Measurement Systems Lesson 4 Conversions Lesson 4 Convert

Measurement Systems Lesson 4: Conversions

Lesson 4– Convert Between Systems Health care workers are often asked to convert from one system of measurement to another. For example, hospitals frequently give medication in metric units, such as milliliters or cubic centimeters. However, in the home, patients are likely to measure medication using the English system, such as tablespoons or ounces.

Lesson 4– Nomenclature Each system has its own method of naming measurement units. This is called nomenclature. Health care workers must be able to distinguish between systems and recognize the correct unit names for each system.

Lesson 4– Procedure to Convert Between Systems 1. 2. 3. 4. Determine an equivalent between the two systems. Set up a parallel proportion, and use X for the unknown term. Solve for X. Verify that the answer is reasonable: ▫ ▫ If converting from a smaller unit to a larger unit, the answer will be smaller. If converting from a larger unit to a smaller unit, the answer will be larger.

Lesson 4– Conversion Example How many tablespoons is 300 milliliters? 1. 2. 3. Determine an equivalent between two systems. Set up a parallel proportion, while using X for the unknown term. Solve for X. ▫ ▫ ▫ 4. Multiply the means. Multiply the extremes. Set up an equation so that the product of the means equals the product of the extremes. Divide both sides of the equation by the number in front of the X. Identify the answer. Verify that the answer is reasonable.