bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Cost-effectiveness of Prostate Cancer Screening Using Magnetic Resonance Imaging or Standard Biopsy Based on the STHLM3-MRI Study
Authors: Hao Shuang , Discacciati Andrea , Eklund Martin , Heintz Emelie , Östensson Ellinor , Elfström K. Miriam , Clements Mark S. , Nordström Tobias
Published: November 2022

Importance

The combination of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for prostate cancer detection has rarely been evaluated in a screening context. The STHLM3-MRI screening-by-invitation study (NCT03377881) has reported the benefits of using MRI with subsequent combined targeted and standard biopsies compared with using standard biopsies alone.

Objective

To investigate the cost-effectiveness of prostate cancer screening using MRI with combined targeted and standard biopsies compared with standard biopsies alone among men aged 55 to 69 years in Sweden, based on evidence from the STHLM3-MRI study.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This economic evaluation study was conducted from a lifetime health care perspective using a microsimulation model to evaluate no screening and screening strategies among adult men in Sweden. Men aged 55 to 69 years in Sweden were simulated for no screening and screening strategies. Input parameters were obtained from the STHLM3-MRI study and recent reviews. One-way and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were performed in May 2022.

Interventions

No screening, quadrennial PSA screening using standard biopsies alone, and MRI-based screening using combined targeted and standard biopsies.

Main Outcomes and Measures

The number of tests, incidence, deaths, costs, quality-adjusted life-years (QALY), and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) were estimated.

Results

A total 603 men were randomized to the standard arm, 165 of these participants (27.4%) did not undergo standard biopsy; 929 men were randomized to the experimental arm, 111 (11.9%) of whom did undergo MRI or any biopsy. Compared with no screening, the screening strategies were associated with reduced lifetime prostate cancer–related deaths by 6% to 9%. Screening with MRI and the combined biopsies resulted in an ICER of US $53 736, which is classified as a moderate cost per QALY gained in Sweden. Relative to screening with standard biopsies alone, MRI-based screening reduced the number of both lifetime biopsies and overdiagnosis by approximately 50% and had a high probability of being cost-effective than the traditional PSA screening.

Conclusions and Relevance

For prostate cancer screening, this economic evaluation study found that PSA testing followed by MRI with subsequent combined targeted and standard biopsies had a high probability to be more cost-effective compared with the traditional screening pathway using PSA and standard biopsy. MRI-based screening may be considered for early detection of prostate cancer in Sweden.
A Step Forward in Understanding Treatment Approaches for Diabetic Macular Edema
Authors: Sun Jennifer K. , Baker Carl W. , Jampol Lee M.
Published: November 2022

This Viewpoint discusses new treatment approaches for diabetic macular edema.
Hemorrhagic Occlusive Retinal Vasculitis Associated With Triamcinolone-Moxifloxacin Use During Uncomplicated Cataract Surgery
Authors: Pan Warren W. , Miller Andrew R. , Young Benjamin K. , Johnson Mark W. , Sassalos Thérèse M.
Published: November 2022

This case series describes the outcomes of cataract extraction with intraocular lens placement in 2 patients.
Association Between Social Disadvantage and Otitis Media Treatment in US Children With Commercial Insurance
Authors: Qian Z. Jason , Rehkopf David H.
Published: November 2022

Importance

It is well established that social disadvantage is associated with earlier, more frequent, and more severe otitis media in children. Appropriate medical and surgical treatment of otitis media can prevent hearing loss and other complications, which may affect future academic and employment opportunities in socially disadvantaged populations. Clinical treatment patterns for otitis media in the US are unclear.

Objective

To describe and quantify social disparities in the treatment patterns of otitis media in children in the US.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This cross-sectional study included claims data from the Optum Clinformatics Data Mart Database between January 1, 2003, and March 31, 2021, with linked inpatient, outpatient, and pharmaceutical claims for 4 831 408 children with otitis media.

Exposures

Age at first otitis media diagnosis, sex, environmental allergies, gastroesophageal reflux, adenotonsillar hyperplasia, zip code, social deprivation index score, social vulnerability index score.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Treatment of recurrent and suppurative otitis media in children, insertion of tympanostomy tubes, and treatment for severe complications of undertreated otitis media. The principal measure of social disadvantage was the social deprivation index. The social vulnerability index was used for sensitivity analyses to ensure external validity. Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to quantify the association of all projected variables with the study outcomes.

