6-8 page research paper

From Outline to Body Paragraphs

Here is an excerpt from a ENGL 102 student’s Outline:

Topic Sentence #3: Health practitioners have the most confidential interaction with teens, so they should take that opportunity to offer sexual health programs within the clinic setting where teens can feel comfortable discussing sex topics and providers can explain the possible consequences of having unsafe sex and discuss preventive methods and sexual health options.

Quote 1: “Allowing patients to practice communication skills with nurses in a safe environment would enable girls to learn positive approaches to improve their sexual behavior negotiation skills” (Morrison-Beedy, Xia, and Passmore 3296).

Quote 2: “Furthermore, interventions can attempt to change perceptions by providing accurate information to dispel myths about peers’ risky behavior and by promoting the normativeness of safer sex” (Lansford, et al. 1749).

Quote 3: “Disadvantaged youth also have limited access to high-quality health care, through which sexual services and information are obtained” (Cheng, et al. 518).

Quote 4: “Engaging girls in nonjudgmental conversations where they can discuss what motivates their sexual decisions can provide nurses with a basis to guide the girls towards appropriate risk-reduction choices by providing them with a menu of individualized options they can use to protect their sexual health based on their individual needs” (Morrison-Beedy, Xia, and Passmore 3296).

Quote 5: “The presence of sexual health clinics, access to birth control, communication about sexuality, and emphasis on sexual pleasure cannot be framed only as important for girls’ sexual health—but as investments in their future economic security, mental and physical health, and social integration” (Cheng, et al. 536).

Quote 6: “Our findings also suggest that some marginalized youth encounter barriers to self-efficacy in the home, where—in lieu of effective public health programming—much sexual information is transmitted” (Cheng, et al. 535).

Quote 7: “Identifying motivations for sex will aid nurses as they guide clients to appropriate resources, provide education and help them employ behavioural strategies to help them reduce sexual risk behaviours” (Morrison-Beedy, Xia, and Passmore 3296).

Here is the body paragraph that the student created using the same topic sentence and quotations from that excerpt, with the quotations. Please note how the student integrates the quotations and explains the connections BETWEEN the topic sentence and the quotations throughout the paragraph and uses key words to do it:

Health practitioners have the most confidential interaction with teens, so they should take that opportunity to offer sexual health programs within the clinic setting where teens can feel comfortable discussing sex topics and where providers can explain the possible consequences of having unsafe sex and discuss preventive methods and sexual health options. Some teens may not have access to high quality health care, and this is why American health care practitioners must explain to teens about the sexual health options that are available to them as well as the consequences of unsafe sex practices. In their study, Cheng and fellow researchers note that in the United States “Disadvantaged youth also have limited access to high-quality health care, through which sexual services and information are obtained” (518). In this nation’s healthcare settings, teens can and should get accurate information that will give them facts about the possible consequences of engaging in dangerous and potentially risky behaviors: “interventions can attempt to change perceptions by providing accurate information to dispel myths about peers’ risky behavior and by promoting the normativeness of safer sex” (Lansford, et al. 1749). When adolescents see and interact with their health practitioner, the entire visit is confidential even from the parents, and that is why it would be beneficial for America’s health practitioners to have sexual health programs within the clinic where teens can talk freely and with candor about their sexual behaviors. Morrison-Beedy, Xia, and Passmore’s research show that in therapeutic settings “Allowing patients to practice communication skills with nurses in a safe environment would enable girls to learn positive approaches to improve their sexual behavior negotiation skills” (3296). As health practitioners, well-trained nurses normally have the first interactions with young girls when they see their health providers. This can be an opportunity for them to discuss sexual health topics with adolescent girls: “Engaging girls in nonjudgmental conversations where they can discuss what motivates their sexual decisions can provide nurses with a basis to guide the girls towards appropriate risk-reduction choices by providing them with a menu of individualized options they can use to protect their sexual health based on their individual needs” (Morrison-Beedy, Xia, and Passmore 3296). Also, if a nurse can get teens to feel comfortable enough to fully open up about their sexual decisions, then nurses can use that information to help direct them towards making positive decisions about preventative methods.