Guide to Writing Argumentative Essays in Health Care: First Aid for Your Essay

What is an Argumentative Essay in Health Care Studies?

To begin with, the notion of an argumentative essay refers to the type of written assignment, which implies the presentation of two different perspectives regarding a certain issue. In general, an argumentative essay should contain a few arguments and counterargument. In an attempt to prove the accuracy of the primary arguments, it is necessary to provide relevant evidence against an opposing argument. The opposing argument is considered to be one of the most important parts of an argumentative essay, which is regarded as a ‘rebuttal.’ Such type of written assignment has a common structure in various disciplines, including Health Care. Similar to other disciplines, an argumentative essay in Health Care should have an introduction, several body paragraphs, a conclusion, and a list of references. The only thing is that the topic of an argumentative essay should be related to the field of medicine.

Common Topics for Argumentative Essays in Health Care

Sometimes, college educators assign their students a task to write an argumentative essay on a specific medical issue. In turn, students are frequently given a chance to choose any interesting topic to create an effective academic paper. Choosing a topic for an argumentative essay is one of the key stages of writing an academic paper. Below you can find a list of effective research topics, which are dedicated to health care matters.

• • Argumentative Essay on Abortion.

At present, the issue of abortion is one of the most widely discussed medical issues since it raises numerous concerns in modern society. This particular topic involves a broad range of different aspects, such as religious perspective, ethics, and legality.

• • The Link Between the Plastic Surgery and Emotional Well-Being of an Individual.

Many researchers in the field of medicine claim that people’s increased interest in plastic surgery demonstrates a significant psychological crisis of modern society. In this case, it would be a great idea to write an argumentative essay and prove that individuals should see a psychologist before they think of getting plastic surgery.

• • Autism Spectrum Disorder Cannot Be Regarded as a Learning Disability.

Even though autism spectrum disorder is frequently associated with learning disabilities of children, this particular health disorder refers to a set of different psychological behaviors affecting their perception of information.

• • The Availability of Birth Control for Women in The United States.

This topic is also widely discussed by modern researchers, politicians, and medical scientists. Since the accessibility of birth control pills raises numerous concerns in modern American society, it would be a good option for writing an effective essay.

• • Childhood Immunization should be Mandatory.

The issue of childhood vaccination is also discussed by medical researchers because it is a great concern for modern parents. Even though the majority of scientists believe that childhood vaccines are safe for infants, many parents have certain fears about side effects of immunization.

• • Acupuncture: Safety & Effectiveness.

The following interesting research paper topic is acupuncture, which is a common form of complementary medicine. Since this particular medicine technique is different from traditional methods of therapy, it can be a good option for writing an effective research paper.

• • Meditation and Its Benefits for the Mental Health of an Individual.

Finally, many people across the globe are interested in yoga and meditation; hence, you can select this topic and evaluate the effectiveness of this mindful practice.

Pre-Writing Tips and Strategies

Step 1. Selecting an effective research topic.

The first step to writing a research paper is to get acquainted with the topic of a paper. If you are not required to write a research paper on a specific topic selected by a professor, you have an opportunity to choose the issue related to the field of medicine, which is interesting for you. In this case, try to choose the issue that is already known for you. If you have some background knowledge about the selected topic, you will have better chances to write an A+ research paper.

Step 2. Choosing a position you would like to advocate.

Since you are required to write a persuasive essay, you will certainly choose a controversial research topic, which is widely discussed among medical researchers, politicians, and average citizens. In this case, you have to choose a certain position regarding the selected social problem and convince readers to change their views.

Step 3. Finding credible sources for a research paper.

Since your argumentative essay is related to the field of health care, it is considerably important to provide credible and reliable sources supporting your arguments. These sources may include books, articles, medical reports, and scientific studies, which can be found in different medical libraries and websites. Among them, one can find The National Library of Medicine, Dana Medical Library, PubMed, MedlinePlus, and many others.

Step 4. Creating an effective essay outline.

First of all, an outline is a great tool that can help you organize all important ideas to be included in a persuasive essay. Hence, it should contain the following parts of an essay: an introduction, several body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Do not forget to include a thesis statement in the first part of your outline.

Step 5. Creating a draft of an argumentative essay.

While working on your research paper, try to organize all your ideas and write the first draft of an effective argumentative essay. In this case, you are recommended to use the completed outline.

Outline of an Argumentative Essay

In order to provide a good example of an essay outline, it is necessary to choose a specific topic. In this case, we will create an outline on the topic ‘Childhood immunization should be mandatory.’

I. Introduction
a. Background information regarding the issue of childhood immunization.
b. Thesis statement: ‘Childhood immunization should be mandatory since this particular medical procedure can help modern parents prevent their children from different viruses, infections, and other health-related issues.’

II. Main Body
A. Main argument: ‘Many modern researchers are certain that childhood immunization is a considerably important for children’s health since these procedures enhance their immune systems, and as a result, prevent numerous illnesses.’
a. The list of illnesses that can be prevented by vaccination.
b. The safety and effectiveness of childhood immunization.
B. Counterargument: ‘Some parents believe that vaccinations are unsafe for their children, and hence, they refuse to vaccinate their kids.’
a. The potential side effects of childhood immunization.
C. Rebuttal: ‘Even though some people do not agree to vaccinate their children because of their concerns regarding the safety of vaccines, modern scientists in the field of medicine have already proved the safety and effectiveness of this particular medical procedure.’
a. The recent statistical data on the safety of vaccination.