Results

Among 4 831 408 US children with otitis media (median [IQR] age, 4 [1-8] years; 2 491 557 boys [51.57%]), 994 921 (20.59%) were treated for recurrent otitis media, 717 978 (14.86%) were treated for suppurative otitis media, 335 949 (6.95%) received tympanostomy tubes, and 10 975 (0.23%) had severe complications of otitis media. In multivariable regression models including patient factors and social indices, earlier age at diagnosis, male sex, environmental allergies, gastroesophageal reflux, and adenotonsillar hyperplasia were associated with increased treatment for otitis media, whereas social deprivation index was associated with lower odds of medical treatment for recurrent otitis media (odds ratio [OR], 0.86; 95% CI, 0.85-0.87), suppurative otitis media (OR, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.60-0.62), and insertion of tympanostomy tubes (OR, 0.76; 95% CI, 0.75-0.78) but higher odds of having severe complications (OR, 1.28; 95% CI, 1.19-1.37).

Conclusions and Relevance

The findings of this cross-sectional study suggest that children with otitis media who were socially disadvantaged were less likely to receive treatment and more likely to experience complications for undertreated otitis media. As otitis media is a modifiable risk factor for hearing loss, efforts need to be made to ensure equitable access to treatment for all children.
Palliative Care Communication
Authors: Imes Rebecca , Omilion‐Hodges Leah M. , Hester Jennifer D. B.
Published: November 2022

Palliative care is care for the seriously ill and their families. The gold‐standard for providing this care uses interdisciplinary and/or transdisciplinary teams composed of nurses, physicians, chaplains, social workers, and pharmacists. Excellent palliative care teams require purposeful and conscientious attention to communication in the team formation and maintenance stages. To become a high‐functioning palliative care team, members must learn to work across professional lines that are often siloed. High performing teams not only provide excellent patient and family care, they also help team members to avoid burnout.
Ethnic Media
Authors: Matsaganis Matthew D.
Published: November 2022

Ethnic media – defined as media produced for and frequently by immigrants, ethnic, racial, and linguistic minorities, as well as Indigenous populations – perform important connective, orientation, and symbolic functions in their audiences' lives. In doing so and in the context of either everyday media consumption or health communication campaigns and interventions, they can aid efforts to achieve a host of health promotion goals and help reduce health disparities that disproportionately affect immigrant communities and other minority background populations. Several factors contribute to ethnic media's capacity to perform the aforementioned roles, including their importance relative to other communication resources in audiences' communication ecologies, the trust audiences have in them, but also these producers' cultural sensitivity. Nonetheless, ethnic media's health promotion potential is constrained by four key factors: constrained access to news sources, limited financial resources, digital literacy gaps, and limited training in covering health news. Future research in three directions can further our understanding of how ethnic media can impact their audiences' health and of their health promotion capacity.
Media Content, Impact Of
Authors: Terán Larissa
Published: November 2022

Health messages within mass media and an exploration of how such messages impact media consumers' health behaviors and attitudes has been studied within the field of communication for decades. Scholars have traditionally explored the health content and outcomes from traditional media outlets, including television, film, and print media. This entry considers the content and effects from these types of media. It focuses on three areas in the health literature: body image, sexual health, and mental health. Scholars find negative associations from media consumption and these health‐related outcomes, with some exemptions relating to mental health. Such findings may have implications for parents and media executives as consumers navigate the media landscape.
Communication Infrastructure Theory
Authors: Wilkin Holley A.
Published: November 2022

Communication infrastructure theory is based on the premise that every community has a communication infrastructure consisting of a storytelling system embedded within a communication action context. Health communication scholars have explored the ways in which connections to local storytelling agents impact health knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors. Additionally, the applicability of communication infrastructure theory to community‐based health interventions is explored. Recommended steps for interventions, based upon current research, and suggestions for future research are provided.
Social Cognitive Theory
Authors: Myrick Jessica Gall , Yang Yin
Published: November 2022

Social cognitive theory (SCT), originally developed by social psychologist Albert Bandura, provides a comprehensive account for understanding the antecedents, processes, and consequences of health communication. Essentially, SCT underscores human capabilities of controlling and shaping thoughts, feelings, and actions through an array of processes, such as intentionality, forethought, self‐reactiveness, self‐reflectiveness, and so forth. The vicarious learning and modeling tenets of SCT, in particular, apply to the health communication context as these multistep processes explain how messages about health can affect health‐related behaviors. In the health communication research testing or employing SCT, self‐efficacy and outcome expectations are consistently found to be strong predictors of intentions or behavior. These two components can also be enhanced by health communication, such as viewing health messages in which celebrities or fictional characters model certain behaviors or when trusted peers model or persuade, too. While SCT propositions in health communication research have been largely supported, inconclusive findings also exist and rarely has the model been comprehensively applied. As such, there are limitations of this theory related to its broad account, frequent exclusion of noncognitive processes, and neglect of notable audience/receiver characteristics.
Social Identity Theory
Authors: Guan Mengfei , So Jiyeon
Published: November 2022

