When Discourses Collide: A Case Study of Interprofessional Collaborative Writing in a Medically Oriented Law Firm

doi:10.1177/0021943603259582

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Journal of Business Communication, Vol. 41, No. 1, 37-65 (2004)
DOI: 10.1177/0021943603259582
© 2004 Association for Business Communication

Conference

When Discourses Collide

A Case Study of Interprofessional Collaborative Writing in a Medically Oriented Law Firm

Jason Palmeri

Ohio State University, palmeri.2{at}osu.edu

This qualitative case study explores interprofessional collaborativewriting among attorneys, nurse consultants, and writers in alaw firm. Elucidating the challenges of interprofessional collaboration,this study finds that nurse consultants and attorneys encounterdiscursive conflicts, epistemological conflicts, and bypassingas a result of their differing professional discourse communityaffiliations and complex power relations. While these conflictscan potentially decrease efficiency and lead to documents thattell muddled stories, the conflicts can also productively ensurethat the firm’s documents speak persuasively to theirdiverse professional audiences (legal, medical, and corporate).To minimize the detriments and maximize the benefits of interprofessionalconflicts, the firm employs professional writers to act as discoursemediators, merging together legal and nursing perspectives intodialogic, persuasive narratives. Implications for research andpedagogy are explored.

Key Words: interprofessional collaboration • cross-functional collaboration • conflict • legal writing • professional writing

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