Statin drugs Benefits vs risks
Paper details:
This week you’ll be writing your next Position Paper on the topic, “Do the benefits of statin drugs outweigh the risks?” You’ll be sharing your response on the DISCUSSION BOARD instead of submitting a paper. My goal is for you to share your thoughts with your colleagues as well as to read what others are writing and how well we are conveying our thoughts and making solid arguments for what we believe in.
You will be reading the two stances on this topic in your text book, on pages 262-268. From there, you will review page 269 and develop your position paper.
As you write your paper, think of the following things:
1) Assess the overall benefits of statin drugs for patients without symptoms or heart disease.
2) Understand the risk factors associated with heart disease
3) Understand the side effects of statin drugs.
Develop your position paper by following the outline below:
I. Introduction
___A. Introduce the topic
___B. Provide background on the topic to explain why it is important
___C. Assert the thesis (your view of the issue).
Your introduction has two purposes: to indicate both the topic and your approach to it (your thesis statement), and to increase your reader’s interest in what you have to say. One effective way of introducing a topic is to place it in context – to supply a kind of back ground that will put it in perspective. You should discuss the area into which your topic fits, and then gradually lead into your specific field of discussion (re: your thesis statement).
II. Counter Argument
___A. Summarize the counterclaims (from the text)
___B. Provide supporting information for counterclaims (from the text or outside resources)
___C. Refute the counterclaims
___D. Give evidence for argument
You can generate counterarguments by asking yourself what someone who disagrees with you might say about each of the points you’ve made or about your position as a whole. Once you have thought up some counterarguments, consider how you will respond to them–will you concede that your opponent has a point but explain why your audience should accept your argument anyway? Will you reject the counterargument and explain why it is not a rational? Either way, you will want to leave your reader with a sense that your argument is stronger than opposing arguments.
Present each argument fairly and objectively, rather than trying to make it look silly. You want to show that you have seriously considered the many sides of the issue.
Be sure that your reply is consistent with your original argument. If considering a counterargument changes your position, you will need to go back and revise your original argument accordingly.
III. Your Argument
___A. Assert point #1 of your claims
_____1. Give your educated and informed opinion
_____2. Provide support/proof using more than one source (preferably 2-3)
___B. Assert point #2 of your claims
_____1. Give your educated and informed opinion
_____2. Provide support/proof using more than one source (preferably 2-3)
___C. Assert point #3 of your claims
_____1. Give your educated and informed opinion
_____2. Provide support/proof using more than one source (preferably 2-3)
IV. Conclusion
___A. Restate your argument
___B. Provide a plan of action but do not introduce new information
The simplest and most basic conclusion is one that restates the thesis in different words and then discusses its implications.
Findings should be summarized in 3 double spaced pages, written in APA Style (6th edition) and contain a separate reference page with at least 4 primary sources.