Social identity theory was initially developed to understand intergroup relations from a social psychological analysis perspective. Over the years, it has been extended to examine how identification with social groups can influence a variety of behaviors, including health‐related ones. The core proposition of the theory is that people define the sense of self in terms of the social groups they belong to. The conceptual focus is on one's collective self (vs. individual self) and social identity (vs. personal identity). Identification with a group involves a cognitive awareness of the identity, a value connotation associated with the group, and an emotional attachment to the group. When people strongly identify with a particular group, they are likely to behave in terms of group membership. In the context of health communication, the impact of social identity on health‐related behaviors can be explained by conformity to group norms, perceived social support, and enhanced self‐efficacy. One way of using social identity as a strategy for health messaging is to tailor the message to the group membership of the intended audience. A related challenge is to persuade people who have an identity that is associated with certain unhealthy behaviors, as messages that target this group of audience may be perceived as a threat to their identity.
Crisis Communication, Public Relations
Authors: Veil Shari R.
Published: November 2022

Crisis communication in public relations has focused primarily on the reputation threats of crisis. Early advances in the field included image repair, apologia, and situational crisis communication theory, which all sought to identify communication strategies that would lessen the negative reputation effects of crisis. Renewal discourse was introduced to advance ethical communication and learning in crises where blame and responsibility were difficult to attribute, such as in natural disasters, pandemics, and other catastrophic events. Healthcare organizations are often front‐line responders for crises like infectious disease outbreaks, natural disasters, and mass casualty events. The best practices in crisis communication were born out of health crisis research and offered a more holistic approach to crisis communication by incorporating elements of risk communication into crisis communication planning and response to assist organizations in planning ahead pre‐crisis, communicating responsibly in the acute phase of crisis, and minimizing harm in facilitating post‐crisis response.
Sexual Communication
Authors: Rintamaki Lance S. , Dobmeier Christopher M.
Published: November 2022

This entry provides an overview of and working definition for the broad science of sexual communication. Specifically, this entry depicts the four general groupings of research exploring variables tied to sexual attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors. These include (i) bio‐physiological variables, (ii) sociocultural variables, (iii) mediated variables, and (iv) strategic interaction. Descriptions of each body of work are provided, along with samples of the sexual communication research they entail.
Digital Tailored Strategies
Authors: Smit Eline Suzanne , Hoving Ciska
Published: November 2022

Tailoring digital health communication (i.e., computer‐tailoring) entails the process during which an individual assessment is matched with relevant pieces of information using software algorithms. Digital tailored strategies have several advantages over offline and generic forms of health communication, such as 24/7 accessibility to personalized information tailored to the individual user's context, a variety of possible delivery modes, and anonymity. Traditionally, computer‐tailored health communication was most often tailored in content, i.e., in terms of
what
health information is communicated to its receiver. However, the effects of this content tailoring always remained – although positive – relatively small. Therefore, other ways of tailoring strategies have been applied and tested as well in the digital setting, such as message frame tailoring (adjustment of
how
a message is communicated, e.g., in terms of tone of voice or other message features) and mode tailoring (adjustment of the message delivery mode(s) based on users' learning styles and mode preferences). In this entry we discuss these different strategies for tailoring digital health communication and elaborate on some novel developments in the field as well: recommender systems and adaptive forms of tailoring.
eHealth
Authors: Duduciuc Alina , Barbaros Maria‐Corina , Ionescu Adina
Published: November 2022

