





































 V38 N1 / 2023 

©2023 American Medical Writers Association. All rights reserved.  
ISSN 2163-5315

AMWAJournal.org     20

Laurie LaRusso, MS, ELS 

Chestnut Medical Communications, Walpole, MA

By Jerm Day-Storms, PhD, MWC
Successful medical writers can clearly communicate a  

message to the intended audience. Many times, the written 

word alone may not be the most effective method of com-

munication. The client may even ask the medical writer 

for help in designing a visual aid or presentation. Graphic 

design tools are available, but they may be cost-prohibitive 

or have steep learning curves for mastery. Instead, medical  

writers can use a familiar tool, Microsoft PowerPoint, for 

graphic design.

WHAT IS GRAPHIC DESIGN?
Graphic design is the art of visual communication using 

text, images, and symbols. Medical writers use the 3  

aspects of graphic design—layout, color, and typography—

to help convey the message of the project. The layout  

consists of how the information is organized as well as how 

visual elements are placed on the page or slide. The colors 

and typography used can enhance the visual appeal of  

the work.

 Graphics work by medical writers can be diverse. 

Medical writers may be asked to format, lay out, or design 

slides or posters for presentations. They may create spe-

cific visual elements, such as charts, graphs, or diagrams. 

Typically, a client provides a template and color palette, 

but a medical writer may be required to design a simple 

color palette and template. Medical writers often transfer 

graphics from one format to another. For example, a single 

graphic element may be required to be transferred across 

manuscript, slide, and poster formats.

 When designing graphics, medical writers must

• keep it simple by sticking to the main points,

• remove superfluous information,

• avoid an overwhelming number of objects and 

colors, and

• use a logical order to make the story easy to  

understand.

CHOOSING THE RIGHT TOOL FOR THE JOB
Deciding which graphical element best explains the data 

is important. Will the intended audience understand the 

story better if conveyed as a table, graph, diagram, or chart? 

Sometimes, text is the best option if it is formatted to make 

it visually appealing, such as by varying color or font. Other 

times, a medical writer may transform one less effective 

method into a better one for a particular point. For exam-

ple, a table comparing 2 different treatments may be easier 

to understand as a graph.

 Because medical writers must use graphics in a vari-

ety of projects, it is important to delve deeper into different 

types of graphics that can be produced using tools from the 

Microsoft Office suite.

Tables
Tables are the simplest graphical elements created by 

medical writers. For manuscripts, tables are created in 

Microsoft Word using the Table function of the Insert menu 

bar. Likewise, for posters and slides, tables are created in 

PowerPoint using the Table function. Tables created within 

either Word or PowerPoint are easily transferred by copy-

ing and pasting as a table with reformatting, as necessary. 

Tables never need to be recreated when information is 

moved from one format to another.

 When using tables as a visual element in a project, it is 

best practice to keep color formatting consistent. For exam-

ple, in a presentation or poster, the control group should 

be presented in tables as one specific color and the exper-

imental group(s) in another throughout the project to 

increase the visual appeal and flow. Another option is to 

use different background shades (from the same color  

palette, of course) for the control and experimental groups.

 Tables can also be used to make text easier to read. Data 

from bulleted lists can be transformed into a table with 

horizontal lines and light background, creating a visual 

element that is more scannable. Similarly, tables can be 

used to simplify potentially complex topics by using differ-

ent shades and/or symbols to help classify groups of data 

(Figure 1).

Session Report 
DIY Graphics for Medical Writers

CONFERENCE

http://www.amwajournal.org


AMWAJournal.org     21DIY Graphics for Medical Writers

Figures
PowerPoint offers built-in Excel functionality, including the 

ability to create visually appealing charts and diagrams. For 

figures that are data-driven, such as graphs and charts, the 

data are stored within the embedded spreadsheet. The data 

can be easily updated in the spreadsheet with the changes 

automatically reflected in the slide’s graph. Also, the graph 

can be reformatted within the slide.

 Figures created within one presentation can easily be 

copied across different platforms, including manuscripts 

using Word or posters using PowerPoint. When copying a 

figure from a slide into a manuscript, it is best to paste the 

figure as a picture to lock in the formatting. When copying 

the figure into a different PowerPoint file, do not paste the 

figure as a picture. From the Paste Options menu, choose 

“Keep Source Formatting & Embed Workbook” for data-

driven graphs. For any figures that are not data-driven, 

choose either “Keep source formatting” to keep the graph 

formatting the same as in the original file or “Use destination 

theme” if the desire is to have the format match the new file.

 Resizing figures can be simplified by using the sizing 

function for uniform resizing. Locking the aspect ratio 

maintains the same proportions of the original objects. 

It also allows for resizing multiple figures to precisely the 

same size.

 Available figure options include traditional bar graphs, 

scatter plots, line graphs, and pie charts. Additionally, more 

complex biostatics charts, such as Forest plots and Box and 

Whisker plots, can be created or modified to help explain 

data. Labels can be added to the data even for select data 

points, if desired. Background shades or use of shapes can 

help highlight important data.

 Creative use of shapes, graphs, and gradients can be 

used to visually tell a story. For example, a pie chart with a 

subchart can further sub-divide data into groups (Figure 2). 

This example is created using 2 pie charts connected by a 

trapezoid filled in with a gradient to indicate a faded zoom.

