This assignment is intended to help you learn to do the following:
- Demonstrate an understanding of the pharmacotherapeutics, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of medications.
- Write a scholarly paper in Pharmacology based on evidence-based research and clinical practice guidelines.
Overview
In this scholarly paper, you will focus on describing one prescription medication and the disease process that it is used to treat. Specifically, you will provide a concise overview of the disease process in question, describe the mechanisms of how the medication works, and discuss how the medication alters the pathophysiology of the disease process. In addition, you will describe how you would explain to a patient how their medication would be used to treat this disease, using terminology simple enough for them to easily understand.
Write your paper using concise, scientific, and professional language (except for the Appendix, where you will write as if explaining the medication to a patient, using less jargon). After all, "if you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough" (Albert Einstein). Your paper must be evidence-based and cite at least six different sources, including at least two primary references (journal articles or sources from an authoritative medical organization) that you will delve into in more detail.
Outline of the Paper
Your paper must follow this structure:
- Introduction: one paragraph where one prescription medication and the disease process that the medication is used to treat are identified. Include a thesis statement.
- Section 1: Describe the disease and a broad overview of the pathophysiology of the disease process.
- Section 2: Describe the mechanism of action(s) of the medication, using scientific and professional terms, as if explaining to a peer. Include a basic 1-2 sentence overview of the pathophysiology of the disease process and then spend more time covering the pathophysiology of where the medication will alter.
- Section 3: Discuss in detail how the medication alters the pathophysiology of the disease process, using terms as if explaining it to a peer.
- Section 4: You have two options. Use scientific and professional terms in this section.
- Option 1: Locate one peer-reviewed journal article where the chosen medication was used to treat the chosen disease. Discuss the population, interventions, and results.
- Option 2: Obtain an evidenced-based guideline or treatment protocol from an authoritative organization. Discuss how the drug that you chose fits into the treatment guideline.
- Conclusion: one paragraph reviewing the content of your portfolio paper with paraphrased thesis statement. Keep in mind that a paragraph should be a minimum of three sentences.
- References: You must use a minimum of six different references (excluding your textbook) that have been published in the last five years. APA citations and references are required throughout this paper. Two references must be from peer-reviewed journals found using Franklin's Library database search engines. One reference needs to be from a practice guideline, such as UpToDate.
- Appendix: Describe how you would explain to a patient how the medication will treat the disease, using simple terms. Remember to include all the patient education information needed. The Appendix should be written in paragraph form with citations.
Example: Metformin and Diabetes
Let's say the paper focuses on the drug metformin and the disease process of type II diabetes mellitus (this is just an example; please do not choose this exact topic for your paper).