Historically, digital development and emerging interactive technologies shaped a landscape in which health communication, disease prevention, accurate diagnosis, and symptoms management are at the tip of patients' fingers. eHealth, an umbrella term for using digital technologies and innovations in the healthcare sector, puts the patients at the core of the medical processes, offering a variety of tools for them to understand and cope with their conditions in a more active and informed way. The patient is directly involved in the rehabilitation process and the medical practitioner is assisted to give higher quality diagnoses and to maintain constant communication, using digital extensions (like avatars, Artificial Intelligence, robots, chatbots). This entry provides an overview of the meaning of eHealth in health communication and related fields. We highlight the distinction between eHealth, mHealth, iHealth, interactive health communication, health informatics, etc., and we present the principal theoretical and empirical direction of the eHealth research. The large‐scale adoption of technological innovation comes with benefits and advantages in terms of speed, accuracy, and personalization, but the risks and limitations of digital instruments should be analyzed, looking at the criticism of the concept and future research directions in legal, ethical, and psychosocial areas. It is crucial to understand the impact of eHealth on health communication and the shifting paradigm in the medical domain because developers, creators, health practitioners, and even policymakers and governments need to carefully design a context in which medical processes, clinicians, and new digital technologies can improve the lives of patients.
New Communication Technologies
Authors: Paige Samantha R. , Ong Triton , Wilczewski Hattie , Soni Hiral , Barrera Janelle F. , Welch Brandon , Bunnell Brian E.
Published: November 2022

Communication technologies are designed with the goal of fostering information exchanges that are more efficient and convenient than traditional methods. As communication technologies evolve alongside advancements in science and technology, they become closer to humanizing the electronic experience and more precisely meeting the needs of their users. The goal of this entry is to look beyond the basic hardware that typically distinguishes communication technologies from one another. We define new communication technologies with examples that highlight how basic tenets of human interaction are reflected through modern digitized solutions for some of the most devastating health problems worldwide. Examples include social media, telemedicine, remote patient monitoring systems, chatbots, and extended reality. We also highlight considerations for using new communication technologies to facilitate the exchange of health‐related information in research and practice. Considerations include the method of the exchange (i.e., synchronous vs. asynchronous; passive vs. active; continuous vs. periodic), the degree that the mediated program and exchange is customized to the user, as well as the purpose of the exchange and the sources engaged in the transaction.
Virtual Reality
Authors: Novotny Eric , Joo (Grace) Ahn Sun
Published: November 2022

Virtual reality (VR) is a mediated platform that consists of digital devices that simulate multiple layers of sensorimotor information such as visual, auditory, and tactile cues, enabling users to perceive these stimuli as natural. Such devices (e.g., head‐mounted displays (HMDs) and handheld controllers) track users' head and body positions while computers adjust the virtual scene accordingly. The high‐speed feedback loop of body tracking and rendering leads to an experience of realistic locomotion through the virtual environment. A growing number of scientific studies are demonstrating that we can use VR to improve health‐related knowledge, attitudes, and behavior.
Media Literacy
Authors: Rozendaal Esther
Published: November 2022

The contemporary media environment creates both opportunities and risks for adolescents' health. To maximize opportunities and minimize risks for adolescents, there is a growing call to invest in their media literacy. Applied to health, media literacy can be defined as the set of competencies that one needs to consume and create media messages in a way that benefits health. Educational programs aiming to foster media literacy generally focus on developing the knowledge needed to become critical consumers and creators of media messages in a variety of forms. However, earlier research revealed that even if adolescents acquire the necessary knowledge, this does not mean they also use media in a healthy manner. Existing theories on media literacy fall short in explaining how to overcome this knowledge–behavior gap. To do so, they need to be expanded with insights from theories on behavior change and, because the cognitive capacities needed to translate knowledge into behavior are still developing in adolescents, theories on cognitive development. In light of this need, I propose a novel theoretical framework, the Media Empowerment model, using an integrated theoretical approach to explain how adolescents can be empowered to use media in a way that benefits their health. The Media Empowerment model not only focuses on the knowledge adolescents need to consume and create media messages in a healthy manner, but also takes into account the mechanisms that increase adolescents' agency to actually act on that knowledge. Implications for media literacy interventions are discussed as well.
Media Psychology
Authors: de Leeuw Rebecca N. H. , Buijzen Moniek
Published: November 2022

This entry describes why the field of media psychology is important for addressing the biggest challenges of our times, including climate change, inequality, and health issues. After that, it zooms in to the field of positive media psychology and gives potential directions for future research. It describes how stories in the media may help us to develop our character strengths and apply them. Further, it explains why underdog narratives are promising in giving hope and helping to achieve goals. Finally, it describes how stories could be an opportunity for perspective taking and how they can expand our feelings of sympathy for “others.” The ideas for future research are illustrated with the story of climate change activist Greta Thunberg.
Advertising: Tobacco
Authors: Wang Yunwen , Wu Jiaxi , Hong Traci
Published: November 2022

