Meant to educate the whole community
• Useful in transmitting messages to people even in remotest places
• Number of people reached is in millions
• High returns for the time and money involved
• One way communication
• Generally inadequate in changing behavior
• Useful for creating a political will in favor of health, raising health consciousness of people
• TV:
– Most popular
– Useful in creating awareness and forming opinions
– One way channel
• Radio
– Broader reach than TV in developing countries
– Purely didactic medium
– Cheaper tan TV
– Local health issues may be given importance
• Internet
– This fast growing media holds large potential for health communication
– Health related literature from WHO other agencies is available online
– This info is available on the website of MOHFW
• Newspapers
– The most widely disseminated of all forms of literature
– Low readership in rural areas
– Reach only the literate
• Printed material
– Magazines, booklets, pamphlets
– They can convey detailed information
– Can be produced in bulk for very little cost
– Can be shared by others in family and community
• Direct mailing
– New in India
– Sent directly to opinion leaders like panchayats, village leaders etc
– A kind of personal mass media
• Posters, billboards
– Intended to catch the eye
– Message must be simple and artistic
– Motives such as humor and fear are introduced into posters in order to hold the attention of the public
– Placed where people have some time to spend e.g. bus stops, railway station, heath centers
– Should be frequently changed to have an effect
• Health museums and exhibitions
– There is a big element of personal communication through workers who explain each item on the exhibit
– Printed literature is often distributed
– Both personal and impersonal method combination
• Folk media
– Keerthan, katha, folk songs, puppet shows
– These have roots in our culture
Reference:
Park’s Textbook of Preventive and Social Medicine, 23rd ed
Channels of communication: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/channels-communication
Barriers of communication: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/barriers-communication
Types of communication: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/types-communication
Methods of communication: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/methods-communication
Methods of communication - Individual level approach: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/individual-level-approach-methods-communica...
Methods of communication- lecture (chalk and talk): http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/methods-communication-chalk-and-talk-lectur...
Methods of communication- demonstration: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/demonstrations
Group Discussion: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/group-discussion
Panel Discussion: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/panel-discussion
Delphi method: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/delphi-method
Work shop: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/workshop
Role-play: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/role-playing-socio-%E2%80%93-drama
Conference: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/conferences-and-seminars
Methods of Communication - Mass Approach: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/methods-communication-mass-approach
Flannel graph: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/flannel-graph
Flip chart: http://www.ihatepsm.com/blog/flip-%E2%80%93-charts