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Need for better reporting on health issues

Earlier this month, an article on Dominica News Online lead with the headline “Timothy Blames Social Problems on Marijuana”. I wrote earlier on the the Minister’s seemingly lack of qualifications for the job.

However, I also wanted to write about the newspaper’s shortcomings.

Many articles appearing on the website read more like press releases than actual reporting. First, there rarely are any bylines with most attributed simply to Dominica News Online. Second, in instances such as the one noted above, I want to see more than the Minister’s words. Where are the counter arguments? Why couldn’t a DNO reporter get a quote or two from a public health or medical official on the island? And, if not a rebuttal from a health official, indeed follow-up questions to the Minister himself regarding how he came to those conclusions. Any of these approaches would greatly increase the value of information gleamed from the article as well as educate the public on what might indeed be a growing problem as well as give others an opportunity to design interventions to address those problems.

I am writing this now because another article appeared this week–this time on child abuse and from the Minister of Social Services, Community Development and Gender Affairs. Again, there are quotes from the Minister and nothing else. (I will address the issue of child abuse in a later post as well as how newspapers can educate the public on reported cases vs actual cases.) There are no quotes from the police department; nothing from the Minister if Health for indeed, child abuse is a public health issue. It is also a law enforcement issues.

I will say that I did not address this directly with the newspaper. I will attempt to do this in the future if this pattern continues. We need to educate those who bring us the news on how best to present them. It is particularly important for media and communications professionals to understand the best practices when reporting on health issues across the region.

 

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An HIV/AIDS course in every school

For the past three weeks, I’ve been attending AIDS: Principles, Practices and Policies. Tonight’s class saw about six people living with HIV and one living with AIDS address a group of more than 350 members if the UNC community: The oldest member of the group had been living with HIV for more than 22 years;  the newest HIV diagnosis among the panel was in 2008; and the person with AIDS was diagnosed in the mid-1990’s.

The group’s stories were inspiring in that they reminded us that HIV, and indeed AIDS, is now a chronic disease. Because of access to medication, day-to-day life is now about managing the disease. It is also about managing the myriad of other illnesses associated with HIV. Topics discussed included stigma and discrimination and  access to healthcare–one person being having medical disability from a job while others said they had no insurance and depended on ADAP.

This course is also inspiring because is shows the progression of the disease from the beginning of the epidemic to now. The panel included gay, heterosexual and transgender individual. Writing this now made me realize a missing demographic from the panel: young Black women. Although the panel was diverse in terms of race and gender, young African American women (18-34) are increasingly at risk for contracting the disease. And, cases are rising in the Southern U.S.

Nevertheless, this is a course that can be adapted for other universities. Particularly, I would like to see this course at the University of the Virgin Islands because it educates not only students from across the V.I. but also many of the next leaders across the Caribbean. It’s about time the university lives up to its “globally interactive” slogan. What’s more global than AIDS and HIV?

This video is an example of one of the lessons. It’s on Global AIDS. And, as one can see, HIV and AIDS is at once global and local.

 

 

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When politicians are unqualified for the jobs they hold

In my first epidemiology class today, Vic gave an example about how the lack of knowledgeable public health officials within a given society can be detrimental to those within the population. Taken from the book “Betrayal of Trust: The Collapse of Global Public Health” the anecdote explored the bubonic plague in India in the early 1990’s and how difficult it was for medical and health officials to identify the disease. One of the ‘interesting’ facts about the topic was that the Minister of Health was not a physician. This is not to say that only physicians should hold the position. It is to say that those we choose to represent us within government should have, at the very least, some knowledge of the field they represent.

And this brings me to a an article today on Dominica News Online. The Minister of Health  for Dominica, according to the article, “blames some social problems on marijuana.” There are several things wrong with this thesis. But for now, I will say that from the article, as well as from responses to the article, it is clear that the Minister knows very little about the links between marijuana and its effects on youth. Additionally, he goes on to say that during his youth, many parents had “some alcohol” and that “We did not have that in out time”, referring to the many problems that young people face today. The link between alcohol consumption and its associated problems are well noted. So, for a Minister of Health to dismiss alcohol as a cause for social problems while implicating marijuana shows a great irresponsibility on his part as well as a lack of good judgement about what ails society.

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A Force Behind the Lower Teen Birthrate: MTV’s ’16 and Pregnant’

“”Entertainment media is one of the nation’s favorite punching bags, but we have to acknowledge that when we’re talking about teen pregnancies media can be and often is a force for good, and that is particularly true when it comes to shows like ’16 and Pregnant,’ ‘” says Bill Albert, a spokesman for the National Campaign.”

Entertainment-education happens to be one of my research areas. This article reminds all the power of the media in influencing positive healthy behaviors.

Again, although not directly related to the Caribbean, MTV is a global media company. As such, I’m sure, since it’s American programming is seen on Caribbean television, the show could have an impact on Caribbean teens. Another thing to investigate.

via A Force Behind the Lower Teen Birthrate: MTV’s ’16 and Pregnant’ – Yahoo! TV Blog.

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Fried Fish May Explain ‘Stroke Belt’ Mystery

“Pass it on: While fish are a good source of omega 3 fatty acids, frying fish may reduce levels of these nutrients. Consumption of fried fish may contribute to the increased risk of stroke in the U.S. stroke belt.”

I am posting  this story because I believe the results could have implications for those of us in and from the Caribbean. The Caribbean diet includes an abundance of fish. However, I can say anecdotally that a significant portion of this is consumption is from fried fish.

I would like to see a study such as this coming from Caribbean research. Maybe those at CERC UVI would be interested in doing a follow-up to this study.

via Fried Fish May Explain ‘Stroke Belt’ Mystery – Yahoo! News.