Rhetorical-structural organization of the “clinical case” genre in healthcare: a systematic review

DOI: https://doi.org/10.46744/bapl.202601.001
Keywords: clinical case, discursive genres, rhetoric, health education, systematic review

Abstract

In healthcare, the clinical case is a key format for documenting situa-tions, training professionals, and strengthening clinical reasoning. However, its rhetorical and structural organization has been studied in a fragmented manner and through disciplinary approaches, which has hindered a comprehensive characterization. This systematic review, guided by PRISMA 2020, analyzed fifteen empirical papers published between 2010 and 2024 in Web of Science and Scopus. The findings reveal a diversity of perspectives: normative models, sectional frameworks, move analysis, narrative structures, and linguistic-functional approaches. Rhetorical Structure Theory (RST) allowed these perspectives to be integrated into a framework comprising five mandatory moves and one optional move, thereby combining the stability and flexibility of the genre. The resulting synthesis provides a functional foundation for teaching the writing of clinical cases and establishing them as an acade-mic and professional resource in health education.

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Author Biographies

María Fernanda Agudelo Vizcaíno, Universidad de Playa Ancha

Es académica de la Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud de la Universidad de Playa Ancha, de Chile. Tiene una maestría en Pedagogía Universitaria con mención en Innovaciones Educativas y también en una maestría en Dirección y Gestión de Centros Educativos. Actualmente es candidata a doctora en Lingüística por la Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, de Chile. Fonoaudióloga, sus intereses investigativos se centran en el estudio de la alfabetización académica, especialmente en el área de la salud y en los fenómenos lingüísticos característicos de las personas mayores.

María Teresa Núñez Herrera, Universidad de Playa Ancha

María Teresa Núñez Herrera is an academic at the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Playa Ancha, Chile. She holds a PhD in Linguistics from the Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaíso, Chile. She is a professor of Spanish and holds a degree in Education from the University of Playa Ancha. She currently teaches undergraduate and graduate courses at the University of Playa Ancha in the Faculty of Health Sciences and is the coordinator of the Master's Program in Linguistics in the Faculty of Humanities. Her research interests focus on the study of language acquisition, sign language, and academic literacy. ORCID: 0009-0006-3137-7566

 

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Published
2026-07-07
How to Cite
Agudelo Vizcaíno, M. F., & Núñez Herrera, M. T. (2026). Rhetorical-structural organization of the “clinical case” genre in healthcare: a systematic review. Boletín de la Academia Peruana de la Lengua, (79), 13-41. https://doi.org/10.46744/bapl.202601.001
Issue
No 79 (2026): enero-junio
Section
Articles

Copyright (c) 2026 María Fernanda Agudelo Vizcaíno, María Teresa Núñez Herrera

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