Discourse of Drug Information for Experts and Patients
35concept’s meaning. In specialized discourse, therefore, the term sepsis will
evoke the same scientifically based mental representation, and trigger a
predefined series of subsequent medical actions based on a shared
cognitive SEPSIS model. It should be noted that the fact that one and the
same term may belong to differently structured conceptual configurations
also underlies frame-based approaches to terminology, which start from
the assumption that “terms are lexical items that can be understood and
construed from different perspectives” (León Araúz et al. 2012: 96).
The contrasting cognitive models underlying SmPCs vs. PILs are also
reflected in their respective macrostructure (see also section 2). From a
cognitive viewpoint the informational structure of PILs is based on an
idealized patients’ DRUG model that can be further specified as the sum
of the experienced and stored contexts for this domain by the individual
patients (the notion is here used according to Langacker’s domain
definition; see Section 3). This model implies that drugs are primarily
associated with their proper use and potential risks (Table 1), whereas the
experts’ cognitive model is centered on scientific categories such as a
drug’s composition and form (Figure 2). The rationale behind this re-
arrangement of information in PILs is the assumption that these scientific
categories are not relevant in everyday conceptualization.
Framing
The deviant informational structure of SmPCs vs. PILs is also explainable
by the attentional view and the frame-and-attention approach (Talmy
1988, 1991, and 1996), which assumes that what actually is expressed
reflects which parts of an event attract attention. As known, the ‘frame’ is
a main concept of this approach, standing for an assemblage of the
knowledge somebody has about a certain situation. Due to our ability to
direct our attention, different aspects of this knowledge frame are
highlighted, resulting in different linguistic expressions. The practical
implications of framing for specific domains such as politics have already
been demonstrated by numerous studies (Cienki 2007: 170ff.), but framing
seems to be at least equally important with respect to the medico-
pharmaceutical domain (Edwards et al. 2001). The aforementioned
headings introducing the information about the dosage of Telmisartan
nicely illustrate how the communication event is framed according to the
respective reader’s perspective. The heading in SmPCs Posology and
method of administration evokes a frame, which starts from the viewpoint
of the medical doctor: the medical terms posology (referring to the dosage)
and method of administration (referring to the way how the medicine