Explanatory Memo
Date: 07/29/2009
To: Dr. Kevin Brooks
From: Katherine Wurtz
Subject: Explanatory Memo
My fact sheet reflects writing aspects I have learned in this class and prior writing
classes that I feel will be beneficial in the future. I have chosen seven categories to
high light in my fact sheet. The categories I chose were APA citation format, grammar
tips, research tips, five factors for writers to consider, athletic training abbreviations, how
to read medical literature, and tips for writing a business email.
In the athletic training profession, the American Psychological Association
citation format is the format of choice. I use the citation method for journal articles and
the electronic versions of journal articles most often. I listed this format on my fact
sheet. I also listed the citation method for print sources, such as books. I occasionally
use this method as well. Internal citation is an important part of writing any paper and
giving credit where credit is due. I included proper internal citation as well.
The next section of my fact sheet is grammar tips. Grammar is by far not my
strongest area of writing. Microsoft Word having spell and grammar check is the
greatest invention ever for me. Any type of grammar tips I can pick up on is a major
plus. I discussed what makes good medical writing. For my major, we do lots of medical
journal article reviews writing. Tips on how to make my medical writing more effective is
always needed. I also discussed how to rewrite sentences. I have problems with making
sentences awkward during my first draft. When I go back and revise I usually have to
rewrite my sentences multiple times. I found this a helpful hint.
Research tips were in the next section on my fact sheet. I discussed the different
ways to search the surface and deep web. I do a lot of research that requires finding
medical journal articles for various topics. These tips on how to search the web were
very effective. It will be very helpful the next time I have to do a research paper or
journal review.
The five factors a writer needs to consider are very important to remember when
writing, so I included them on my fact sheet. All of these categories need to be
remembered every time you write. If even one category is forgotten the message you
are trying to get across to your reader, may not be received. This then defeats your
entire purpose.
Athletic training involves a lot of writing in patient files. It can be updating
rehabilitation files, writing up an evaluation, or documenting the day’s treatments. We
are encouraged to use abbreviations in all aspects of our patient documentation. This
makes writing up our documentation quick and quickly readable to other medical
professionals. The abbreviations I included on my fact sheet are the abbreviations that
are used most often.
Reading medical literature is one of the most important aspects of my athletic
training education. We are encouraged or required to read all kinds of medical literature
on a variety of topics in our profession. Knowing how to break down and analyze the
document in an efficient manner is very necessary. I found the reading medical
literature questions very important and could be used at a future date.
For my clinical hours, I send emails to professionals at least once a month to
arrange hours and meeting times. I also find that sending emails is the most effective
way to communicate with a teacher, especially if it is a large lecture class. I found these
business email tips very helpful. Being direct and getting to the point in your email can
increase the likelihood that the teacher will answer your question correctly.
There were other categories that I could have included, but I felt the seven I
chose were the ones that I would use most frequently. Punctuation tips could have been
another category to add to my fact sheet. That is another area where I need all the help
I can get. Adding some notes about how to effectively peer review could have been
another section to add. Knowing how to give constructive criticism and suggestions can
not only help the person’s paper you are critiquing, but also give you tips on how to
adjust your own writing.
The design for my fact sheet consists of six columns and one text box to start out
the page. I felt this was an effective design. It split my categories into sections that were
easy to find and skim for the needed information. I bolded all the headings and
important section parts to make reading easier. The text box that I used at the beginning
of the fact sheet, I put a border around that box. I have a feeling I will be using that box
most often so the border makes it stick out and easy to find being first on the page. My
layout fits my information amount well and keeps it easily accessible.
This fact sheet will be very useful in my education to come. The way my fact
sheet is organized also aided in the writing of this memo. It is only one of many writing
experiences it will help me with in the future.