Tobacco advertising involves a variety of media formats (i.e., print, radio, television, billboards, point‐of‐sale, movie placement, Internet or social media, direct mail) and applies multiple persuasive tactics (e.g., visual appeal, sex appeal, masculinity and femininity cues, celebrity endorsement, motivational appeal) to encourage tobacco purchase and use. Scientific evidence points to the association between exposure to tobacco advertisements and subsequent increases in tobacco use. Due to the health risks of tobacco use, especially for youth, tobacco advertising is among the most regulated types of advertising. Globally, empirical research found that comprehensive tobacco advertising bans can reduce tobacco consumption, whereas partial tobacco advertising bans will have little or no effect as manufacturers may turn to non‐banned media formats of advertisements. Other factors, such as transnational tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship, as well as electronic word‐of‐mouth (eWOM) enabled by the Internet, social media, and mobile communication, also pose additional challenges to health communication programs in tobacco control and prevention. This entry consists of five sections: (i) tobacco products and health risks, (ii) tobacco advertising and persuasive tactics, (iii) regulatory activities, (iv) anti‐tobacco health communication, and (v) implications for health communication.
Health Campaigns: Policy Impact
Authors: Lindstadt Calandra , Yanovitzky Itzhak
Published: November 2022

Publicly funded health campaigns are frequently used as policy instruments to alert, educate, and influence large groups of audiences on ways to avoid health risks and/or adopt healthier behavior and lifestyles. Largely overlooked in the health communication literature is the possibility that health campaigns themselves can be an instrument for influencing and shaping public health policy. Our focus here is on outlining and classifying the multiple pathways through which health campaigns potentially influence health policymaking and providing an illustrative example of each. We conclude with a caution about the potential unintended effects of using health campaigns as an instrument for influencing policy and reflect on promising venues and future directions for expanding this line of research.
Message Tailoring
Authors: Huang Hsuan Yuan
Published: November 2022

Message tailoring is a health communication practice which tailors the design and delivery of health messages to individuals in targeted segments of a population who are most affected by specific diseases or health conditions. This practice increases the likelihood of enhancing knowledge and attitude, and ultimately impacting changes in health behaviors. Unlike non‐tailored or generic communication that assumes “one‐size‐fits‐all,” tailored communication guided by health behavior theories matches the individual on personal factors that can determine a person's decision to engage in healthy behaviors. With the advance in computing technology, message tailoring has expanded its scope and functionality from print materials to more versatile and dynamic internet‐based tailoring including websites and mobile apps, featuring intervention characteristics such as reach, multimodality, and interactivity. Although content tailoring, an approach that creates a match between the content and the individuals, has been commonly practiced, other tailoring approaches such as cultural tailoring and message frame tailoring are needed to address individual difference in preferences over how the tailored health information is presented. The future of message tailoring may be dependent on the emerging applications of mobile and wearable technology and novel strategies to realize its full potential.
Social Marketing
Authors: Deshpande Sameer , Carins Julia
Published: November 2022

Social marketing is a subfield of marketing, which is people‐centric and situationally aware, and committed to forming a deep understanding on which to develop a competitive and valued offering to consumers to encourage behavior change. Social marketing includes communication but moves beyond the communication toolkit, to create an environment that induces or supports behavior change, through goods and services, place and pricing strategies. It is time and resource intensive compared to communication alone, and generally requires commitment by partners and stakeholders to succeed. Both social marketing and health communication are applied to improve the health of individuals or communities, and there are instances where either may be considered more suitable than the other. Suitability can be determined by reflecting on the type of social problem and the relevant behaviors, and by considering the demographic and psychological characteristics of the target audience. Use of social marketing and health communication should not be considered to be mutually exclusive – each may be better suited to certain issues, or to particular population subgroups when addressing a social issue. They may also be used sequentially, or together with other behavior‐change strategies to increase the degree of change within a population.
Knowledge Gap Hypothesis
Authors: Bao Huanyu , Lee Edmund W. J.
Published: November 2022

The knowledge gap hypothesis postulates that as information flows into society, gaps in knowledge between high and low socioeconomic (SES) groups widen as the former would acquire information at a much quicker rate. This entry aims to provide an overview of the theory, the current state of research and existing gaps, and implications for health communication theorizing. Current research had largely focused on examining if knowledge gaps could be observed in various public health contexts, and identified what are the factors that amplified or closed them. Despite its contribution, the theory has been criticized for “victim‐blaming,” pinning the responsibility of knowledge deficits on individuals. Also, the conceptualization of
knowledge
still remains elusive. Yet, there remain opportunities to examine the knowledge gap through fresh vantage points in the age of social media, such as identifying the presence of health misinformation gaps, understanding how knowledge gaps are capitalized or abused, and formulating practical ways to close them.
Mobile Health, Behavior Change
Authors: de Bruijn Gert‐Jan , Liu Sam , Rhodes Ryan
Published: November 2022

