HS111 Unit 6 Pediatric ENT Chart Note Translation Example

Reviewed by Elspeth Marlowe, MSN, RN Medical Terminology Purdue University Global Free custom sample in 24 to 48h

This HS111 Unit 6 chart note translation restates a composite pediatric ear, nose and throat note, sentence by sentence, in words a parent could repeat to a relative. Purdue Global HS 111 asks BS in Health Science learners to translate clinical shorthand into plain language without changing its content. The original note records a four-year-old with repeated ear infections, fluid behind both eardrums, dull and retracted eardrums, a flat pressure test and mild conductive hearing loss, with a recommendation for tubes under general anesthesia. Each of eight translated sentences shows which terms were replaced and what they meant, including otalgia, OME, AU, CHL and BMT. A section explains the plain-language choices and why risks and alternatives were not added.

CourseHS111 Medical Terminology
UnitUnit 6
Paper typeChart note translation
LengthAbout 610 words, 5 pages double-spaced
FormatAPA 7 student paper
SchoolPurdue University Global
ProgramBS in Health Science
UpdatedOctober 2026

Free sample paper for HS111 Unit 6

1

Tubes in Both Ears, in Plain Words: A Unit 6 Chart Note Translation of a Pediatric Ear, Nose and Throat Visit

[Student Name]

Purdue University Global

HS111: Medical Terminology

Unit 6 Chart Note Translation

[Instructor Name]

[Date]

The chart note and patient are composite; the textbooks and health literacy guide cited are real.

What this part is doingPromising a line-by-line check in the lead tells the reader the translation is accountable to the original, not a loose summary.
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The Original Note

Composite note, written for practice:

CC: recurrent otalgia, decreased hearing. HPI: 4 y/o M w/ 5 episodes AOM in past 12 mo, persistent bilateral OME x 4 mo. Parent reports pt says "what?" often. PE: TMs dull, retracted AU, no erythema. Tymp: type B AU. Audiogram: mild CHL AU. A/P: chronic bilateral OME w/ CHL. Recommend BMT under GA. RTC 2 wk post-op.

The Translation, Sentence by Sentence

1. Original: "CC: recurrent otalgia, decreased hearing." Plain: Your child came in because his ears keep hurting and he does not seem to hear as well. Changes: CC (chief complaint) became "came in because"; otalgia (ot = ear, -algia = pain) became "ears hurting"; recurrent became "keep."

2. Original: "4 y/o M w/ 5 episodes AOM in past 12 mo." Plain: He is four years old and has had five ear infections in the past year. Changes: AOM (acute otitis media, a sudden middle ear infection) became "ear infections."

3. Original: "persistent bilateral OME x 4 mo." Plain: For the past four months, fluid has stayed behind both eardrums even when there was no infection. Changes: OME (otitis media with effusion) became "fluid behind the eardrum"; bilateral became "both."

4. Original: "PE: TMs dull, retracted AU, no erythema." Plain: When the doctor looked, both eardrums looked dull and pulled inward, but not red. Changes: PE (physical examination) became "when the doctor looked"; TMs (tympanic membranes) became "eardrums"; AU (both ears) became "both"; erythema became "red."

5. Original: "Tymp: type B AU." Plain: A quick pressure test showed both eardrums were not moving the way they should, which usually means fluid is there. Changes: tymp (tympanometry) became "a quick pressure test"; type B was explained, not named.

6. Original: "Audiogram: mild CHL AU." Plain: The hearing test showed mild hearing loss in both ears because sound is not passing through the middle ear well. Changes: CHL (conductive hearing loss) became the whole explanation.

7. Original: "Recommend BMT under GA." Plain: The doctor recommends placing small tubes in both eardrums to let the fluid drain, while your child is asleep under anesthesia. Changes: BMT (bilateral myringotomy with tubes; myring/o = eardrum, -tomy = incision, a decoding the textbook supports; Gylys & Wedding, 2017) became "placing small tubes in both eardrums"; GA (general anesthesia) became "asleep under anesthesia."

8. Original: "RTC 2 wk post-op." Plain: Come back to the clinic two weeks after the procedure. Changes: RTC (return to clinic) and post-op were written out.

Every translated sentence keeps the original's facts and adds none, because a chart translation that explains more than the note says becomes advice the clinician did not give.

What this part is doingStating the rule against adding facts shows the writer understands the limits of a translation.
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Choices Explained

The translation uses short sentences and common words, consistent with health literacy guidance that recommends plain language and avoiding jargon in materials for patients and families (Brega et al., 2015). It does not explain risks or alternatives to surgery, because the note does not, and adding them would go beyond translation. The abbreviation PE here means physical examination, not pulmonary embolism or the pressure equalization tubes that ear tubes are sometimes called, a collision worth noting in an ear note (Ehrlich et al., 2021).

