Category: Communication

Primary Competency Area

Collecting, Creating and Sharing Ethical Stories

Course Objective

Describe why framing and narratives of stories are the building blocks to changing hearts and mindsets.
Explain ethics in storytelling and identify how to collect, create, and share stories in a manner that is respectful for the protagonist and community.
Summarize different ways to find and collect stories from their staff, partners, and community.

Begin Module

For NYS Employee

More Information ▾

Date: December 1st, 2020

Presenter:
Mark Dessauer, MA
Vice President of Learning
Spitfire Strategies

In this month’s Log-in2Learn, Mark Dessauer, MA, is back for part two of the storytelling in public health series. Following his October webinar on the power of storytelling, he now shifts the focus on how to share the stories of others in an ethical way. He first discusses how stories can and have gone wrong in the past. He explains in detail the components that make up a good story, including the framing, narrative, influencers etc. Next, he emphasizes why ethical storytelling is so important and walks us through the 4 elements that can help achieve this. He goes on to talk about how to find these stories and where they can and should be shared. Throughout the session, Mark reiterates ways to keep the subjects of the story involved in the process and how to navigate the balance of power. Finally, he ends by sharing a number of tools that are effective in creating narratives around health equity.

Following the webinar participants will be able to:

Describe why framing and narratives of stories are the building blocks to changing hearts and mindsets.
Explain ethics in storytelling and identify how to collect, create, and share stories in a manner that is respectful for the protagonist and community.
Summarize different ways to find and collect stories from their staff, partners, and community.

Strategic Storytelling for Public Health

Course Objective

Describe the value and power of using stories to engage audiences in a strategic manner
Identify six different types of stories to use when engaging audiences
Explain techniques for creating powerful stories, including both the process of telling stories and the content

Begin Module

For NYS Employee

More Information ▾

Date: October 6th 2020

Presenter:
Mark Dessauer, MA
Vice President of Learning
Spitfire Strategies

In this month’s Log-in2Learn, Mark Dessauer, MA, discusses the power of storytelling and how to optimize it. He emphasizes the importance of using stories as a public health tool to engage diverse audiences. He talks about the impact stories can have on changing existing narratives and addressing cultural norms. During this time of uncertainty, Mark stresses the need to use stories to connect people by sharing emotions and experiences that reflect their communities. He reiterates the use of this strategy to shed light on untold stories and to encourage equitable visibility. He also makes use of a variety of examples to demonstrate the effective use of this strategy to influence changes in attitudes and behaviors. Lastly, Mark walks us through the “storyteller’s toolbox”, providing insights on the types of stories to share, what angles to take and how to best showcase them.

Participants will learn how to the following:

Describe the value and power of using stories to engage audiences in a strategic manner
Identify six different types of stories to use when engaging audiences
Explain techniques for creating powerful stories, including both the process of telling stories and the content

COVID19: Using a Health Equity and Human Rights Lens to Protect Vulnerable Populations during this Pandemic and Beyond

Course Objective

Discuss why COVID-19 is a health equity issue
Identify key principles of the health equity and human rights frameworks to protect vulnerable and marginalized populations during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond
Describe the role of community engagement and advocacy during this pandemic and beyond
List sample strategies for transformative and long-lasting change

Begin Module

For NYS Employee

More Information ▾

Date: April 7th, 2020

Presenter:
Renata Schiavo, PhD, MA, CCL
Senior Lecturer, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, Department of Sociomedical Sciences
Founder and President, Board of Directors, Health Equity Initiative

In this month’s Log-in2Learn Webinar Dr. Renata Schiavo discusses the challenges faced during COVID-19 through a health equity lens. Pandemics are complex circumstances that thrive on inequalities and weak health and social systems. Vulnerable populations are not able to adequately adhere to safety measures and bear the burden of pandemic impacts. The webinar explores how a Social Determinants of Health approach should be implemented to address inequalities during a pandemic.The course also highlights risk communication, community engagement and advocacy as key strategies to support this agenda.

Participants will will be able to:

1. 1. Discuss why COVID-19 is a health equity issue
  2. Identify key principles of the health equity and human rights frameworks to protect vulnerable and marginalized populations during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond
  3. Describe the role of community engagement and advocacy during this pandemic and beyond
  4. List sample strategies for transformative and long-lasting change

Plain Language: What is it? Why does it matter to health? How can you use it to advance health equity?

