Medicine in the Media

Filed in archive Miscellany on April 18, 2006

The National Institute of Health's (NIH) Office of Medical Applications of Research (OMAR) offers a free annual training opportunity to help develop journalists' ability to evaluate and report on medical research. This year's program will be conducted at Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, with a revamped curriculum that builds on the best of prior years' offerings to create an intensive learning experience with hands-on application.

The Medicine in the Media course will be held June 29 - July 1 while applications will be accepted until May 5, 2006.

The course examines the challenges and opportunities inherent in communicating the results of medical research to the public. Stressing an evidence-based approach and re-examining intuitive beliefs about medicine, the course will prepare participants for the crucial task of evaluating research findings, selecting stories that hold meaningful messages for the public, and placing them in the appropriate context.

2006 course topics include: Understanding Randomized Clinical Trials, Common Problems in Observational Studies, The Limited Role of Statistics, Dealing with Editors, and The Proper Role of Anecdotes.

We invite application for this year's course by journalists who produce news stories about health or health care for newspapers, magazines, or newsletters; television or radio; or on-line media. Applicants should be eager to develop skills and knowledge necessary for good medical science reporting, but need not have specific experience or background in medical journalism.

If only I were US-based, I will surely register and attend this course.

Source: MedGadget