Media's Influence On Health In America

Health in America is an important issue that the public needs to discuss, improve, and learn about. While some forms of health public relations and certain campaigns might be working towards this goal, there are still serious issues regarding how we communicate about health. Problems with the healthcare system aside, if people have inaccurate ideas about how the current system operates, it is unlikely anything will ever be improved, or the small improvements will not be as affective. Inaccurate representation, I believe, is due in large part because of the media. Therefore, if done correctly, health communication could help improve lives in America, but currently, in a consumer-driven society, the drive for catchy headlines, ratings, and profit

In another reading from this week, Simon A. Senzon’s “Seeds of Meaning, Transformations of Health Care, and the Future. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine,” (2010) highlights the negatives of American health care, and mentions we have to promote health through communications. He suggests looking at models of alternative medicine and looking at disease as a natural part of life that can lead to discovering a deeper meaning. Personally, I believe Senzon has too much faith in American society. While we do have to promote healthcare through communications and need to start using advertising more affectively, at this point people might not respond well to unity and change. Still, he is right when he says it’s necessary to adapt. If our health care is going to improve, changes need to be made across the nation. However, these changes are hard to implement with a divisive political system, and with today’s media perpetuating false narratives. Thus, before we can move forward with change, it’s significant to also change the ways we communicate about

As Du Pre establishes managed care as “’hijacked by insurance companies’ such that physicians are ‘handcuffed’ to procedures and limitations meant to save money today rather than provide high-quality care that will pay off in the long run” (2010, p.46). Thus, communication and quality care to patients is limited by insurance companies’ need for economic gain. Just like the media reports inaccurate health stories while striving for views, health care similarly neglects methods for profit. It seems America can’t provide care to the best of its ability because care has become a large, systematic business, which is sad and scary. Therefore, unfortunately society is valuing money over