Writing a Paragraph Writing a Paragraph A paragraph should be around 3-8 sentences and focus on one major idea. Writers use paragraphs to structure and organize their ideas, so it’s important to understand how to properly structure one in order to write clearly.  Basic Writing Structure The basic structure for most forms of communication is to have a beginning, middle, end. Think of your favorite stories or films. For the most part, they will introduce, develop, and conclude. As a form of communication, writing follows this very similar and basic structure of storytelling. And though some of your writing may require additional sections and specific formats, the same basic idea resides—you need to have a  beginning,  middle, and  end.  In writing, these three sections are referred to as the  introduction,  body, and  conclusion. You can think of a paper like a sandwich, where the body is the meat and the introduction/conclusion are the buns that surround and hold the meat together. Though introductions and conclusions are typically only one paragraph (or one piece of bread) each, the body is only limited in size by the length of the assignment (their appetite).  A paper's body could be one paragraph or ten paragraphs, just like a sandwich could be one slice of cheese or a triple bacon cheese burger. So, use the length of the assignment to help you gauge and outline how long the body should be. For example, a 3-page paper may only have room for a 2 or 3 body paragraphs, but an 8-page paper could have room for 5, 6, or 7 body paragraphs. This is why it's important to pay attention to the length of assignments and to outline your paper's structure before you write. Next, you will learn more about the structure and design of these sections. Structure Just like a paper, a paragraph has a beginning, middle, and end.  The beginning, or first sentence, of a paragraph should be the  topic sentence: a sentence that states what that paragraph is going to be about, i.e., the main idea. Do not leave your reader guessing. Always start your paragraphs with a clear topic sentence.  The middle of the paragraph will contain the explanation and support for that main idea. This is where you would bring in examples or evidence to support your idea as well as further analyze the topic.  The end, or last sentence, of a paragraph should  wrap-up or restate your main idea and transition to the next paragraph. Below is an example of this structure: Should all hospitals use electronic health records? Electronic health records should be used because they are permanent. Unlike paper records, electronic health records not wear or break down over time. They are stored on computer hard drives and servers, so their data remains intact despite the years that pass or what happens to the provider. Smith1 mentions that ove ...

1. Writing a Paragraph
Writing a Paragraph
A paragraph should be around 3-8 sentences and focus on one
major idea. Writers use paragraphs to structure and organize
their ideas, so it’s important to understand how to properly
structure one in order to write clearly.
Basic Writing Structure
The basic structure for most forms of communication is to have
a beginning, middle, end. Think of your favorite stories or
films. For the most part, they will introduce, develop, and
conclude. As a form of communication, writing follows this
very similar and basic structure of storytelling. And though
some of your writing may require additional sections and
specific formats, the same basic idea resides—you need to have
a
beginning,
middle, and
end.
In writing, these three sections are referred to as the
introduction,
body, and
conclusion. You can think of a paper like a sandwich,
where the body is the meat and the introduction/conclusion are
the buns that surround and hold the meat together. Though
introductions and conclusions are typically only one paragraph
(or one piece of bread) each, the body is only limited in size by
the length of the assignment (their appetite).
A paper's body could be one paragraph or ten paragraphs, just
like a sandwich could be one slice of cheese or a triple bacon
cheese burger. So, use the length of the assignment to help you
gauge and outline how long the body should be. For example, a
3-page paper may only have room for a 2 or 3 body paragraphs,

2. but an 8-page paper could have room for 5, 6, or 7 body
paragraphs. This is why it's important to pay attention to the
length of assignments and to outline your paper's structure
before you write.
Next, you will learn more about the structure and design of
these sections.
Structure
Just like a paper, a paragraph has a beginning, middle, and end.
The beginning, or first sentence, of a paragraph should
be the
topic sentence: a sentence that states what that
paragraph is going to be about, i.e., the main idea. Do not leave
your reader guessing. Always start your paragraphs with a clear
topic sentence.
The middle of the paragraph will contain the
explanation and support for that main idea. This is where you
would bring in examples or evidence to support your idea as
well as further analyze the topic.
The end, or last sentence, of a paragraph should
wrap-up or restate your main idea and transition to the
next paragraph. Below is an example of this structure:
Should all hospitals use electronic health records?
Electronic health records should be used because they are
permanent. Unlike paper records, electronic health records not
wear or break down over time. They are stored on computer
hard drives and servers, so their data remains intact despite the
years that pass or what happens to the provider.
Smith1 mentions that over time, many hospitals or organizations
that use paper records lose track of them or find that they are
destroyed due to fire or flooding. Electronic health records, on
the other hand, are disaster-proof and will last as long as the
servers that store them are operational. Because of this
permanence, they should be used by hospitals instead of paper
records.