Nowadays, in most parts of the world, the majority of the population own smartphones, and mobile health apps on these smartphones have become a key tool to both understand and promote health and health behaviors. In this entry, we provide a broad overview of the main research endeavors that have been carried out in the field of mobile health and lifestyle behavior change, and future opportunities and challenges that arise. The entry starts by surveying the content of mobile health apps with a specific focus on behavior change components. It then describes which population segments are more likely to use these mobile health apps. The entry ends by highlighting the effects of behavior change interventions using mobile health apps. The final two parts discuss the future of mHealth interventions and highlight key privacy and security challenges facing the mHealth field.
Patient‐Centered Communication
Authors: Jäger Simone , Street, JR. Richard L. , Rossmann Constanze
Published: November 2022

Patient‐centered communication (PCC) accomplishes the goals of patient‐centered care – helping patients understand health status and treatment options; bringing the patient's perspective into the encounters; getting to know the patient as a person in their everyday context; involving patients in decision making; and making decisions based on the evidence, consistent with patient values, and feasible to implement. Key communicative tasks include effective information exchange, fostering healing relationships, making quality decisions, managing uncertainty, responding to emotions, and enabling patient self‐management of health and well‐being. Research on and practical implications of PCC are mainly focused on clinician–patient interaction and communication, representing the heart of the medical consultation. PCC refers to various aspects of communication, including communication skills consisting of a certain verbal (i.e., empathic statements) and nonverbal behavior (i.e., tone of voice) of both clinicians and patients. The term conveys patient‐oriented communication goals, patient‐reported outcomes, and a partner‐like clinician–patient relationship. It is related to the interaction elements of patient involvement and shared decision making. PCC is a multifaceted term with a broad ontological nature, and thus has different dimensions, both in the literature and in medical practice. There are process‐related (task‐oriented) and functional (goal‐ and outcome‐oriented) elements of medical encounters, diverse domains (individual vs. interaction) and associated perspectives (clinician, patient, relationship, and healthcare system). PCC methods and measures are quite diverse and have been assessed widely across different healthcare systems, medical settings, disease contexts, languages, and cultures. PCC is relevant both in offline face‐to‐face interactions and in digital and online communication, which has become increasingly important.
Cancer: Survivorship (Patient Experience)
Authors: Miller Laura E.
Published: November 2022

This entry reviews the salient experiences of patients throughout cancer survivorship. Cancer can have devastating physical and psychological impacts on patients as they navigate from diagnosis to treatment to remission. After completing treatment, patients may continue to experience heightened levels of uncertainty about their cancer coming back and about communicating with their healthcare clinicians across the lifespan. Such challenges also may alter patients' close relationships and complicate patients' communicative efforts throughout survivorship.
HIV/AIDS
Authors: Sastry Shaunak
Published: November 2022

The HIV/AIDS pandemic has defined the contours of health communication as a field of study, and the emergence of the global response to HIV coalesces with the disciplinary history of health communication. Health communication research has explored various aspects and dynamics of HIV prevention, education, and stigma. Health communication research on HIV/AIDS spans the interdisciplinary and cross‐cutting breadth of the field. From early calls to study patient–clinician interaction, a later focus on meaning and stigma, and more recent calls to integrate lenses of globalization, development, and gender equity in global HIV governance, health communication research on HIV spans a wide multi‐paradigmatic range of topics and approaches.
Suicide: Stigma
Authors: An Soontae
Published: November 2022

This entry provides an overview of the concept of suicide stigma. Suicide stigma includes a set of undesirable characteristics applied to suicidal behavior. There are two categories of suicide stigma: social stigma and self‐stigma. Social stigma concerning suicide refers to the public's negative attitudes and behaviors toward suicidal behavior, while self‐stigma involves internalizing social stigma by those with suicidality. As such, the consequences of suicide stigma take the form of fear of rejection and being devalued, along with status loss and discrimination by others. With its adverse effects on public health, it is essential to recognize suicide stigma as a critical barrier to suicide prevention. Addressing both the social stigma and self‐stigma of suicide will help the provision and seeking of appropriate help.
Health Disparities: Access
Authors: Khan Shamshad
Published: November 2022

