Communicating Public Health News & Services Case analysis of digital health communication efforts in...
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CommunicatingPublic Health
News & Services
Case analysis of digital health communication efforts in three mid-size Massachusetts cities:
Cambridge, New Bedford, and Newton
Common Challenges:Attract city residents as regular users
Keep the news and information current
Focus information on city-specific concerns and events to ensure relevancy
Over-reliance on print-style materials
Build an audience so it is more useful in emergencies
Invest time and money in communicating with the public
Public Health in New Bedford
Demographic information
Population: 95,183
English is primary language in <60% of households
Median household income: $36,172
Health & Human Services Department budget for FY 2014: $1.1 million*
*Budget for Health Department-only spending not available
City of New BedfordMission: “The Public Health Division is responsible for promoting general good health practices in the City of New Bedford.”
Target audience: City residents and business owners
Digital strategy:
Limited to a Web site for conveying information to citizens about public health threats, regulations, and licensing for certain small businesses
A platform for distribution of traditional print materials, such as flyers and FAQs
New Bedford SWOT Analysis
Strengths Weaknesses
• Useful information on a host of potential health problems for residents such as EEE and Lyme disease
• Many fact sheets also available in Spanish and Portuguese
• Straightforward navigation via drop-down menus
• Overview page is too long, too much scrolling
• Directed to other-language fact sheets in English only
• Main page is relatively static• Contact information is missing
or hard to find
Opportunities Threats
• Links to consumers for city’s healthy dining initiative
• Expansion to social media• Destination for health
information in Portuguese community with few other resources
• The PHD web page is not easy to find from city home page
• Much of the information on the site can be found elsewhere
• Limited funding
RecommendationsOptimize page design for use on mobile devices
Establish a presence on Facebook
Emphasize seasonal health concerns on Facebook and Web site
Redesign main page so that it is more concise and relevant
Configure content for use by sub-groups, such as parents, teens, older residents, small businesses, etc.
Underscore New Bedford-specific initiatives and information
City of NewtonDemographic Information
Population: 86,945
English is primary language in >70% of households
Median household income: $107,696
Health department budget FY 2014: $3.2 million*
*Budget for Public Health-only spending not available
Public Health in NewtonMission: “The mission of the department is to protect, promote and sustain the health, harmony, and well-being of all Newton residents, in a culturally-sensitive, customer-friendly manner. Our focus is on prevention.”
Target audience: City residents and business owners
Digital strategy: Limited to a Web site with information on health concerns, schedules for free screenings/immunizations, and some newsworthy content.
Newton SWOT AnalysisStrengths Weaknesses
• Simple navigation via drop down menus
• Some attempts to add information based on news events (talking with children after traumatic events)
• Limited information• Fresh content is linked from
Health & Human Services overview page; can’t be found if navigating directly to Public Health
Opportunities Threats
• Serves a mostly wealthy, wired community
• Good sources of local information on Recreation Department’s portion of the site (farmers’ markets, wellness programs, etc.)
• Health care providers can offer much of the same material
• Relevance to Newton residents• Limited funding
RecommendationsAdd Facebook presence
Expand content on Twitter to include information aimed at residents
Create a “newsier” top page for Public Health
Emphasize Newton-related health information, such as summer health maintenance clinics, and list as events on Facebook
Remove outdated information
Create single list of contacts
City of CambridgeDemographic information
Population: 106,038
English is primary language in <60% of households
Median household income: $64,865
Public Health Department budget for FY 2014: $6.5 million
Public Health in Cambridge
Mission: “The mission of the Cambridge Public Health Department is to improve the quality of life of residents and workers by reducing sickness and injury; encouraging healthy behaviors; and fostering safe and healthy environments in homes, schools, and workplaces.”
Target audience: City residents and business owners
Digital strategy: Web-based presence that highlights news, events, and Cambridge-specific programming
Cambridge SWOT AnalysisStrengths Weaknesses
• Lively main page• All information grouped into
four categories• Newsworthy events displayed
more prominently• List of contacts is extensive
and easy to find
• Content is repeated in multiple places
• City Public Health services are hard to find
• Material is in English only
Opportunities Threats
• Expanded use of social media• Strong sponsorship from
multiple partners• Strong local programming
• Branding confusion (Cambridge Health Department and Cambridge Health Alliance)
• Multi-lingual, diverse socio-economic community adds to expense, challenges
RecommendationsLink Twitter (Cambridge Health Alliance) to
Web site
Create Facebook presence for Men’s Health League and other programs
More material adapted for use on the Web (Cambridge in Motion)
Highlight calendar on Web site and create Facebook events
Other Cities on FacebookTend to highlight a specific program or set of programs. For example:
“Healthy San Francisco”
“Eating Healthy NYC”
“NYC Condom”
“NYC Quits Smoking”
“Philly Flu”
On TwitternycHealthy
HealthyBoston
San Francisco
Thank you!
Questions?