Local health departments find Twitter effective in spreading diabetes information | Newsroom | Washington University in St. Louis

Local health departments find Twitter effective in spreading diabetes information | Newsroom | Washington University in St. Louis


The web-based social media site Twitter is proving to be an effective tool for local health departments in disseminating health information — especially in promoting specific health behaviors.

Harris

The latest study, led by Jenine K. Harris, PhD, assistant professor at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis, focused on diabetes, a disease that may affect an estimated one-third of U.S. adults by 2050.


“We focused on diabetes first, both because of increasing diabetes rates,” Harris says, “and also because people living with diabetes tend to use online health-related resources at a fairly high rate, so they are an audience that is already online and on social media.”

The study was published May 2 in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) electronic journal, Preventing Chronic Disease, and focused on how local health departments use social media to educate and inform the public about diabetes.

Read more at https://news.wustl.edu/news/Pages/25413.aspx.

Health ownership in American Indigenous communities

Although the Indian Health Service (IHS) has adequately stifled acute infectious diseases that once devastated American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) communities, this system of health provision has become obsolete in the face of chronically debilitating illnesses. Presently, AIAN communities suffer disproportionally from chronic diseases that demand adequate, long-term health maintenance such as hepatitis, renal failure, and diabetes to name a few. A number of research endeavors have sought to define this problem in the literature, but few have proposed adequate mechanisms to alleviate the disparity. The objective of this study was to examine the efficacy of both the Indian Health Service (IHS) and the relative few tribal healthcare systems (PL 93-638) respectively in their sociopolitical contexts, to determine their utility among a financially lame IHS. Click here to read the full paper. 

Better Health: Evaluating Health Communication (lecture 3 or 5)

Additional Information:
http://videocast.nih.gov/summary.asp?live=12683&bhcp=1

Description:
There are more and increasingly diverse ways for health information to reach the public. The interest among Americans to receive health information also remains high compared to most other topics. To maximize the impact of health information on the nation’s well-being and empower consumers, communicators need to know whether their messages are reaching the right audience, whether the information is understood, and whether the materials make a difference in decision-making and health outcomes. As a result, evaluation is an integral and crucial part of health communication.

NLM is presenting this lecture series to highlight innovative approaches and best practices in evaluating health communication. As NIH and NLM diversify their use of mass communication channels to dispatch health information, a fresh consideration of evaluation’s cutting edge is timely and important. This is part 3 in a 5 part series.

Andrew Pleasant, PhD, Health Literacy and Research Director, Canyon Ranch Institute, Tucson, Arizona, and faculty member, The Ohio State University College of Nursing. A pioneer in health literacy research and evaluation, Dr. Pleasant is a member of the Institute of Medicine's Roundtable on Health Literacy and the Scientific Committee of the International Public Communication of Science and Technology Network.

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Releases Report on the Long-Term Returns of Obesity Prevention Policies

The Long-Term Returns of Obesity Prevention Policies

By: Brill A
Publisher: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Published: 4/24/2013

Key finding from the report include:

• Obesity screening by physicians, which is recommended by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force and covered by Medicare and many private health insurers pursuant to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), could yield as much as $44 billion in long-term federal savings.
• The S-CHIP childhood obesity demonstration project, which combines changes in preventive care at doctor visits with community and school efforts to prevent and reduce childhood obesity in low-income communities, could produce as much as $41 billion in long-term federal savings.
• Long-term federal savings from bringing the community-based, Diabetes Prevention Program to scale may amount to as much as $18.4 billion. The program, which already has demonstrated effectiveness, helps participants set weight loss goals, increase physical activity and implement healthy eating habits.
• Coverage of certain weight-loss drugs under Medicare Part D could yield long-term federal savings of as much as $11.4 billion.

For the full article and access to the report, visit their website The Long-Term Returns of Obesity Prevention Policies.

Health Disparities Research at the Intersection of Race, Ethnicity, and Disability: A National Conference

Additional Information: http://bit.ly/V9w6HH

When: April 25 & 26

Where: Washington, D.C.

CONFERENCE PURPOSE
The conference is intended to bring together researchers, advocates, and policy makers in racial and ethnic disparities and disability-related disparities to:
Learn about barriers to health care and health promotion for people with disabilities in underserved racial and ethnic groups
Share your own work on health disparities at this intersection
Discuss priorities for future research and action

CONFERENCE ORGANIZERS
The conference is part of Project Intersect: Addressing Health Disparities at the Intersection of Race, Ethnicity, and Disability.  Project Intersect is based in the Institute on Development & Disability at Oregon Health & Science University.  Project partners include:    

Project Intersect Advisory Council – A national group of adults with disabilities and family members of adults with disabilities who are members of underserved racial and ethnic groups      
The National Center for Cultural Competence at Georgetown University  
The Department of Disability and Human Development at the University of Illinois – Chicago
USC UCEDD, University California and Children's Hospital Los Angeles 
The Institute for Disability Studies at the University of Southern Mississippi
Jana Peterson-Besse, MPH, PhD – Dr. Peterson-Besse is a researcher and teacher in public health, disability, health disparities, and social determinants of health
American Association on Health and Disability

NRHA's Rural Multiracial and Multicultural Health Conference

When: December 3-5, 2013
Where: San Antonia, TX

The Rural Multiracial and Multicultural Health Conference is one of the National Rural Health Association's fastest growing conferences. One of the only meetings in the nation to focus on rural multiracial and multicultural health issues, this event offers attendees the opportunity to meet with peers and experts who share unique concerns and interests. This conference is designed for those who are dedicated to bringing quality health care and health care services to this underserved and often under-represented portion of the rural population.

Call for Presentations and Posters
Submission deadline: May 31, 2013
Submission and general Information:
Incomplete submissions will not be reviewed.
Please specify session format, track and topic.
 A letter of acceptance will be mailed by the end of July.
Presenters may not use any conference presentation to market products or services; display tables are available for that purpose.
If accepted, presenters must register for the conference and pay the appropriate registration fee. In addition, no honoraria or travel expense reimbursement will be provided for any presenter submitting through the "call for presentations.
Please click here to fill out a submission form in order to be considered for a session at NRHA's 2013 Rural Multiracial and Multicultural Health Conference. Presentations not submitted through this form will not be considered. Please contact Gaby Boscan gboscan@NRHArural.org or at 202-639-0550 with questions.

Click for more details: http://bit.ly/IRHOOT

NRHA's 36th Annual Rural Health Conference

Where: Louisville, KY
When: May 7-10, 2013

NRHA's Annual Rural Health Conference is the nation's largest rural health conference, created for all of those with an interest in rural health care, including rural health practitioners, hospital administrators, clinic directors and lay health workers, social workers, state and federal health employees, academics, community members and more.


Registration:
Early bird discount deadline is April 18.
Hotels:
NRHA has rooms at Marriott Louisville Downtown.  The Marriott is directly across the street from the convention center, and connected via skywalk.  The conference rate is $164 plus tax.  The deadline for room reservations is April 18, or when rooms sell out.  NRHA conferences consistently sell out well in advance, so don't delay in booking your room.