Slides
PowerPoint’s reputation for creating robust slide presenta-

tions is well-known and well-documented. Generally, the 

basics of any slide presentation consist of template, color, 

and graphics. The client will usually provide the medical 

writer with a slide template containing the approved color 

palette and appropriate layouts. Occasionally, the medical 

writer may be tasked with developing a template which can 

be accomplished either by using or modifying one of the 

many theme templates from Microsoft or by creating a tem-

plate within the Slide Master menu of PowerPoint.

 Color can be used to organize information throughout 

the presentation to aid in the flow and to make it easier for 

the audience to understand. Colors can be chosen from a list, 

gradient, or wheel, depending on the chosen menu. It may be 

difficult to precisely match 2 colors. Each color has a unique 

six-digit hex code. If the hex code is known, it can be entered 

in to choose a color. However, if the hex code is unknown, 

the eyedropper tool can easily be used to select and match 

a desired color. This is helpful, for example, when trying to 

match legend colors to specific colors within a figure.

 Slide presentations should be visually appealing, so 

graphical elements should comprise at least 2 out of every 3 

slides. Keep text at a minimum by converting as much text 

as possible to graphical elements. Keep any bullet points 

to a single line of text, and do not use more than 2 levels of 

bullet points on a single slide.

 Boring bullet point slides can be transformed into visu-

ally appealing graphical elements. For example, the bullets 

Figure 1. The table as a visual element. Tables can be used to create 
visual elements for classifying data by using shading and/or symbols.

Figure 2. Complex figures to depict data. Using graphs and charts 
with shapes and gradients can help tell the story of complex data.

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AMWAJournal.org     22DIY Graphics for Medical Writers

could be changed into vertical boxes with different shades 

of color to help each point stand out. Rather than having a 

bulleted list of dates or events, a timeline figure can be cre-

ated from the simple chevron shape in PowerPoint. Insert 

the chevron and stretch it out to create a timeline figure.  

The figure can even be filled in with a gradient of colors to 

help emphasize the passing of time or events. Likewise, 

lines and icons can be added to the timeline. The color of 

icons can even be altered to match the timeline color. Also, 

a simple bulleted list can be turned into an eye-grabbing 

visual aid with the addition of color and stock figures. For 

example, see how the following list is radically changed 

(Figure 3).

 Slide animations should be used sparingly. Do not use 

animations as devices to transition from one slide to the 

next, such as the spinning slide, because it can distract from 

the presentation rather than enhance the story. Only use 

animation to help the audience follow the story. For exam-

ple, a build can be used to show progression or highlight 

important trends. If a graph, gel, or image contains large 

amounts of data, then an animation can be used to help the 

audience digest the information in smaller pieces.

Posters
Poster presentations can be created using PowerPoint’s 

Slide Size menu function in which the poster is created 

on a single slide of the appropriate poster dimension. The 

poster layout, which plays a vital role in the presentation 

organization, may be either portrait or landscape. For por-

trait posters, the presentation is divided into horizontal 

sections whereas it is divided into vertical sections for land-

scape posters. Regardless, the largest section of the poster 

organization should be reserved for the results. The title 

and authors are always listed across the top of the poster. 

Additional poster sections include introduction/back-

ground, methods, and conclusions/summary. One way 

to economize space, if possible, is to move any acknowl-

edgments, references, and disclosures to the bottom of the 

poster in a smaller font. Posters should be saved as a PDF.

 Like a slide presentation, color is an important aspect of 

the graphic design. Use one main color with 2 accent colors 

chosen from the color palette. Some graphs or figures that 

contain more data may require additional colors. The colors 

should be used consistently throughout the poster to main-

tain clarity and flow.

 Poster content should primarily be visual elements with 

text at a minimum. The graphs, tables, and figures should 

be easy to understand without requiring extraneous textual 

details. Section headings, such as background and results, 

should be one color with any subheadings in an accent 

color to help visualize hierarchy.

MEDICAL WRITERS DO NOT NEED EXPENSIVE 
TOOLS FOR DO-IT-YOURSELF GRAPHICS
Visually appealing, easy-to-follow graphical elements add 

clarity to a presentation or manuscript. Medical writers can 

successfully create their own graphics without using expen-

sive tools because Microsoft PowerPoint with its built-in 

Excel function can create high-quality, editable visual ele-

ments. Usually, clients are familiar with Microsoft Office 

Figure 3. Transforming bullets. Simple bulleted lists (top) can be 
transformed into visually appealing graphical elements by using color 
and images (bottom).

When creating graphics, remember 
to keep it simple so that the intended 
audience can follow the story and 
to not distract from the message by 
overloading with graphical elements  
or an overabundance of colors.

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AMWAJournal.org     23DIY Graphics for Medical Writers

products and are happy 

that the graphics can be 

easily transferred from one 

format to another. When 

creating graphics, remem-

ber to keep it simple so that 

the intended audience can 

follow the story and to not 

distract from the message by 

overloading with graphical 

elements or an overabun-

dance of colors. By know-

ing which Microsoft Office 

product can be used to create 

the project and how to transfer 

it (Figure 4), medical writers can design their own graphical 

elements or projects at lower cost and lower learning curve 

than an expensive graphics program when using a platform 

that most clients use.

Jerm Day-Storms is the owner and Principal Medical Writer at 
Day-Storms Medical Writing & Research, Lakeland, FL.

Author declaration and disclosures: The author notes no com-
mercial associations that may pose a conflict of interest in rela-
tion to this article.

Author contact: jerm@day-storms.com

Figure 4. Do-it-yourself graphics for medical writers. Medical writers can use inexpensive tools, such as 
Microsoft PowerPoint, to create, transfer, and present graphical elements.

http://www.amwajournal.org



