Health organizations use social media to promote public health and build their b

Question

Health organizations use social media to promote public health and build their brand identities. Identify one type of social media and explain how a health organization is using it to promote public health. For example, in response to the outbreak of H1N1 in 2009, government health agencies and local health departments used Facebook and Twitter to provide up-to-date information, including flu clinic schedules, availability of vaccines, and mortality reports (National Association of County & City Health Officials 2009). They also posted several videos about flu season safety tips and flu vaccine information on their YouTube sites.

Explanation / Answer

Public health organizations are starting to use social media.Social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter have changed the way in which we communicate. This type of communication is becoming a growing trend around the world. These platforms are used by millions of people who interact and engage with other users every day and as a result, the public is now more informed that ever before.

Public health organizations, institutions, agencies and professionals are using social media in areas like epidemiology, health promotion, and policy change. This adoption reflects the changes in technology and communication systems over the years.

Facebook and Twitter have the innate ability to communicate information in real time, as well as create and sustaining relationships among communities and health professionals .These platforms are used to deliver information to provide awareness, educate diverse audiences, and send messages to particular viewers through public engagement by posting high- quality interactive content.

Todays organizations, institutions and agencies need to step up and develop a strong social media presence. It’s only this way that the public will gain a sense of trust regarding the information that these sites provide and apply such information towards achieving better health outcomes.

Social media allows for the tailoring of messages to help acknowledge concerns, promote action, and listen to what people are saying about health-related topics. Social media networks can be a valuable tool to better understand current interests, assess knowledge levels, and address potential misunderstandings or myths about certain health topics.

The use of social media is going to continue to grow, for that reason, it is important that dental and public health professionals use these tools in order to deliver health programs, products and information as this new trend is about providing quality and relevant health content to the public who is willing to engage.

For example, The World Lung Foundation released an application on Facebook that allows users to add rotten teeth, throat tumors, bleeding brains and other smoking-related illnesses to their profile pictures or pictures of friends. Users placed the altered images on a generic pack of cigarettes and shared them. The application, named PackHead, was intended to raise awareness and support for graphic package warnings, which are more effective at communicating the harms of smoking than standard text.

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