Course Objective

Identify language that makes comprehension difficult for readers
Apply basic strategies to make communication more clear
Connect to additional resources to advance their understanding of plain language

Begin Module

FOR NYS EMPLOYEES

More Information ▾

Date: January 7th 2020

Presenter:
Gretchen Van Wye, PhD, MA
Assistant Commissioner and Registrar, Bureau of Vital Statistics, New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene

In this month’s Log-in2Learn, participants will learn the basics of plain language from Dr. Gretchen Van Wye, Assistant Commissioner and Registrar for the Bureau of Vital Statistics for the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. Gretchen walks participants through basic strategies of clear communication and discusses how plain language is essential to advance health equity.

Participants will learn about the following three lessons about public health communication:

Identify language that makes comprehension difficult for readers
Apply basic strategies to make communication more clear
Connect to additional resources to advance their understanding of plain language

Writing for the Public : The Building BRIDGES Approach

Course Objective

Describe the rhetorical triangle and its components, and how it can be used to analyze communication
Identify assumptions you have about your audience and how these influence your writing
Construct an empathy map to help focus your writing

Begin Module

For NYS Employees

More Information ▾

Date: December 3rd, 2019

Presenter:
Anne Marie Liebel, EdD
President
Health Communication Partners LLC.

Public health professionals often construct or contribute to written materials about health topics, which are intended for a broad audience. This webinar explains concrete strategies for writing to the public, based in the building BRIDGES approach.

Drawing from both classical rhetoric and the New Literacy Studies, this webinar teaches ways to communicate effectively with the public. Using real-world examples, you’ll learn skills to break down various forms of communication, from pamphlets to websites. You’ll have a chance to explore your own assumptions about your audiences and see how empathy can enhance your writing. You’ll also learn a strategic way to maintain health literacy principles while getting your point across in oral, digital, and multimodal communications.

Participants will learn how to:

Describe the rhetorical triangle and its components, and how it can be used to analyze communication
Identify assumptions you have about your audience and how these influence your writing
Construct an empathy map to help focus your writing

Strategic Skills Training Series: Introduction to Persuasive Communication

Course Objective

By the end of this module, you should know how to:

Identify the key theories of persuasion
Identify instances where key theories of persuasion can be applied in a public health context
Conduct an audience analysis assessment for a persuasive presentation in a public health setting
Describe how to assess elements of key theories of persuasion to create a persuasive argument

…and see how you can incorporate these concepts in your practice to address a major public health crisis.

Begin Module

For NYS Employee

More Information ▾

The Strategic Skills Training Series developed by the Region 2 PHTC aims to help prepare public health leaders and the public health workforce to develop the practices and competencies associated with being a Chief Health Strategist. The modules in this series use the community health improvement planning process to introduce you to the basics of the following four strategic skills areas. The first set of modules have been developed at an introductory level; the next part of the series will build on these foundational modules.

To help you think about ways to leverage these skills in your journey as a Chief Health Strategist to address real world problems in your community, the modules will utilize a case study approach, set in the fictitious Tycho County.

Follow how the Tycho County Health Department could adopt a systems approach to inform its thinking and planning while developing a community health improvement plan focused on a familiar public health problem, opioid misuse.

In this module, you will learn some strategy-based communication principles you can use across different settings and audiences.

Building BRIDGES to Communicate with Multi-Sector Partners

Course Objective

Describe the process of identifying others’ positions including values, actions, and resources
Explain how differing definitions of key issues and problems can create misunderstanding
Identify systems and structures that support collaboration

Begin Training

More Information ▾

Date: September 10, 2019

Presenter:
Dr. Anne Marie Liebel, EdD.
President
Health Comunication Partners LLC.

This month’s Log-in2Learn is the second in a three-part series designed to help you convey public health messages that resonate with audiences outside of public health. Using the approach of building BRIDGES, Dr. Anne Marie Liebel concentrates on communication strategies to use with potential collaborative partners.

It is well known that multi-sectoral partnerships are key to addressing some of society’s most deep-seated problems, and that multiple perspectives are beneficial in seeking to affect meaningful and sustainable change. It is essential in such collaborative efforts to be able to build on commonalities, and communicate across differences, recognizing various stakeholders’ goals, assumptions, and approaches.

Drawing on policy sociology and inquiry-as-stance, this webinar explores communication to and from policy-makers, the media, and other potential partners. You’ll have the opportunity to explore the main challenges in successful cross-sector communication. You’ll examine how communicating with multi sector partners contrasts with communicating with a public health audience. And you’ll learn the steps for building bridges to potential collaborators.

