4 Mind Map Resources For Medical Students and Other Healthcare Professionals

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Mind mapping has long been used as a technique to facilitate comprehension and to help people recall ideas and information in a graphical way. [1] This visual thinking tool is typically created by building “branches” of information around a central point, showing the links or hierarchical connections between those pieces of information. For this reason, it is often used as a visual tool for studying, note taking, brainstorming and in presentations.

Since medicine is a vast field that requires learners and practitioners alike to grasp a great deal of information, the concept of mind mapping would be of immense benefit.

The following are four mind map resources that are useful for both medical students and healthcare professionals:

1. MediMaps
MediMaps was created by a medical student who currently is a General Practitioner in the United Kingdom. The idea to come up with the website was triggered when he realized the lack of ideal, reader-friendly resources to help students with learning and memorising. The website presents mind maps in over 20 categories, categorised under different specialties. Maps are available for download, but you can also edit the maps by downloading a separate program to your computer. In addition to mind maps, MediMaps also provides other materials such as study tips for medical students, links to helpful videos and more.

2. Biggerplate
Biggerplate is one of the biggest online platforms that provide mind maps and mind map templates for free, including those on science, medicine and healthcare. In addition to having access to the mind maps available on the website, you can also contribute by uploading your own mind map and share it with the global community. There is no charge for signing up and to date, there are over 114,000 members that have joined the community. The maps on the website currently have been viewed close to 16 million times.

3. ZoomOut
ZoomOut is an excellent resource for those who specialise in the field of pharmacotherapy, although it would definitely benefit students and professionals in other medical fields as well. The idea of the website - which is an initiative made by a team of pharmacists - is to facilitate easy comprehension and memorization of the massive amount of information on diseases and disease management. The maps are presented in a concise and visually engaging style, in such a way that one map can contain important points that readers can find in a 20-page textbook chapter. The maps also come with an explanation of the points contained in the diagrams. In addition, you can also place your order in the format of a folder poster, whole map or printable version.

4. AllergyCases
AllergyCases is an educational website created by a board-certified allergist in the US. The mind maps available on the website are intended to help users visualise and classify ideas. As the name suggests, AllergyCases currently provides mind maps specific to the allergy and immunology specialisations. In addition, they also offer a list of free online textbooks and review articles in allergy and immunology, as well as other helpful resources. The website also has several videos and diagrams for patient education.

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