What this part is doingExplaining what was deliberately left out shows the translation respects the boundary between restating a note and giving advice.
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Check

The translation was read aloud to confirm it sounds natural and checked against the original to make sure no fact was dropped or added.

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References

Brega, A. G., Barnard, J., Mabachi, N. M., Weiss, B. D., DeWalt, D. A., Brach, C., Cifuentes, M., Albright, K., & West, D. R. (2015). AHRQ health literacy universal precautions toolkit (2nd ed., AHRQ Publication No. 15-0023-EF). Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

Ehrlich, A., Schroeder, C. L., Ehrlich, L., & Schroeder, K. A. (2021). Medical terminology for health professions (9th ed.). Cengage Learning.

Gylys, B. A., & Wedding, M. E. (2017). Medical terminology systems: A body systems approach (8th ed.). F. A. Davis.

Reading the HS 111 Unit 6 instructions

The sixth unit typically asks students to take a short clinical note and rewrite it in plain language for a patient or family member, showing which terms were changed. Notes are usually provided or invented for practice, since real records should not be used without permission and full deidentification. Instructors expect every fact in the original to appear in the translation and nothing to be added that the note does not say. Many prompts name a target reading level or point to health literacy guidance. A side-by-side or sentence-by-sentence format makes the changes easy to check. Explaining abbreviations that could be read more than one way is often rewarded, since notes compress meaning heavily.

How this HS111 Unit 6 example is built

The paper presents the composite note in its original shorthand, then translates it in eight numbered steps. Each step gives the original sentence, the plain version and the changes, decoding terms such as otalgia, otitis media with effusion, tympanic membranes and myringotomy. The highlighted sentence states the rule against adding facts. A section explains the choice of short sentences under health literacy guidance, the decision not to add risks or alternatives and the meaning of PE in this note, which differs from its meaning in other specialties. A final check confirms that no fact was dropped or added. Every replaced term is shown beside its plain version, so a reader can check the translation line by line.

HS111 Unit 6 rubric: what earns full points

Chart note translations are commonly graded on faithfulness to the original, clarity for a lay reader, correct decoding of terms and abbreviations, transparency of changes and respect for scope. Faithfulness usually weighs most; a translation that omits a finding or adds advice loses heavily. Clarity is judged by whether a parent could repeat the explanation. Correct decoding of every abbreviation earns credit, especially where letters have several meanings. Transparency rewards showing each change beside the original. Respecting scope means not interpreting results or recommending treatment beyond what the note states. Clean formatting and a citation to the health literacy source complete the score. Instructors may read the translation aloud to test whether it sounds natural.

HS111 Unit 6 help from the desk

The most common weakness is a translation that drifts into explanation, describing risks, prognosis or alternatives the note never mentions. Another is leaving abbreviations unexplained because they seem obvious to the writer. Some students summarize the note instead of translating each sentence, losing details. Others use a real note from work without permission. Choosing words that are simpler but less accurate, such as calling fluid an infection, changes the meaning. If your instructor supplied a note from another specialty, perhaps cardiology or dermatology, send it with any reading level requirement, and a translation can be drafted with every change shown. Over-simplifying, so that a finding becomes vaguer than in the original, is another quiet error.

Get an HS111 Unit 6 example written to your instructions

Share the note your Unit 6 prompt supplies, or describe the composite case if you were asked to build one, and include the instructions and rubric. A custom chart note translation, term key attached, comes back in 24-48h. The first is free, and the plain version is pitched at whichever reader your instructor described. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Purdue University Global document.

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HS111 Unit 6 questions, answered

What reading level should a translation aim for?

Whatever the prompt names. Where it names nothing, many health literacy sources suggest aiming around a sixth- to eighth-grade level for patient materials. Treat any readability score as a rough signal, since formulas count syllables and sentence length rather than meaning. A short sentence with an undefined term can score well and still leave a patient confused.

Can I use a real chart note from work?

Not unless every identifying detail is removed and your workplace policy permits it, and even then a composite is safer. Most prompts supply a note or ask you to build one. A realistic composite gives you the same vocabulary without any privacy risk, and it lets you include exactly the abbreviations and terms the unit wants practiced.

Should the translation explain what the tests will show?

No. Describe what the note says, not what might follow from it. If the note plans a scope, the translation says what the scope examines; it does not predict findings or outcomes. Adding interpretation can change the clinical message, and in most sections it counts against accuracy rather than for thoroughness, however helpful it might seem.

Where can I find a free HS111 Unit 6 sample paper?

This page contains the complete Unit 6 chart note translation, restating a pediatric ear tube recommendation in plain words with each change shown.

What does BMT mean in an ear note?

Bilateral myringotomy with tubes: a small cut in each eardrum with a tiny tube placed to let fluid drain, done under general anesthesia in children.