Category Archives: health literacy

An indepth analysis of aged care reforms, covering community care, rural/regional concerns and more

May 2, 2012 – 6:55 pm

How did we ever survive in the days when we had to rely on the mainstream media for analysis of complex policy issues? For those who’ve been left wanting more detail about the Federal Government’s aged care package, below is a series of articles cross-posted from the Commonwealth Parliamentary Library’s FlagPost blog. In the articles [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in aged care, rural and remote health | Tagged , , | Comments (0)

Is your organisation health literate? (and what does this mean, anyway)

March 1, 2012 – 7:04 pm

The notion of health literacy is more complicated than it might at first sound, being about much more than whether any individual can understand what is written on their pill packet. A recent systematic review of health literacy and public health makes it clear that there are many ways of approaching the concept. The review identified [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in consumer health information, health and medical research, Indigenous health, public health | Tagged , | Comments (1)

A new guide to effective risk communication, one of the “greatest challenges” in public health

August 20, 2011 – 2:38 pm

(Apologies readers for glitches with punctuation; there is a gremlin at play in the system) Risk communication is one of the greatest challenges facing any public health agency; done badly it can cost lives, money, and reputations. That’s according to a new guide released by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and US Department of [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in cancer, consumer health information, evidence-based issues, health regulation, Media-related issues, quality and safety of health care, TGA | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off

Tackling the health issues left in the “too hard” basket: what can we learn from the US?

July 29, 2011 – 3:42 pm

Public health policy consultant Margo Saunders has taken a look at some recent reports from the US Institute of Medicine, and considers some possible lessons for Australia. Margo Saunders writes: While progress on so many health issues in Australia seems to be frustratingly slow, the US Institute of Medicine (IOM) is charging head with a [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in conflicts of interest, dental care, evidence-based issues, Food, health and medical research, health reform, health regulation, legal issues, women's health | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments (2)

Does Australia need a version of the Institute of Medicine?

June 15, 2011 – 10:32 am

Croakey has often been grateful for the work done by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) in the US. The IOM, established in 1970 as the health arm of the National Academy of Sciences, aims to provide unbiased and authoritative advice to decision makers and the public, and “asks and answers the nation’s most pressing questions [...]

By Melissa Sweet | Also posted in adverse events, cancer, conflicts of interest, infectious diseases, lesbian gay bisexual transgender issues, men's health, National Preventive Health Agency, NHMRC, prevention, primary health care, public health, quality and safety of health care, rural and remote health, social determinants of health, Uncategorized, women's health | Comments (7)