Participants will learn how to:

Describe the process of identifying others’ positions including values, actions, and resources
Explain how differing definitions of key issues and problems can create misunderstanding
Identify systems and structures that support collaboration

Combating the Opioid Crisis with Audience-Centric Communications Strategies

Course Objective

Describe audience knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs around the risks of prescription opioids
Develop messaging models that build knowledge in a logical, audience-centric sequence
Identify communications strategies to reduce risky management of prescription opioids

Begin Training

More Information ▾

Date: July 9, 2019

Presenter:
Sophia Lerdahl
Group Management Director, Substance Programs
Rescue: The Behavior Change Agency

This webinar discusses the various communication strategies used to reach the diverse audiences surrounding Opioid Misuse. Participants will learn about effective communication strategies in combating the Opioid Crisis from Sophia Lerdahl, Group Management Director at Rescue.

Participants will learn how to:

Describe audience knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs around the risks of prescription opioids
Develop messaging models that build knowledge in a logical, audience-centric sequence
Identify communications strategies to reduce risky management of prescription opioids

Building BRIDGES: Understanding our Position in Multi-Sector Communication

Course Objective

Consider our own assumptions about multi-sector communication, and about ourselves as communicators
Explore how our disciplines and workplaces tend to have their own terminology, jargon, or language, which can become invisible to us over time
Learn the importance of identifying our core, foundational values, as well as considering who and what might help us as we build the next bridge

Begin Training

For NYS Employees

More Information ▾

Date: June 4, 2019

Presenter:
Dr. Anne Marie Liebel, EdD
President Health Communication Partners LLC

In this month’s Log-in2Learn webinar, participants learn from Dr. Anne Marie Liebel about the BRIDGES (bi-directional, resource-based, inquiry as stance, digital and multi-modal, global and local, equity-focused, social and situated) approach to multi-sector communication. In this first of a three-part webinar series, Dr. Liebel focuses on how the self both informs and is reflected by our communication choices. The lecture provides five concrete steps to help viewers identify own assumptions, professional positions and personal values that illuminate their current communication strengths and needs. Throughout the webinar, Dr. Liebel provides several personal and professional anecdotes that illustrate the importance of self-reflection in multi-sector communication.

Presenter: Anne Marie Liebel, EdD President Health Communication Partners LLC

Participants will learn how to:

Consider their our own assumptions about multi-sector communication, and about ourselves as communicators
Explore how our disciplines and workplaces tend to have their own terminology, jargon, or language, which can become invisible to us over time
Learn the importance of identifying our core, foundational values, as well as considering who and what might help us as we build the next bridge

Strategies to Advance Health Equity: How Health Departments Can Use Countermarketing to Address Tobacco, Alcohol and Unhealthy Food

Course Objective

Summarize evidence on the impact of tobacco countermarketing on the initiation of smoking among young adults.
Explain why lessons from evidence-based tobacco counter marketing could be effective for countermarketing alcohol and unhealthy food.
Identify and describe at least five elements of effective tobacco countermarketing campaigns and explain their relevance to countermarketing unhealthy food and alcohol.
Describe at least three roles that state and local health departments can play in countermarketing tobacco, alcohol and unhealthy food (e.g., creating and/or funding public countermarketing campaigns, funding community and youth groups to develop and launch campaigns, training on countermarketing strategies, convening organizations involved in countermarketing).
Describe two specific local or state initiatives designed to support countermarketing of tobacco, alcohol or unhealthy food that have been used in other jurisdictions that could be applied in participant’s own setting.
Explain how LHDs can leverage “upstream” strategies, including partnering with social movements and community organizations and expanding democratic participation, to support the design and implementation of these initiatives.

Begin Module

For NYS Employee

More Information ▾

Date: May 1, 2017

Presenter:
Nicholas Freudenberg
Distinguished Professor of Public Health
City University of New York School of Public Health

Emily Franzosa
Senior Researcher
City University of New York School of Public Health

Eleni Murphy
MPH Candidate
City University of New York School of Public Health

This self-paced, interactive module prepares public health professionals working in state and local health departments to develop or support the use of countermarketing strategies to reduce demand for tobacco, alcohol and processed foods high in sugar, salt and unhealthy fats. The session begins with a discussion of countermarketing as a public health strategy for reducing the use of tobacco, alcohol, and unhealthy food. Next, learners will explore the elements of countermarketing campaigns, and look at two health departments that have used them successfully. Finally, learners will apply these strategies to think through a hypothetical countermarketing campaign, and plan how you might use them in your own work.