CIHR-IHSPR Workshop for Health Reporters: March 26 and 27, 2007

Toronto, Ontario

Today's health care sector can be both overwhelming and confusing, which presents a daunting task for health reporters who must relay vital information to the public. For this reason, the CIHR-Institute of Health Services and Policy Research (IHSPR) co-hosted, with CIHR Marketing and Communications, a Health Reporters Workshop: Health Services and Policy Research on March 26-27, 2007 in Toronto. The objective of this Workshop was to bring together many of Canada's leading health reporters with Canada's top health services and policy researchers to give health reporters broad overviews of important areas of health services and policy research.

The two-day workshop took place in Toronto, and journalists were treated to fantastic (scholarly, informative and translatable) presentations from 9 different health policy researchers featuring a sweep of key topics in health services and policy research that are often featured prominently in the media. Presentations focused on: pharmaceutical policy, including direct-to-consumer advertising (Dr. Steve Morgan), and the use of information technology to improve the safe and effective use of prescription drugs (Dr. Robyn Tamblyn); public-private financing of health care systems (Dr. Mark Stabile); the importance of building Canada's health information system (Dr. Charlyn Black and Dr. Robert Reid) and health policy ethics (Dr. Nuala Kenny); wait times policy (Dr. Tom Noseworthy); collaborative partnerships between researchers, and decision-makers and the media (Dr. Patricia Martens); and the role of the courts in Canadian Medicare (Dr. Colleen M. Flood).

Fourteen journalists participated in the Workshop, including freelancers and health reporters from media outlets like the Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, CBC On-line, CBC Radio, and the Canadian Press.

Based on feedback from a survey of Workshop attendees, and a post-Workshop scan of the media, it appears that the Workshop was an astounding success, providing an innovative vehicle for translating the importance of and challenges associated with health services and policy research to decision-makers, professionals, and the public - via the media. At the same time, the Workshop provided a unique opportunity for Canadian health reporters to learn about priority issues in the field and meet face-to-face to forge relationships and network with Canada's leading health services and policy researchers.

In the survey of workshop attendees, journalists gave the event high marks. One health reporter expressed, "As usual the CIHR workshop was a great resource, and got all of us thinking about health policy stories. It's always a treat to be in the same room with the top Canadian brains in the field." And another commented, ""It was a great workshop... really interesting topics, speakers, contacts. And a couple of good stories to pursue." From the researcher perspective, "it was a pleasure to participate and amazing to see such participation from people who have incentives to deliver very formulaic material." Overall, 100% of workshop attendees indicated that they would recommend the workshop to other colleagues, and 90% of the journalists indicated that they would follow-up with the researchers after the workshop.

Based on a post-workshop scan of the media and follow-up with the researchers, it is evident that the workshop did indeed foster linkages between the reporters and researchers. For example, Dr. Steve Morgan, who spoke at the workshop on the impact of direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) on prescription drug expenditures, has engaged in four interviews on DTCA and prescription drug expenditures since the workshop. The question of how researchers interact with the media also sparked the interest of the participating researchers, and Dr. Nuala Kenny, in collaboration with IHSPR, has written a peer commentary on Canadian media and health policy research for the American Journal of Bioethics (forthcoming). CIHR and the CIHR-Institute of Health Services and Policy Research will strive to continue to help to facilitate and build connections between health reporters and health services and policy researchers.

Based on the success of this Workshop, IHSPR will strive to continue to help to facilitate and build connections between health reporters and health services and policy researchers.

The researchers and speakers presenting at the Workshop included:

• Dr. Alan Bernstein, President of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research
• Dr. Mayo Moran, Dean of the Faculty of Law, University of Toronto
• Dr. Colleen M. Flood, Scientific Director, CIHR-Institute of Health Services and Policy Research and Associate Professor, Faculty of Law
• Dr. Patricia Martens, Director, Manitoba Centre for Health Policy, and Associate Professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Manitoba
• Dr. Steve Morgan, Faculty, UBC Centre for Health Services and Policy Research, and Associate Professor in the Department of Health Care and Epidemiology, University of British Columbia
• Dr. Robyn Tamblyn, Professor, Department of Medicine and Department of Epidemiology and Statistics, McGill University
• Dr. Nuala Kenny, Professor, Department of Pediatrics and Department of Bioethics, Dalhousie University
• Dr. Mark Stabile, Director, School of Public Policy and Governance, and Associate Professor in the Department of Economics, University of Toronto
• Dr. Charlyn Black, Director, UBC Centre for Health Services and Policy Research, and Professor in the Department of Health Care and Epidemiology, University of British Columbia
• Dr. Robert Reid, Associate Medical Director Preventive Care, and Investigator, Center for Health Studies, at Group Health Cooperative
• Dr. Tom Noseworthy, Director, Centre for Health and Policy Studies, Head of the Department of Community Health Sciences, and Professor of Health Policy and Management, University of Calgary

Workshop Agenda

Presentation Abstracts

CIHR Report: Wait times, Drug advertising, Public-Private Funding and other Hot Button Issues

CIHR Expert Conacts Database: An information source for journalists 

If you are a Health Reporter and would like to contact one of these researchers, please contact either:

David Coulombe
CIHR Media Specialist   
Phone (office): 613-941-4563
Phone (mobile): 613-808-7526
Email: mediarelations@cihr-irsc.gc.ca

or

Meghan McMahon
Senior Projects Officer, Communications and Knowledge Translation
Institute of Healht Services and Policy Research
Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Phone: 416-978-5172
Email: Meghan.mcmahon@utoronto.ca