Argument style

I think a classical argument style is the best style for my group’s argument. I believe that since drug abuse is a fairly straightforward issue and there is no way to deny it is a problem. In the introduction, I think it would be very beneficial to discuss the history of prescription drugs and how it has changed drastically over the years. Here, I think it would be beneficial to add facts about the average number of prescriptions prescribed to a single patient as well as the average dosage. For here, we could lead into how many people have been negatively affected by the use of prescription drugs.

                This could easily flow into the narration, presenting background. I think here, we should drill home the increased number of people abusing prescription drugs in contrast to those that are available on the street. Also, further statistics to include the number of hospitalizations, deaths, and placement into therapy prescription drugs have caused. I think this will express the importance of the issue and draw the audience’s attention and wonder what solutions we propose.

                The next part is the confirmation, or the instance where we would present our claims and evidence. When talking with my group members on Friday, all of our stakeholders held the same main idea being doctors play a role in prescription drug abuse because many of them are undereducated and thus, should be required to have much more education before being able to prescribe to patients. Also, the doctors and legislators agreed that there should be a system installed that monitored all the prescriptions every patient got from each doctor they visited to ovoid patients being prescribed the same drug multiple time. I did not get a chance to talk with Jessica about pharmacists’ viewpoints, but I am sure she has something to add.

                The next part would be addressing the opposing viewpoints. I think the opposing viewpoints are limited because there are not too many ways to say that prescription drug abuse is not a concerning issue. We could talk about the money side of it and how much it would cost to ensure doctors are properly educated and to install this monitoring system. Here, we would need to back up the opposing views with facts. In my research, I found out that Medicaid pays for prescription drugs for those who cannot afford them, and many of these drugs are not needed for serious help conditions. With the monitoring system, it can save thousands of dollars in tax payer money from paying for prescriptions that are not being used properly or for the right reasons.

                In the conclusion, once again, I think we should present alarming statistics to make people want to take action. As our audience is college students, I am not sure what our call to action will be… Have to think about that!

                Overall I think we need to do more research and gather more statistics in which can go hand in hand with each other. We still have much work to do!!

                Overall I think our group works well together. We each bring new ideas and skills to the table. Part of our contract should include meeting deadlines, creating quality work, and showing up to all meetings the group has on time and ready to work!

 

Image Analysis

Image/Text Analysis

Natalie Weber

            In the United States, there has been an increasing epidemic of the number of people becoming addicted to, or overdosing on prescription drugs. The drastic increase started in the late 1980’s and the late 1990’s when doctors, who feared patients’ lack of trust, began to prescribe painkillers to their patients for even the slightest pain (Meisel and Perrone 2012). Many of the patients were given painkillers for chronic pain, or pain persisting constantly, resulting in the painkillers being taken multiple times a day, every day to ease the pain (Meisel and Perrone 2012). This led to the U.S. being the consumer of eighty percent of the world's opioids and ninety-nine percent of the world's hydrocodone, both pain killers, which is a statistic that is stated repeatedly by Dr. David Kloth who is a spokesperson for the American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians (ASIPP). He argues that the U.S. should pass a bill, or multiple bills, which would require prescribing physicians to undergo further training (Kane 2011). Being a spokesperson for the ASIPP, he represents the society’s opinions and outlook on the changes that need to be made to solve this nationwide epidemic. The ASIPP logo uses color and structural techniques to argue that the organization consists of medical professionals and strives to establish regulations to enhance patient care.

            The American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians is an organization that is dedicated to promoting awareness and understanding of interventional pain management. Their goal, through their conferences and spokespeople, is to communicate with legislators, the public, and patients about interventional pain management, or the medical practice of the treatment of pain (American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians). The ASIPP’s main goals are to eliminate fraud and abuse of pain medication and to further advocate for further excellence in education in interventional pain management (American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians).  Thus, they argue that the government should pass a bill making it mandatory for all prescribing physicians, which make up the organization, to undergo further training about how to properly prescribe dosages and how to notice when a patient has been abusing medications.

            Through the American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians logo, their specific use of color suggests that their organization consists of professionals, but more specifically doctors. The use of the of dark tones of blue symbolizes a feeling of calmness and tranquility emphasizing the organizations ethos as people are instantly calmed by the colors, suggesting that they are calmed by the organization as well. Dark blue also establishes an emotional feeling of trust and intelligence which is significant as a simple logo can alter the public’s mind into trusting the ASIPP and procreates the society as one that consists of intelligent individuals. Also, the gray tone of the italicized words gives the logo a calmer and subtle affect in contrast to the different shades of blue used in order enhance the blue shades. This is significant because it enhances the other colors used, but it also develops the viewer’s understanding of the society as it states how long the organization has been established and provides to the viewer that the society is concerned with interventional pain and it is the “voice”, or the advocators, for ways to improve the management of interventional pain.

            Similarly, through the structural lay out of their logo, the ASIPP establishes their credibility and furthers evokes a sense of trust in the viewer. The human mind is trained to read left to right of a written text, however the larger words reading “American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians” draws the mind’s attention when the logo s first presented. This allows the onlooker to have an understanding of the logo and what it is representing. Once this knowledge has been implemented in the mind of the viewer, the mind returns to its innate behavior to read left to right. The picture located on the left side of the logo is now studied and the strategic structural formation of the image suggests that the ASIPP is form of protection for patients. There is a man, or a shape of a human body in the middle of the circle, and the man seems to resemble Lenanardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man. This piece by da Vinci showcased the blend of art and science and the complexity of the human body as an analogy to the complexity of the university. The circle around the man represents protection and an endless, continuous cycle. These precise structural details illustrates how the complexity of man relates to the complexity of the policies and regulations the ASIPP argues for. Also, the circle represents the ASIPP’s protection of their patients, the man inside the circle, and their endless strive for more education about pain medications.  

            Through the aspects of color and structural methods, the American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians logo suggests the organization is one that can be trusted because its educated members and its dedication to such a drastic issue striking the nation. It is through the darker tones of blue fading to lighter shades of blue that establish a calming sensation and suggest intelligence. Furthermore, the deliberant placement of the man within the circle suggests that the ASIPP strives to protect patients from any harming effects of interventional pain management.

 

References

American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians, 1998. American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians. Web. 1 March 2014. < https://www.google.com/search?q=american+society+of+interventional+pain+physicians&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=-NsTU6WjIMafyQG5gIHgAQ&sqi=2&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAQ&biw=1524&bih=767#facrc=_&imgrc=12R1y7Gzt2qldM%253A%3BdU_OyvvONtl3kM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.asipp.org%252Fimages%252Fhd-aboutus-2.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.asipp.org%252Fabout_us.html%3B690%3B161>

American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians, 2014. Web. 1 March 2014. <https://www.asipp.org/>

Jason Kane. Doctors Tell Congress How to Rein in Prescription Drug Abuse. PBS. 30 June 2011. Web. 4 Feb 2014. <http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/doctors-tell-congress-how-to-rein-in-prescription-drug-abuse/>

Zachery F. Meisel, M.D. and Jeanmarie Perrone, M.D. Viewpoint: Are Doctors to Blame for Prescription Drug Abuse? TIME. 26 Nov 2012. Web. 9 Feb 2014. < http://ideas.time.com/2012/11/26/viewpoint-prescription-drug-abuse-is-fueled-by-doctors/>