This entry provides a broad overview of the related concepts of health disparities and health equity with a particular focus on access, and the role that health communication research and practices have played over the years. Specific examples of access disparities and health communication interventions, especially in the field of diabetes care and HIV/AIDS, are shared to demonstrate the key concepts. While health communication as a discipline has been central to revealing health disparities and expanding access to healthcare and services, in recent years, health communication scholars have increasingly drawn attention to a more broad‐based, culture‐centered approach that is community‐driven and grounded in everyday lived experiences of people, especially those on the margins of society. Scholars have also emphasized the need to remain attentive to new and emergent forms of identities, marginalities, and vulnerabilities, going beyond the conventional boundaries of race, class, caste, gender, region, or neighborhood.
Health Disparities: African American
Authors: Madlock Annette D.
Published: November 2022

Disparities in African American health remain pervasive and persist in the twenty‐first century despite calls to eliminate them. Some of the messaging that centers on disease awareness and behavior change is not working. This entry provides an overview of some of the barriers to health equity and health justice often not prioritized in previous research that addresses African American health disparities. To approach African American health, one must use a cultural lens that centers on African American communication and culture, including ancestral memory and generational trauma.
LGBQ
+ Health
Authors: Hudak Nicole , Peck Meredith
Published: November 2022

LGBQ+ health is an imperative area of research as the community experiences significant health disparities. Globally, the LGBTQ+ population experiences discrimination through institutions, including having their identity being considered “illegal.” Previous research on the topic has mostly been outside of the health communication discipline. Part of understanding the topic has to come from outside of the discipline to understand how the health disparities are being framed and to understand the function of heterosexism within healthcare. When looking at the health communication discipline, researchers have focused on discrimination within healthcare, disclosing sexual identity to healthcare clinicians, and other related topics.
Migrant Health
Authors: Kumar Rati
Published: November 2022

In the past two decades, the globalized movement of voluntary, reluctant, and forced migrants has brought to the forefront systemic issues of migrant health inequities. More recently, health communication researchers, using the culture‐centered approach, have broadened the scope of study of migrant health within the discipline, critically analyzing the role of communicative inequalities in systemic marginalization. This newly emerging area of research engaging with communities of low‐wage migrant labor and exploring issues of refugee health signifies a movement in health communication toward an examination of the structural implications of communicative erasure, and the role of culture as an empowering tool for marginalized communities in navigating the systemic oppressions of inadequate healthcare, immigration, and employment protections. Rejecting top‐down health interventions conceptualizing community members as passive audiences for information dissemination, this scholarship focuses on the transformative capacity of migrant communities to affect structural change. A much‐needed area of study, health communication research within migrant communities such as foreign domestic workers, resettled and internally displaced refugees, and migrant construction labor, among others, is in its nascent stages with great potential for growth at the intersection of neoliberal global policies and the simultaneous emergence of social justice solidarity movements.
Women's Health
Authors: Vardeman Jennifer E. , Sundstrom Beth L.
Published: November 2022

Despite the nuances of gender and gender identity today, “women's health” is a broad area of health communication that is increasingly receiving scholarly attention and global application. Health communication specific to women occurs at four primary sites and depends on context, ranging from women's personal needs to medical/healthcare clinicians' approaches to treating women's bodies. These contexts tell different stories about the state of women's health, and communication – as an occupational discipline and rhetorical and cultural maintenance strategy – has an important role in each context. Gaps in women's health communication occur at four primary settings, which are
embodied
, or intrapersonal communication, contexts;
political
, or societal/systematic communication, contexts;
rhetorical/representational
, or cultural communication, contexts; and
clinical
, or interpersonal communication, contexts. Several enduring analytical lenses define modern women's health, specifically those of
intersecting identities
, the
life‐course perspective
, and
technological innovations
as ways research and science have conceptualized problems and opportunities in health communication. Health issues and the concept of gender specific to women are also addressed.
Culture‐Centered Approach
Authors: Dutta Mohan J.
Published: November 2022

This entry outlines the key tenets of the culture‐centered approach to health communication, the theoretical commitments of the approach, the methodological anchors, and the praxis‐based elements. It attends to the key concepts of culture, structure, and agency as organizing features to outline communicative inequalities as the basis for health inequalities. The concepts of structural transformation, socialist organizing, collective accountability, and solidarity are offered as the pillars of culture‐centered health communication theorizing.
Global Health Interventions
Authors: Storey Douglas
Published: November 2022