3. ·
Topic Sentence
·
Body
·
Wrap-up
Introductions
As the name indicates, introductions should “introduce,”
outline, or give a detailed overview of what your paper is going
to talk about. This means introducing the topic, outlining the
major points that will be discussed, giving the relevant
background, and presenting a clear thesis (main idea).
Introductions are difficult to write if you have not properly
outlined your ideas and if you are not aware of the structure
needed for your assignment. An introduction should NOT talk
vaguely about the topic or give a lot of overly broad background
information on the subject.
They should give specific details and bits of
information that outline the parts of the paper. As seen in the
example below, students should begin their introduction with a
clear topic sentence and end with a detailed thesis. Avoid vague
language, over-generalizations, or going off-topic.
For the courses in HCI, you will use the introduction to restate
the question that you are addressing. Copying the question is
acceptable, however, restating the question in your own words
demonstrates that you understand what is being asked.
Introduction: Should all hospitals use electronic health
records?
All hospitals should use electronic health records (EHRs). As
new legislation and advances in technology have led many
hospitals and clinics away from paper records, the debate
between the two still lingers. Some doctors cling to paper
records out of habit or personal preference, and there are often
concerns about the security of information and protecting

4. patient privacy. But, as Americans become more transient and
medical professionals more interconnected, the fact that
electronic records can be shared easily between hospitals is
becoming more and more important. EHRs also have a physical
lasting power that is unmatched by paper records. There are
legitimate concerns about the security of electronic records, but
the benefits outweigh the risks. Thus, even though EHRs pose
some security risks, every hospital should use them because
they are permanent and they can be shared easily between
hospitals.
Topic Sentences
As mentioned previously, a
topic sentence is the first sentence of a paragraph and it
tells the reader what that paragraph is going to be about. In the
example below, the paragraph argues that EHRs should be used
because they are permanent; thus, the topic sentence clearly
outlines this.
The topic sentence in healthcare writing is important as it is the
leading message for your reader. You want to the reader to get
the main message first so that they will continue reading with
interest.
Should all hospitals use electronic health records?
Electronic health records should be used because they are
permanent. Unlike paper records, electronic health records do
not wear or break down over time. They are stored on computer
hard drives and servers, so their data remains intact despite the
years that pass or what happens to the provider. Smith mentions
that over time, many hospitals or organizations that use paper
records lose track of them or find that they are destroyed due to
fire or flooding (Author, date). Electronic health records, on the
other hand, are disaster-proof and will last as long as the
servers that store them are operational. Because of this
permanence, they should be used by hospitals instead of paper
records.

5. ·
Topic Sentence
· Body
· Wrap-up
Body
As the “meat” of the paper, the body is where the main ideas are
developed, sources are brought in to support them, and the
overall argument is made. Each paragraph within the body
should revolve around one major idea and follow the basic
guidelines of a paragraph, i.e., topic sentence, idea, support,
wrap-up. Outlining is key to writing the paper’s body. With a
proper outline, you’ll know how many paragraphs (or ideas) you
want to present, what order you want to present them, and what
you want to say in them.
For the body of the paragraph, there are details that support the
topic sentence. Each idea should be supported with evidence. In
this example, an outside resource was used as an example to
support the main idea. Much of your writing in HCI will
demand that you support it with source evidence; the body is
where you quote, paraphrase, summarize, or present
data/information to support your ideas.
Sample Body Structure
Body Paragraph 1: EHRs are permanent
·
Idea: Electronic health records should be used because
they are permanent.
·
Support: Use an example from Smith to support this
Should all hospitals use electronic health records?
Electronic health records should be used because they are
permanent.
Unlike paper records, electronic health records do not
wear or break down over time. They are stored on computer

