This is not an English class

1
This is not an English class!

• (but you must write correctly!!)

2
Why must our students write well?

• To document patient care
• To communicate patient information
• To provide billing information
• To stand up in court if necessary

3
And how they hate to write!

4
The punctuation marks

• Period .
• Question mark ?
• Exclamation mark !
• Comma ,
• Semi-colon
• Colon
• Apostrophe
• Quotation marks
• Parentheses ( )
• Hyphen -
• Brackets, ellipsis

5
There are only three ways to end a sentence

• Period
• Question mark
• Exclamation point
• Pretty easy so far

6
For a pause, or to separate items

• Comma

7
Use a semicolon

• To show a longer pause than with a comma or
  shorter pause than with a period.

8
The colon

• (Forget the medical terminology for now)
• Introduce information
• Salutation of a business letter
• Time (1215), ratio (41), Bible verses

9

• People who can punctuate become THINKING GODS
• THINKING GODS have more power
• Students like to think they have power!

10
Punctuate this letter

• Dear Tom I want a man who knows what love is all
  about you are generous kind thoughtful people who
  are not like you admit to being useless and
  inferior you have ruined me for other men I yearn
  for you I have no feelings whatsoever when were
  apart I can be forever happy will you let me be
  Sheila

11

• Discuss how each pair perceived the letter.
• Show how the same words can become a love letter
  or a Dear John letter
• Explain that how we punctuate what we write about
  patients can have the same results.

12
Another example

• My Dear Pat,
• The dinner we shared the other nightit
  was absolutely lovely! Not in my wildest dreams
  could I ever imagine anyone as perfect as you
  are. Could youif only for a momentthink of our
  being together forever? What a cruel joke to
  have you come into my life only to leave again
  it would be heaven denied. The possibility of
  seeing you again makes me giddy with joy. I face
  the time we are apart with great sadness.
• 
  John
• P.S.I would like to tell you that I love
  you. I cant stop thinking you are one of the
  prettiest women on earth.

13
Or

• My Dear,
• Pat the dinner we shared the other night.
  It was absolutely lovelynot! In my wildest
  dreams, could I ever imagine anyone? As perfect
  as you are, could youif only for a momentthink?
  Of our being together forever what a cruel
  joke! To have you come into my life only to
  leave again it would be heaven! Denied the
  possibility of seeing you again makes me giddy.
  With joy I face the time we are apart.
• With great sadness,
• John
• P.S. I would like to tell you that I love
  you. I cant. Stop thinking you are one of the
  prettiest women on earth.

14
A helpful web page

• www.wzip.uakron.edu/noden

15
(No Transcript)
16
(No Transcript)
17
(No Transcript)
18
(No Transcript)
19
More help

• An example of a hospital record with no
  punctuation. Challenge the students to punctuate
  the report.
• Comma Sense by Richard Lederer and John Shore
• Whos Whose by Philip Gooden

20
(No Transcript)
21
(No Transcript)
22
(No Transcript)
23

• Thank you for coming today
• May all your students pass TAKS writing!

24
Examples of writing gone awry

• How can we help them?
• If laughter truly is the best medicine..
• Will our students write these some day?
• Charts