Global health interventions
refers to an expansive body of communication research, theory, and practice addressing all aspects of health, defined as a state of complete mental, physical, and social well‐being. Health issues are considered global if they concern many countries or are affected by transnational determinants. Intervention approaches are diverse and include mediated and unmediated communication processes designed to influence health outcomes at one or more levels of social structure: individuals, small groups, communities, institutions, and society at large. The field of global health intervention is transdisciplinary and shares much history with the field of communication. Being one of the most heavily funded domains of communication research and practice, it has played a key role in the conceptual, methodological, technological, and political evolution of communication studies. Global health intervention research embraces a wide range of qualitative and quantitative methods that have been creatively adapted to produce locally specific and globally generalizable evidence of how communication works in varied settings and populations. Globally, not all health issues or strategic approaches have received equal research attention: mental health, noncommunicable diseases, and child health under five are relatively underrepresented in the literature. Research on community‐based approaches is more common in low‐ and middle‐income countries while research on interpersonal counseling approaches is more common in higher‐income countries. Integrated multichannel strategies are most effective. Future research efforts may focus on comparative cross‐national studies, on structural and social determinants of health and health disparities, and on the growing influence of social media, both pro and con, on health.
Citizen Science
Authors: Dutta Debalina
Published: November 2022

Citizen science reflects the public participation of non‐institutional, non‐accredited science enthusiasts and communities who contribute to scientific knowledge and research through their voluntary participation. Citizen scientists work in tandem with expert researchers in making and recording observations with geographical spaces over extended periods of time, processing big data, classifying visuals and tagging, and assembling transcriptions of audio texts among others. The participation of citizens is integral to the development of prevention programs, healthcare resources, and health infrastructure, among others.
Development Communication
Authors: Custodio Pamela A. , Bernadas Jan Michael Alexandre C.
Published: November 2022

Development communication is a concept and practice widely adopted in health communication that focuses on participatory and inclusive action to effect behavior and social change toward equity and the unfolding of human potential.
Inter‐/Transdisciplinary Research
Authors: Klein Julie Thompson
Published: November 2022

The term interdisciplinarity is dated conventionally to research on social problems in the 1920s, such as crime, migration, and interracial relations. It was also linked in the opening decades of the twentieth century to integrative approaches in education rather than specialized subjects and disciplines alone, most notably in the core curriculum and general education movements. By the 1940s defense‐related needs were a major catalyst, benchmarked by the Manhattan Project to create scientific knowledge of nuclear fission and implosion as well as technological pragmatics of building an atomic bomb. By the 1970s new fields were also emerging, including ethnic, women's, environmental, and urban studies. Subsequently, international economic competition in science‐based fields was a primary driver in areas such as manufacturing, engineering, computers, and biomedicine. In recent decades inter‐ and transdisciplinarity have loomed larger in fields of sustainability and health. The current momentum is driven in large part by the widespread conviction that the complexity of scientific and societal problems today requires multiple forms of expertise. Collaborative practice has become a standard of care in many settings, from doctors' offices, clinics, and hospitals to nursing homes and community health agencies. Health communication scientists may also create media campaigns, serve as spokespersons for agencies, market drug therapies and medical equipment, conduct research or explain policies and procedures to patients and clients. This entry begins with a basic vocabulary of interdisciplinary, transdisciplinary, and interprofessional work, followed by the link between communication and collaboration in teamwork, then closing with pertinent competencies and strategies for communication.
RE‐AIM Implementation Framework
Authors: Boersma Petra , van Weert Julia C. M.
Published: November 2022

This entry offers a description of the implementation framework RE‐AIM. The main reasons for using an implementation framework for health communication interventions are to describe the process of translating research into practice, to explain what influences implementation, and to evaluate the sustainability of the intervention. The RE‐AIM framework is a frequently used implementation framework consisting of five constructs: reach, effectiveness or efficacy, adoption, implementation, and maintenance
. Reach
refers to how to reach the targeted population with the intervention;
effectiveness/efficacy
evaluates the impact of an intervention on important outcomes;
adoption
evaluates the absolute number of people who are willing to initiate the program;
implementation
refers to the fidelity of the various elements of an intervention's protocol; and
maintenance
focuses on how the intervention is incorporated so that it is delivered over the long term. The constructs of reach, effectiveness, and maintenance operate at the individual level (i.e., those who are intended to benefit). Adoption, implementation, and maintenance focus on the staff and setting/institutional levels. These are often multilevel and include issues of the internal and external contexts that are important for impact on the public health population. This entry also offers an example of the RE‐AIM framework's use in health practice, namely, how the RE‐AIM framework was used to study the implementation of a person‐centered health communication intervention for people with dementia living in nursing homes.