Communicating to Advance the Public's Health

The Institute of Medicine's Roundtable on Population Health Improvement brings together individuals and organizations that represent different sectors in a dialogue about what is needed to improve population health. On September 22, 2014, the roundtable held a workshop to discuss some of the science of health communication, audiences, and messaging, and to explore what it will take to generate widespread awareness, acceptance, and action to improve health, including through the entertainment media, the news media, and social media. This report summarizes the presentations and discussion of the workshop.

Table of Contents


Front Matter
1 Introduction
2 The Science of Health Communication: Guiding Principles for Population Health Campaigns
3 The News Media as a Catalyst for Action
4 Effective Use of Digital Media to Advance Population Health Goals
5 Effective Messaging Strategies: A Review of the Evidence
6 The Power of Television and Film
7 Final Comments
Appendix A: References
Appendix B: Workshop Agenda
Appendix C: Biographical Sketches of Workshop Speakers