ENGL 488 A: Writing in Health and Medicine

ENGL488 W24: Writing in Health and Medicine

MW 11:30 - 1:20 MGH 82

 Hybrid Course Instruction

This is a hybrid course. Contact time will be divided in the following way:

We may adjust these dates as need arises. 

Activities will consist of reading, discussion forums, assignments, and process blogs.

What is this Course About?

Writing in health and medicine skills are valued within a variety of professions including (but not limited to) health, medicine, the environment, engineering, law, as well as journalism and professional writing. Given this scope, The American Medical Writers Association (AMWA) describes two types of medical and science writers: scientific medical writers and non-scientific medical writers. Scientific medical writers typically are tasked with communicating scientific information to professional medical or scientific audiences within scientific journals. Non-scientific medical writers typically are tasked with communicating less-technical content to a lay audience via newspapers, magazines and patient education materials. 

This course then recognizes the interdisciplinary purposes (and audiences) of writing in health and medicine. Specifically, this course will examine theories, methodologies, and ideologies that undergird health, medical, and scientific writing with an eye towards both critique and imitation of writing styles in these areas of specialization.

In this class, you will learn to analyze different communication situations and to write, revise, and design medical and health-related information to meet the needs of different readers (experts and non-experts) through several document genres such as reports, magazine articles, and scientific posters. This course is designed for students pursuing careers in medicine and health-related fields as well as English majors interested in learning how to write more effectively in these scientific areas. Students will be encouraged to adapt assignments to their specific area(s) of subject matter interest and to share and discuss their work in class.

What  and How Will I learn?

• examine, analyze, and apply rhetorical choices in constructing meaning, particularly in medicine and health
• engage complex subject matter by considering readings about health discourses 
• engage in thoughtful, reflective practices while producing documents in health writing genres
• identify the conventions of several common professional communication genres in medical and health- related fields;
• develop strategies for using visual communication to create effective documents;
• analyze, engage with, and document sources in accordance with discourse community expectations and standards 

To successfully complete this course, you will become familiar with:

• theory—understand major theories of the dimensions of critical literacy in the natural sciences
• inquiry— explore, experiment with, and invent a variety of writing genres in communicating science
• practice—persuasive written, oral, and visual arguments, organize ideas and language effectively to address specific readers and meet specific purposes

Required Texts

• Writing in the Sciences, Open Access Book
• Scott A. Mogull. Scientific and Medical Communication (SMC). Routledge, 2018.
• The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, by Rebecca Skloot, ISBN-13: 978-0804190107 Selected chapters
• PDFs uploaded to Canvas
• Short Wave Podcast

Instructor

Instructor information

	Josephine Walwema, PhD email: walwema@uw.edu Office: PDL A-18 Office Hours: TTH 2:00-3:30 and by appointment

What Are the Class Expectations?

Reading assignments typically appear in the syllabus on the date on which they are due. You should have completed these readings before coming to class that day.

Process Logs. In addition to reading quizzes, you will submit weekly reading logs covering the reading as assigned. On Sunday of each week, you will post a 300+ reading response addressing (in polished, professional prose) the following:

• What did you read about (summary)?
• What have you learned from it (analysis)?
• How will you use what you read to connect with something else you have learned up to that point in the readings, from a lecture, or another source (contextualize)

Research

Understand and use various research methods and sources to produce quality documents, including:

• analyzing historical and contemporary contexts
• locating, evaluating, and using print and online information selectively for particular audiences and purposes
• triangulating sources of evidence

 Community Norms 

This course will take on challenging questions about health and medicine. We will endeavor to discuss both the course materials and our responses to them in a respectful manner. In this community of thinkers demonstrating your maturity will be paramount, as will considering our classroom a productive space for expression and critique. This means you get to

• bring your own questions, interests, and authority to class
• write thoughtfully, and at greater length
• feel confident and competent in your efforts
• discuss openly your concerns and convictions openly
• build supportive relationships which extend beyond this classroom. 

What Are the Assignment Expectations? 

Your writing and my grading is informed by four of the five canons of rhetoric below

Content (invention)The report reasons effectively, logically, and persuasively; draws on the resources of rhetoric (i.e., logos, pathos, ethos) to invent content, responds to the needs of the audience, addresses high level concerns: purpose, effective research, knowledge of topic

Structure (arrangement). The report is organized logically and persuasively; partitions the content into major sections; divides each major section into three parts (intro, body, conclusion); adopts an appropriate organizational strategy (e.g., narrative, causal, problem-solution). Strong purpose statement; context of logical and detailed argument or exploration, effective paragraph organization

Design (Delivery)Document design, adherence to HATS*, professional pages, accurate visuals. The report adheres to standards of effective document design, which, of course, change depending on the medium you’re using.

