Alaina Madeline
UNIV 200
Professor Mullins
December 4, 2015
Unit 4 Reflection
The targeted audience of my unit 4 translation brochure is adults who are in the
emergency room and diagnosed with a bacterial disease and prescribed antibiotics. Adults
who have been prescribed medication are usually autonomous and can make temporary
adjustments to their daily life if it meant preventing further damage to their health. So,
giving adults information about ways to combat potential changes they might incur due to
medications allows adults to make decisions about how they want to proceed with their
treatment. Adults may currently know what antibiotics do to their bodies or know that
their bodies have not previously reacted in a way that caused a food intolerance. Since an
adult may know that their body hasn’t reacted this way before, they might be hesitant to
making a change for the next time. If there’s no conceivable chance of developing a
temporary food intolerance, the adult taking the antibiotics may not see a reason or need to
make the dietary changes suggested in the brochure for the course of the antibiotics.
The message I am trying to relay to the adults who are taking antibiotics is that even
though they have not previously developed a food intolerance after antibiotics, does not
mean they won’t in the future, and that taking these preventative measures can prevent
unneeded inconveniences in the future. With the busy lives most adults’ lead, it might be
difficult to take the time to take care of their health in a preventative measure rather than a
reactionary measure. While the antibiotics are a relatively unpreventable reactionary
measure, small dietary changes to reduce negative effects of antibiotics can prevent future
doctors visits regarding the antibiotics. Another message I want to convey to the adults
reading my brochure is that their doctor is there as a resource for questions, and can
provide more information about the negative effects antibiotics can have, as well as other
ways to reduce any possible side effects. Opening a dialogue with a doctor can improve the
trust in the patient-doctor relationship as well as improving their knowledge on the
medication they have been prescribed, and most importantly it can give the adult in the
doctor’s office a sense of well being and relief once they know more about their medication.
The medium I chose for my translation was a brochure to be put in the examination
room at an emergency room clinic. I chose a brochure because it is portable and provides
enough information to spark an interest and provide more education on the topic, while
also provoking the need for further knowledge by asking questions to the doctor seeing the
patient. A brochure also seemed more beneficial than a poster because of the convenience.
If the patient had decided to take the brochure and make any of the dietary changes
suggested, the brochure would be available to the patient while in the grocery store
shopping for the foods or ingredients. A flyer could have also been a possibility, but it
would be impractical and improbable to have someone handing out the flyer in an
emergency room. I could have also made a flyer that is in a holder on the wall similar to
how a brochure would be set up on the wall, but it would likely end up getting folded up if
taken by a patient; a woman would likely fold the flyer to put it in her purse, and a man
would likely fold the flyer to put it in a pocket or wallet. A brochure just expedites the
folding and is a more convenient way to display information in an emergency room
examination room.
Through this translation, the change I hope for was both internal and external. The
internal change I am hoping for is changes in the knowledge patients have about the
antibiotics they are taking and the different factors that are being affected by the
antibiotics. I am hoping for patients to read the brochure and think more about their health
and the different ways antibiotics can affect the body, as well as realizing that because
something hasn’t happened in the past does not mean it won’t happen or that there is no
chance of it happening to them. It can get difficult to stay on top of our individual health,
especially in times of high stress, but I hope that the adults who read this brochure can
start taking some preventative measures, especially once they have already gotten sick
with a bacterial illness to reduce further set backs in their health.
While I want patients to reconsider their health, I also want them to take some
action. The main external change I am hoping for is for there to be more communication
between the patient and the doctor evaluating and diagnosing them. With the health care
system being as demanding as it is for physicians, patients may feel as if the doctor is
rushing or as if the doctor is not fully focused. As I have previously stated, starting a
conversation with the doctor will allow a relationship to be formed. This open
communication can also provide the patient with the opportunity to find out about more
resesarch that is going on with antibiotics and their side effects as well as other treatments
being tested.
I think a change has been slow to occur because of how recent the correlation is
between food intolerances and antibiotics, and because doctors may not give specific
suggestions when prescribing antibiotics. A doctor might inform the patient of the side
effects of the antibiotics and how the intestinal tract may be effected, but specific
reccommendations may not be given or remembered by the patient. After leaving the
doctor’s office, it could be a number of hours before getting to a place to act on the
recommendations made by the doctor, and by that time it could be hard to remember the
specifics of what the doctor said. As previously mentioned, there may not be a need for
change in the perspective of the patient, and for some if there is no need for change then
there won’t be a change.
Works Cited
Aishwarya. "A Remote Village Is Showing Signs of Contracting Unusual Bacteria after
11,000 Years of Isolation." Celebeat RSS. N.p., 20 Apr. 2015. Web. 28 Nov. 2015.
Canny, Geraldine O., and Beth A. McCormick. "Bacteria in the Intestine, Helpful Residents or
Enemies from Within?" American Society for Microbiology. N.p., Aug. 2008. Web. 28
Nov. 2015.
Leonard, Rosemary. "In the Balance: GPs, Patient Care and Antibiotics." Longitude Prize.
N.p., 19 Aug. 2014. Web. 28 Nov. 2015.
Riley, Jeff. "Increasing Antibiotics Resistance Raises Fear of Deaths." Daily Times. N.p., 16
Oct. 2015. Web. 28 Nov. 2015.
Renee. "Computer versus Bacteria." Next Nature Network. N.p., 26 Oct. 2009. Web. 28 Nov.
2015.