Health education and cooperation with the mass media. Experiences from a set up at the Telemark Central Hospital, psychiatric department
Okkenhaug, J.L.
Tidsskrift for den Norske Laegeforening Tidsskrift for Praktisk Medicin Ny Raekke 110(9): 1091-1093
1990
ISSN/ISBN: 0029-2001 PMID: 2330566 Document Number: 352652
Since 1983 the Psychiatric Division, Telemark Sentralsjukehus, has had a multiprofessional committee for health education and information directed mainly at the public and the primary health and social services. The main projects have been a series of articles in a local newspaper, arranging "open days" for the public and contributing to the form and content of radio programmes. It is also important to be available to journalists. We have managed to cooperate with the media on psychiatric health education. This has not, however, reduced the interest of the press in bringing conflict-related news and scandal stories from the psychiatric field. Laws and regulations seem to give too little flexibility in health education. Physicians should be better educated on mass communication and how to cooperate with the mass media.