III. Conclusion
a. Thesis restatement.
b. Summary of the main points of the paper.

General Structure of an Argumentative Essay

Introduction

In the first section of an argumentative paper, the writer should provide the main idea of the entire paper. Since our topic is related to the importance of childhood immunization, it is important to provide some background information regarding this issue. Having provided the details of this issue, you should not forget to write an effective thesis statement at the end of the paragraph. Some examples of thesis statements, correct and incorrect ones, you can find below.

Incorrect: ‘Childhood immunization should be mandatory because of its positive effects on children’s health.’
Correct: ‘Childhood immunization should be mandatory since this particular medical procedure can help modern parents prevent their children from different viruses, infections, and other health-related issues.’

The first example of a thesis statement is incorrect since this sentence is too general. Even though the writer mentioned the idea of the research paper, it is not clear how childhood vaccination influences children’s health. To make a thesis statement consistent, it was necessary to mention all the positive effects of childhood immunization.

Main Body

Since you are to write an argumentative essay, you should acquaint your readers with both sides of the selected issue. Hence, your paper should include the three main elements: argument, counterargument, and rebuttal. In the first part of the main body, you have to write some arguments, which support the idea of mandatory childhood immunization. For instance, you can provide a list of severe illnesses, which can be prevented using vaccination. To support your argument, you can refer to the article, which is published on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.

In the following part of the main body, you have to present the opponents’ claim regarding the idea that childhood immunization should be mandatory. In this case, you can find some information about the different side effects of modern vaccines. Since you support the idea of mandatory childhood immunization, this particular counterargument should be refuted. In order to refute this claim, you can provide recent statistics ensuring that modern vaccines are not only safe but also effective for children.

Conclusion

A conclusion is the following important part of an argumentative essay. In this particular section, you have to provide a brief summary of the key arguments, which were introduced in a paper. Additionally, do not forget to restate your thesis statement using different words.

Post-Writing Tips and Recommendations

1. Finish your argumentative essay and relax.
Having finished an essay, you are recommended to put the paper aside for some time and relax. Indeed, it is important to get some distance from the completed paper since you will not be able to proofread it effectively.

2. Then, take some time to edit your argumentative essay; try to use the following tips:
Check the content of your argumentative essay.
Firstly, the content of your essay should meet all the requirements given by the professor. Ma e sure that your claims are accurate and consistent; the arguments should be clear and relevant. Finally, all the arguments presented in the paper should be supported by reliable evidence.
– Check the structure of your argumentative essay.
Your argumentative essay should contain an appropriate introduction and an effective conclusion. The important thing is that these parts of an essay should contain less than 200 words. Check whether your paper has a strong thesis statement. Make sure that each body paragraph has a close relation to the thesis statement, which is an important part of the paper’s introduction. Eventually, check whether a conclusion restates a thesis statement in different words.
– Pay attention to the clarity and style of your argumentative essay.
In this case, you have to check whether you have written an argumentative essay using a persuasive tone. Besides, since your paper is focused on a specific topic related to the field of health care, you should ensure that you have explained all the medical terms, which can be found in your argumentative essay.
– Check the accuracy of paper format.
In general, modern researchers recommend students to write an argumentative essay in health care using APA style. However, sometimes, you can be asked to use other paper formats, such as MLA, Chicago, and Harvard. Hence, check whether your paper format meets the initial instructions.

3. Finally, you should proofread the completed argumentative essay.
– Try to detect grammar and spelling errors in your argumentative paper.
In this case, you can use different grammar checkers, such as Grammarly, Grammarix, and Language Tool. However, you should not rely on these online applications since they tend to work with a limited number of grammar rules. That is why you are recommended to reread the completed paper and try to find some grammar errors.
– Check whether your paper has some punctuation mistakes.
Even though punctuation errors seem to be inconsiderable, a few mistakes will affect your grade.
– Make sure that your argumentative essay is plagiarism-free.
Plagiarism is a serious academic offense, which can cause numerous negative consequences, such as failing a course and expulsion. To check your paper for plagiarism, you can use a great number of applications, which are available online. Among them, you can find The Bibme Plus, Citations Machine Plus, PlagScan, and many others.

Alternatively, there are custom essay writing services like ours who can help you if you need someone to write argumentative essays for you.

References
“Argumentative Essay Patterns and Structure”. Edusson, 2019,
https://edusson.com/blog/argumentative-essay-patterns-and-structure. Accessed 5 June 2019.
“Editing and Proofreading”. The Writing Center, 2019, https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/editing-and-proofreading/. Accessed 5 June 2019.
Kearney, Virginia. “How to Write an Argumentative Essay Step by Step”. Owlcation, 2019,
https://owlcation.com/academia/How-to-Write-an-Argument-Essay. Accessed 5 June 2019.
“What Is an Argumentative Essay?”. Purdue Online Writing Lab,
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/academic_writing/essay_writing/argumentative_essays.html. Accessed 5 June 2019.
“Why Are Childhood Vaccines So Important?”. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2018, https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vac-gen/howvpd.htm. Accessed 5 June 2019.