwanted exercises.
 To delete unwanted exercises, go to the course home screen.
 Check the box to the right of each exercise that you want deleted.
 Go to the icon shown here
(next to “+Add Assignment) and hover
over it.
 Scroll down to “Delete,” then follow the prompts to delete the desired
assignments.
Creating “groups” to organize the course
o Whether assigning the entire scenario or just portions of it, creating group folders are
helpful in keeping the course and the students organized.
o Groups are similar to “folders,” in which a category can be created and then all work
pertaining to that category can be kept in it.
o Groups are typically created to represent course weeks or modules. For example, a tenweek course would have a group for each of the ten weeks, labeled “Week 1,” “Week
2,” and so on. All work assigned for each week would be moved to and kept in their
respective weeks.
 To create a group, go to the course home screen.
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30



Go to the icon shown here
(next to “+Add Assignment) and hover
over it.
 Scroll down to “Group” and click “Add” if you want a new one or “Edit” if you
want to edit an existing one (follow the prompts to edit).
 To add, enter a group name, for example “Week 1 Assignments.”
 If desired, provide a brief description, for example “Assignments are due by
Week 2.”
 Click “Save.”
 Your group will show up in the course home page at the bottom of the
assignment list.
Moving assignments or exercises to groups for student access
o All assignments or exercises created can be moved to any group after it has been
created.
o This is very helpful in keeping the course organized and preventing students from
becoming overwhelmed when so many scenarios have been assigned.
o Before moving items, be sure that you have created all of your groups.
 To move items to a group, go to the course home screen.
 Check the boxes to the right of the assignments you want to move into one
particular group (you can select multiple assignments, rather than moving each
individually). For example, check the box for all assignments you would like the
students to complete in Week 1.
 Go to the icon shown here
(next to “+Add Assignment) and hover
over it.
 Scroll down to “Move.”
 Choose the group you wish to move the assignments to by clicking on the radio
button to the left of the group name.
 Click “Save.”
 Your selected assignments are now listed within the chosen group.
 This step can be repeated for all the assignments so that each one is in a group.
 Students can then be directed to a particular group to access the material that is
relevant at that point in the course.
Limiting student access to exercises and assignments
o You may choose to set dates or “hide” exercises and assignments to prevent students
from accessing them prior to when the material is covered in the course.
 Hiding assignments is a good way to pull something away from the student
view. The benefit to this is that dates are not involved, so if you copy or
duplicate a course, you would not need to change date settings. The
disadvantage is that you must remember to go back and “unhide” the
assignments when the students need access to them.
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31

o
Setting dates is a good way to manage the course if you want assignments to
start or stop on a particular day. The benefit to this is that once the dates are
set, you do not need to do anything further. Connect will automatically start
and stop the assignments at the dates you set. The disadvantage to this is that
you would need to set new dates each time you copied or duplicated a course.
 Either way is good for limiting student access, and the method you choose is
simply a matter of personal preference.
Hiding assignments from student view:
 To “hide” exercises and assignments, go to the course home screen.
 If your assignments are in groups, click on the group(s) you want to prevent
access to so they will open and you can see the assignments.
 There are two ways to “hide” assignments:
 Check the boxes the right of the assignments you wish to hide from
student view. This is helpful when hiding a large number of assignments
at one time.
o To save time, you can check the box at the top of the
assignments to “select all.”
o If you “select all,” you can uncheck the boxes to the right of the
assignments you want to keep open.
o Go to the icon shown here
(next to “+Add
Assignment) and hover over it.
o Scroll down to “Show/Hide” and choose to hide the
assignments.
o Notice that the eye icons next the assignments chosen have
strikeouts through them, as shown here
 Create a strikeout through the eye icon next to the assignment. This is
labor intensive when working with more than just a few assignments. It
is a quick and easy option when you wish to hide just a few assignments
from view.
o Choose the assignment(s) you wish to hide from view.
o Click the eye icon next to the assignment, shown here
o A strikeout will appear through the eye to identify that it is
hidden from view, as shown here
 To “unhide” assignments so students can view them, you can follow the
same steps used to hide them.
o Using the “Show/Hide” feature, check the desired assignments,
go to the icon shown here
and scroll down to
“Show.
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o

Using the eye icon shown here
click the eye to remove
the strikeout. Once the eye looks like this
then students
can view the assignment.
o Setting dates to limit student access to assignments:
 To set dates for assignments, go to the course home screen.
 If your assignments are in groups, click on the group(s) you want to prevent
access to so they will open and you can see the assignments.
 Check the boxes the right of the assignments you wish to set a common date
for. Usually, all of the items in one particular group will have the same due
date.
 Go to the icon shown here
(next to “+Add Assignment) and hover
over it.
 Scroll down to “Manage Dates.”
 Click edit next to “start” to set a date for the assignment(s) to open.
 Click edit next to “due” to set a date for the assignment(s) to close.
 This is where you can also manage extensions and grant students additional
time or attempts, if necessary.
 Repeat these steps for all assignments that have common start and due dates.
Granting extensions or additional attempts to students
o Occasionally, students require an extension of the due dates for assignments, or they
may need an additional attempt because a problem occurred during their first attempt.
When this occurs, you can set a new due date or provide additional attempts for an
assignment for either one student, multiple students, or the entire class.
 To set extensions and additional attempts for assignments, go to the course
home screen.
 If your assignments are in groups, click on the group(s) so they will open and
you can see the assignments.
 Check the boxes the right of the assignment(s) you wish to set a common
extension or attempt for.
 Go to the icon shown here
(next to “+Add Assignment) and hover
over it.
 Scroll down to “Manage Dates.”
 Click on the “extensions” tab.
 Choose if you wish to manage in bulk or individually, as shown here
 Choose the student(s) you wish to add an extension or additional attempt for.
 Click edit next to “start” to set a new date for the assignment(s) to open.
 Click edit next to “due” to set a new date for the assignment(s) to close.
 Click edit next to “time limit” if you wish to adjust the time allowed.
 Click edit next to “attempts” if you wish to grant additional attempts.
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

Note, the changes made here will only affect the particular student(s) and the
assignment(s) that were selected.
Additional considerations to assigning Medisoft simulations
o The Medisoft simulation exercises correspond to those in the text. Students should be
aware of this so they understand that they need to follow the steps in order during the
practice and test modes so they can earn full credit. The simulations will deduct points
if tasks are completed out of order.
o Since the steps to the exercises are listed in the text, students may feel as though the
demo mode is unnecessary. Many instructors make the demo mode available to
students, but do not use it for credit. By doing this, it is available as a resource to those
who need it, but will not be mandatory for students who are comfortable using the
practice and test modes.
o Note that the steps to the simulations for Chapters 11-14 are not broken down as they
are in other chapters. If students are struggling with these chapters, they should be
pointed back to the chapter that corresponds to the task that is causing them trouble
and use the steps listed there as examples.
o Line the assignments and simulations up with your syllabus. This is where it is helpful to
use groups for housing the student assignments.
o Remind students of the benefits to using simulations.
 They have unlimited access to practice.
 They can complete exercises at any time, and not just in the classroom.
 They do not have to “save” and “restore” their work.
 If mistakes are made, they do not affect future simulations, as each is a “stand
alone” assignment.
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