Learn Physiology Online
Build a body of knowledge on the systems that keep bodies functioning.
In HMX Fundamentals Physiology, you’ll learn essential principles underlying how the human body functions, and see how this knowledge comes into play in real-world scenarios and in clinical settings from the intensive care unit to the cardiac catheterization lab.
This unique online certificate course is led by Harvard Medical School faculty and features:
- detailed animations and illustrations of medical concepts
- clinical application videos including real doctor-patient interactions
- ongoing, rigorous assessments to ensure content mastery
Learn more about the course:
Course Information
Upcoming course periods
June 4 – August 16, 2024 | Apply now through May 14
Partial tuition waiver application deadline: Tuesday, April 30 at 12 noon US ET (HMX Fundamentals only)
September 3 – November 15, 2024 | Application opens May 15
January 14 – March 28, 2025 | Application opens August 14
Course length
Each course is 10 weeks long. New lessons are released weekly, and material remains available until the course closes. Expect to spend 3-6 hours per course per week.
Course cost
US$800 for an individual course
What Learners Say
Susan Sandford
New York University
“I actually wrote the professor to thank him for making [a subject] that could be really another language so easy to understand.”
Shareef Mohammed Hussein
University of Baghdad Medical School
“I have learned how these concepts are applied in real clinical scenarios, how they can be presented in a patient, and how I can explain why these signs and symptoms are presented in this patient. I know why I would send a patient – for example with asthma, emphysema, or other respiratory diseases – for a pulmonary function test, and how I can interpret this test.”
Lena Levin
Medical device entrepreneur
“I liked specifically this ability for a person who’s not on a medical staff to be virtually in a clinical situation with real clinical patients. Especially I loved the way the physician talked to his patients; it’s not only the clinical knowledge but also how the physician approaches a patient of a certain age or with a certain disease.”
Course Topics
Overview
- Course introduction
- Meet the faculty
- High-level overview
Partial Pressure
- Partial pressure basics
- Partial pressures in the lungs and blood
Movement of Body Fluids
- Osmotic forces
- Starling forces
- Body fluid compartments
- Osmotic forces in the kidney
Flow Through Tubes
- Ohm’s Law analogy
- Resistance – series vs. parallel
- Laminar vs. turbulent flow
- Air trapping
Compliance
- Compliance basics
- Surface tension
- Laplace’s Law
- Surface tension and alveoli
- Elastic and surface forces in the lung
Supply and Demand
- Aerobic vs. anaerobic metabolism
- Oxygen delivery
- Ohm’s Law application
- Fick principle
Transmural Pressure
- Transmural pressure basics
- Flexible tubes
- Cardiovascular applications
- Respiratory applications
Dynamic and Steady State Conditions
- Dynamic and steady state basics
- Dynamic conditions
- Pulmonary applications
Acid-Base
- Acid-base physiology
- Respiratory acid
- Metabolic acid
- Metabolic acid – elimination by kidney
Homeostasis
- Homeostasis basics
- Blood pressure
- Acid-base applications
Exercise – Integration
- Oxygen in exercise
- Respiratory quotient
- Anaerobic threshold
Course Instructor
Richard M. Schwartzstein, MD
Ellen and Melvin Gordon Professor of Medicine and Medical Education, Harvard Medical School
Director of the Academy, Harvard Medical School
Director of the Center for Education, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Associate Chief of the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center