Fundamental Writing Strategies for a Medical Audience

Effective and professional writing, whether to lay people or to the unique medical community, relies on fundamental writing skills coupled with a focused and principled message that is tailored to the needs and desires of the audience. Even the finest writers sometimes focus too much on their ideas without remembering and empathizing with the intended audience. When medical professionals comprise the target audience, the writer is required to employ a broader yet precise approach. However, writing to any audience requires a deep, sound skill set and a coherent vision for conveying the desired message.

Any writer's first objective is to grab and hold the audience's attention; a captivating opening paragraph that makes strong, even provocative points, will elicit curiosity and seize the audience. Transition phrases are often missing or inadequately utilized by otherwise strong writers. These essential transitional tools help the reader shift focus from one paragraph to the next with a seamless, easy read as the goal. Empathy or even affection for the audience should be employed to convey a meaningful, targeted message. When the target audience is the medical community, the writer faces a unique set of challenges.

Medical journal writing is very competitive, and journal submissions must be accurate, timely, useful, and even compelling to the targeted medical professional readers. "In the medical world, publishing is extraordinarily competitive, with 50 to 90% of articles and research papers submitted to journals being rejected" (Sullivan, 2008). Medical writing is a critical argument that must present reliable, verifiable data and conclusions. To be compelling and to excel, a medical writer must submit sound, accurate arguments while displaying a sense of style and flow that captivates and holds the audience. That combination of substance and style is not easily achieved. Thus, excellence as a medical writer requires a deep fundamental writing skill set and an appreciation and attention to this unique audience.

References

• Sullivan, D. (2008). Issues in medical writing http://www.mtu.edu