6. hard drives and servers, so their data remains intact despite the
years that pass or what happens to the provider. Smith mentions
that over time, many hospitals or organizations that use paper
records lose track of them or find that they are destroyed due to
fire or flooding (Author, date). Electronic health records, on the
other hand, are disaster-proof and will last as long as the
servers that store them are operational. Because of this
permanence, they should be used by hospitals instead of paper
records. Having looked at the benefits and limited drawbacks of
EHRs, it is abundantly clear that full adoption by hospitals
would be the most effective route. The future of healthcare will
rest upon the ability of providers and patients to adapt and
adjust to the advantages of technology, so in order to better
fulfill the needs of patients, hospitals need to get on board and
fully adopt electronic records
.
· Topic Sentence
·
Body
· Wrap-up
Conclusions
Conclusions wrap-up or tie together everything that’s been said
and give you a final chance to lay out your main ideas before
the reader. Your conclusion should restate your main
idea(s)/thesis, address any loose ends, and point to future
directions for research or for your topic. You can think of the
conclusion paragraph as a mirror or inverse of the introduction.
Just as the introduction presents the topic, main idea, and
supporting points to the reader, so does the conclusion bring all
of those back together to wrap things up neatly and make one
final push to persuade the reader.
Should all hospitals use electronic health records?
Electronic health records should be used because they are
permanent.
Unlike paper records, electronic health records do not

7. wear or break down over time. They are stored on computer
hard drives and servers, so their data remains intact despite the
years that pass or what happens to the provider. Smith mentions
that over time, many hospitals or organizations that use paper
records lose track of them or find that they are destroyed due to
fire or flooding (Author, date). Electronic health records, on the
other hand, are disaster-proof and will last as long as the
servers that store them are operational. Because of this
permanence, they should be used by hospitals instead of paper
records.
Having looked at the benefits and limited drawbacks of
EHRs, it is abundantly clear that full adoption by hospitals
would be the most effective route. The future of healthcare will
rest upon the ability of providers and patients to adapt and
adjust to the advantages of technology, so in order to better
fulfill the needs of patients, hospitals need to get on board and
fully adopt electronic records.
Jenny
Some of the advantages I see in having a universal medical
smart card is that because it contains all the information needed
for the registration system used, it can be a quicker more
efficient way to transfer health data to this system. The standard
is usually to have this information put into the system manually
by speaking with the patient and filling out each field when it
comes to registration. Another advantage I see is that because it
is universal, many different healthcare organizations can utilize
this feature. For the patient, this can make it easier to go to one
institution to the next without having to be put into the
registration system again. Depending on the smart card, would
depend on what information would be transferred over. One
disadvantage I see with using this type of smart card is that it
could easily get lost. Another disadvantage is that the
information on the card can be stolen if It does get lost, or
possibly hacked if it gets into the wrong hands. I believe the

8. EHR system would have to be set up with different standards
that could be put together by IT, informatics, and other teams
that would need to collaborate to make this possible. Security
measurements would have to be put in place, and across
different EHR systems it would somehow have to be the same in
some aspects due to the card itself being universal for each.
Thomas
A universal medical smart card would be a great improvement
to healthcare because it will close the gap of interoperability. If
a card like this is implemented it would be much easier to
obtain patient information under specific conditions or level of
awareness of the patient. For example, people are brought into
the ER with possibly just a driver’s license and are not able to
provide any other pertinent information because of their
physical/mental state. If patients were to have a card that can
provide all of the registration details, such as insurance,
emergency contacts, POLST, DPOA information, and other
essential pieces of information, it would make care so much
more efficient. On the other hand, a disadvantage is that there is
the possibility of fraud and misuse. Having a single card with
all of someone’s medical information can be easily lost, and be
in the hands of someone who will misuse it. Another possible
disadvantage would be that the smart card might not always be
up to date. Essentially, it would be the patient's responsibility
to update the information on this card, and it would be difficult
to facilitate that on the healthcare provider's side. For this to be
implemented, EHR systems would have to expand their
technology to utilize a universal card that can be used by many
other EHR systems. It may be difficult to program the card to be
able to be scanned in by multiple different systems as well.
There are many great benefits to this idea, but there are many
things to consider with privacy and changes to make in EHR.
Bryan
Developing a medical smart card that contains patient

9. information would be fast and efficient for medical registration,
but come with many high risks. Some of the advantages of
having a card like this is that I am assuming it would contain all
the information of a patient such as their name, background,
medical history, and more; that way healthcare providers would
not have to take up time typing in information and going on a
hunt to look through multiple files to see a patient's history if
needed. Some disadvantages are people are at risk of getting
their information stolen. If patients' held onto these cards, it
would cause a huge problem if lost. Someone could easily
obtain your medical card and get access to your medical history
invading one's privacy. How EHR systems would have to adapt
to using these cards is creating a system that will make the card
useful to the patient and to the provider as well as enforcing
ways to help protect the patient's information that is on the
card. Although having a medical smart card sounds very
efficient and handy, there are many things that have to be
planned and developed to help make sure patient's are
protected.