Style adheres to the standards of the plain language; strikes a balance between the plain style and the persuasive style; follows conventional standards of grammar and mechanics; uses a discipline-appropriate citation style. Sentence-level organization, prose, punctuation mechanics

Context/situation Show awareness of the document’s purpose, audience’s needs and viewpoint; effectively describes the rhetorical situation; connect to a problem-solving point of view.

Writing in Context

Analyze cultures, social contexts, and audiences to determine how they shape the various purposes and forms of writing, such as persuasion, organizational communication, and public discourse, with an emphasis on:

• writing for a range of defined audiences and stakeholders
• negotiating the ethical dimensions of rhetorical action

Assignments 

All assignments are due on the dates indicated. They will be made available the week prior and are submitted through Canvas. Never via email. Below is a brief description of each of the major assignments:

The Rhetoric of Health and Medicine 15%

This first assignment will create foundational knowledge for the course for which students will explore the concept of rhetoric (what it is); Conceptualize health and medical writing; Apply rhetoric to writing in health and medicine. Invariably, students will examine the ethical issues rhetoricians/ communicators need to consider in health and medical writing.

Public Media in Health and Medical Communication (15%)

Students will track the health and medical communication of a particular medical/science organization or popular medical or health-related reporting over a period of two weeks. Students will then create a one-page infographic document analyzing the rhetorical use and conversations around the hashtag. (Storify is a particular useful tool to gather such data.) A 500-word reflection detailing the rhetorical moves the student witnessed by gathering this data will be turned in along with the infographic.

Field Research Report (20%)

Students will be asked to complete an investigation of the communications and research practices of a field within health and medicine. This assignment should be submitted as a formal report that must include: 1) a brief summary of the field chosen; 2) a list of sources (journals, magazines, websites, conferences, interviews) relevant to the field and detailed annotations of those sources; 3) a list of research topics relevant to the field chosen; and 4) a general analysis of how health and/or medicine is communicated in the field, including identifying the various stakeholders to whom information is communication.

Patient Narratives in Medicine 20 %

Medical narratives are commonly used by physicians in training to reflect on their experiences working with patients and navigating medical decisions. Collecting and understanding patient perspectives in medical settings is equally as important in providing key insight into potential gaps in medical communication. This assignment will focus on creating a patient narrative as a source of inquiry.

Health-Decision Making Guide Document 30%

To end the course, students will work in groups to create a health-decision making guide document for a particular health topic. Health-decision making guides can be commonly found in medical waiting rooms and are valuable pieces of information that translate medicalized language for laypersons (aka patients, families of patients, etc.). See http://ipdas.ohri.ca/what.html for examples. You may include this product into your portfolio as you choose.

Grading

I use a formative grading system, which includes revision as part of the writing process. This grading chart helps you decide how much work you can complete to earn your preferred grade

Refer to UW's numerical grading system.

Access and Accommodations

Your experience in this class is important to me. If you have already established accommodations with Disability Resources for Students (DRS), please communicate your approved accommodations to me at your earliest convenience so we can discuss your needs in this course.

If you have not yet established services through DRS, but have a temporary health condition or permanent disability that requires accommodations (conditions include but not limited to; mental health, attention-related, learning, vision, hearing, physical or health impacts), you are welcome to contact DRS at 206-543-8924 or uwdrs@uw.edu or disability.uw.edu. DRS offers resources and coordinates reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities and/or temporary health conditions.  Reasonable accommodations are established through an interactive process between you, your instructor(s) and DRS.  It is the policy and practice of the University of Washington to create inclusive and accessible learning environments consistent with federal and state law.

Religious Accommodations 

“Washington state law requires that UW develop a policy for accommodation of student absences or significant hardship due to reasons of faith or conscience, or for organized religious activities. The UW’s policy, including more information about how to request an accommodation, is available at Religious Accommodations Policy.  Accommodations must be requested within the first two weeks of this course using the Religious Accommodations Request form.

Academic Integrity

The University of Washington Student Conduct Code (WAC 478-121) defines prohibited academic and behavioral conduct and describes how the University holds students accountable as they pursue their academic goals. Allegations of misconduct by students may be referred to the appropriate campus office for investigation and resolution. More information can be found online at https://www.washington.edu/studentconduct/

Here's what you can do to cover yourself against plagiarism or collusion:

• At any stage of your writing, keep your drafts, notes, papers, and research materials. If a question of plagiarism arises, you'll have a paper trail ( paper trails protect you in a variety of academic, public, and work-related contexts)
• Don't use editing services. Don't ask anyone, even family or friends, to edit your paper or help you write it. You need to do that work yourself.
• If you need additional help with your writing, contact the University Writing Center, UW Writes, where trained professionals are there to help you without colluding in plagiarism.
• Last but not least, ask me if you have any questions about honesty.

The PWAC's Anti-Racist Pedagogy