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Herbal Tutor, screen shot #11:

Syndrome Identification game (A)

#1: Herb Table

#2: Herb Table Search

#3: Herb Table Search Results

#4: Syndrome Table Search

#5: Syndrome Table Search Results

#6: Formula Table

#7: Formula Table - Show Formula 		#8: Formula Table - Show Herbs

#9: Study Advisor

#10: Herb Matching game

#11: Syndrome Identif. Game

#12: Syndrome Identif. Game

#13: Herb Identif. Game

#14: Progress Report

The Syndrome Identification game chooses a "mystery" Syndrome unknown to you, which you must determine.

  • You request clues in the form of symptoms/signs which appear in the top panel.

     
  • When you think you have enough information to uniquely determine the Syndrome, you may choose the Syndrome from the list at the right.

     
  • The relevant symptoms for your choice appear in the bottom panel for comparison.

     
  • Symptoms that match are highlighted in blue. If you chose incorrectly, as in the example above, symptoms not matching are highlighted in red.

     
  • If you are at an introductory level, you can ask for All Clues, so that you simply learn to memorize the complete Syndrome definitions.

     
  • As you advance, you can increase your score faster by asking for the least number of clues (select Optimal Clues or manually select from the various categories) that will just uniquely identify the correct Syndrome. This approximates the difference between a beginning herbalist or physician and one with years of clinical experience who can "cut to the chase".

     
  • The Peek button will reveal the answer without credit or penalty. Use this option if you have no idea what the correct answer might be.

     
  • Once you have selected the correct answer, you can select incorrect answers without being penalized. This allows you to use the highlighting of similarities and differences to compare Syndromes similar or closely related to the correct answer.

The Syndrome Identification game goes beyond simply helping you memorize the Syndrome definitions and teaches you skills in differential assessment (clinical diagnosis) essential to practice effectively:

  • Recognize when you have enough information to uniquely distinguish a Syndrome from similar or closely related Syndromes.

     
  • Recognize when you need more information, and know which questions will most reliably distinguish between possibilities.

     

Identification games help avoid problems associated with normal memorization methods, the most serious of which is the tendency to recognize the answer based on a small number of unusual or oddball symptoms. The Identification games in the TCM Herbal Tutor will exercise your understanding of all aspects of the definitions.

Identification games for Herbs and Formulas are very similar in design and function to the Syndrome Identification game.

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