Workshop Descriptions

Health Communication in the New Media Age: What Has Changed and What Should Not Change

Overview

Technological revolutions have resulted in numerous low-cost ways to reach your audiences anytime and anywhere via social media, websites, mobile applications, computer software and many other interactive tools that can be used to advance the mission of non-profit health organizations, associations, and foundations. Increasingly, U.S. and international statistics on Internet and mobile use among different kinds of audiences make a compelling case for the inclusion of new media as part of larger interventions in support of organizational goals and/or aimed at behavioral and social change. While new media are not a magic bullet, establishing an audience-centered and high quality presence has become a strategic imperative – yet, always in integration with offline and community based strategies. Whether you are seeking to establish or expand your new media presence; or use Internet-based tools and new media to relay health information, promote healthy behaviors, create virtual communities and support groups, manage demand for offline services, expand existing programs, or others, you will benefit from participating in this workshop!

This workshop will help you:

• Review current trends and effective strategies for new media-based health communication
• Understand key factors that influence the quality, implications, and use of Internet- and mobile-mediated communications
• Focus on how to select audience- and health issue-specific strategies, channels and tools
• Learn how to develop an online communication strategy that is consistent with offline programs and community engagement efforts
• Create equitable opportunities for vulnerable and underserved populations for increased access to new media and new media literacy
• Discuss practical examples, case studies and resources

 Who Should Attend?

• Program directors and managers
• Communication and marketing directors and managers
• Public health professionals
• Healthcare professionals
• Advocacy managers and directors
• Other professionals with an interest in this field

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Evaluating Outcomes of New Media-based Public Health and Health Communication Programs

Overview

New media-based programs have exploded in a variety of public health and global health fields, but what is the value of these interventions vis-a-vis related efforts of your organization?  Not only is evaluation of public health and health communication programs a key element of program planning and implementation, evaluation of new media will maximize your organization’s online efforts. Furthermore, the importance of a rigorous evaluation process is increasingly emphasized by donors, program stakeholders, and partners. New media-based interventions require new evaluation measures and progress indicators to assess the impact of Internet- and mobile-based communications towards organizational objectives or social and behavioral outcomes. This workshop will cover newly developed evaluation measure, trends, and progress indicators to assess the impact of Internet- and mobile-based communications towards organizational objectives or social and behavioral outcomes.

This workshop will help you:

• Discuss current trends, and evaluation principles in new media-based health communication
• Identify what to measure and how to measure new media- based interventions
• Use logic models, online research resources, and other practical tools for the evaluation of new media-based interventions
• Apply specific tools to the evaluation of new-media based interventions in public health
• Consider health equity-related measures in evaluating the impact of new media in integration with other interventions
• Discuss case studies, best practices and issues with data collection

Who Should Attend?

• Program directors and managers
• Communication and marketing directors and managers
• Monitoring and evaluation professionals
• Public health professionals
• Healthcare professionals
• Other professionals with an interest in this field

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• Use the basic concepts and skills involved in culturally appropriate community engagement and empowerment with diverse communities
• In collaboration with others, prioritize individual, organizational, and community concerns and resources for public health programs
• Engage in dialogue and learning from others to advance public health goals
• Identify critical stakeholders for the planning, implementation and evaluation of public health programs, policies and interventions
• Understand how to integrate community mobilization and engagement in your research and practice
• Describe how to implement  community mobilization strategies in the US and globally, in the context of key sample areas, such as emerging diseases and epidemics , HIV/AIDS, and maternal and child health
• Develop public health programs and strategies responsive to the diverse cultural values and traditions of the communities being served.
• Review case studies on constituency building and mobilization

Assessing Organizational Capacity via Health Equity-Related Assessment (HERA): An Introductory Workshop

This workshop will help you:

• Introduce Health Equity-Related Assessment (HERA), a strategic tool to evaluate your organization’s core competencies and capacity vis-à-vis its ability to reach/address the needs of vulnerable and underserved populations across a variety of settings and health issues
• Apply key criteria to determine the extent to which underserved populations know about/use key resources your organization offers
• Use collaborative methods to integrate/complement your organization’s core competencies/ capacity and to achieve organizational and community health goals
• Apply “system thinking” to develop capacity building programs and to address organizational gaps vis-à-vis health equity issues
• Review relevant case studies, resources and examples re: health equity/health disparities