Jane Ellery

Developing a Common Language for Using Social Marketing: An Analysis of Public Health Literature

The term social marketing has been used to describe a multitude of interventions that incorporate the use of traditional marketing techniques to promote a behavior that will improve the health or well-being of a target audience or of society as a whole. However, there is wide variation in the way social marketing is defined and used. This systematic review article examines how social marketing has been defined and applied to social problems within the public health literature from 2001–2006, by adapting a grading-system borrowed from evidence-based medicine and utilizing Kotler and Zaltmans definition of social marketing. Additionally, definitions of social marketing were identified in the reviewed articles. Identifying a common language in the description and design of social marketing interventions will benefit researchers and practitioners interested in social marketing as a behavior change approach.

Perceived Psychological Stress among High School Basketball Officials

The purpose of this study was to survey certified high school basketball officials during midseason to assess whether the sources and magnitude of perceived psychological stress would be consistent with previous studies of officials in other sports. The sources and magnitude of perceived psychological stress were measured among 324 high school basketball officials (N = 324; 312 men, 12 women) using a revised version of the Ontario Soccer Officials Survey. The mean age was 37.6 yr. (SD = 9.4), and the mean years of basketball refereeing experience was 11.7 yr. (SD = 8.3). A random sample (N = 498) of all basketball officials in a midwestern state (N = 1,011) was used, and 324 of the surveys were returned (65%). The overall variance accounted for with the four factors was 84.7%. The magnitude of stress for these factors ranged from below mild to moderate.

Understanding internet health search patterns: An early exploration into the usefulness of Google Trends

Abstract Google, the leading internet search engine company, offers a feature known as Google Trends. This feature uses the search term data from Googles search engine to graphically display the search volume history for any term since January 2004. While Google considers the Google Trends service to still be in its early stages of development, and to still contain a number of inaccuracies, the information it provides is compelling and may offer insight into the search behaviours of online health information seekers. Initial exploration into search volumes associated with health-related search terms in the USA reveal stable or gradually declining search volume trends with annual and weekly search pattern cycles. Other findings from this initial investigation of health search terms include the disassociation between the incidence of cancer conditions and search volumes for search terms related to those conditions, a considerable influence by celebrity and media on health-related search term search volumes, and similarities in general search volume trends and patterns between search volumes for health-related terms in the USA and in other countries. The Google Trends service as it now exists and these initial findings are discussed here and recommendations outlining how the service may be improved so that it becomes a useful tool for healthcare professionals are offered.

Creating patient-centred healthcare practices: Social marketing tools and strategies

Abstract Social marketing is an effective process to create behaviour change among groups of individuals for the promotion of positive health behaviours. The concept of social marketing has ideal applications for patient-centred care research and practice efforts, particularly when the issues at stake require an understanding of multiple layers of a system, from delivery of healthcare, to the psychology and social epidemiology of patients, to the culture of the community. This paper describes how the social marketing process can be used in the context of encouraging patient-centred care. It also describes the tools used to help pilot communities in Friendly AccessSM, a national effort to improve access to and use of prenatal care and birth services in the USA. The tools introduced here were used to collect and analyse consumer data to aid in health practice delivery decisions. An explanation of how these tools were used by the Friendly AccessSM pilot communities is presented as a case study.

Case study: Consumer and provider perceptions of offered anticipatory guidance during prenatal care

Abstract The prenatal period is an ideal time to offer anticipatory guidance about healthy behaviours and lifestyle changes. This study examined recently delivered, under-served womens recall of discussions with their provider during pregnancy about a variety of health topics and then compared these responses to provider recall of these discussions. Data were collected as a baseline indicator across four communities participating in a national intervention to improve perinatal healthcare services. Results of these dyads showed a 15 per cent or greater difference in patient-provider perceptions of whether or not discussions had occurred in the areas of seat-belt use, birth-control method after pregnancy, physical abuse and folic acid. Patient and provider differences in recall can be attributed to many factors; however, these results suggest miscommunication between perceptions. Providers may need tools to deliver anticipatory guidance in ways that are culturally relevant to patients and the opportunity for ancillary staff to provide anticipatory guidance should be explored.

The WELCOA Writing Project — A corporate-campus partnership in health and wellness communication

Abstract The WELCOA Writing Project is an example of a successful corporate-campus partnership between the Fisher Institute for Wellness and Gerontology, at Ball State University, and the Wellness Councils of America. The first 24 months of this writing project have led to the creation of 27 articles and five PowerPoint presentations on a wide variety of health and wellness-related topics. The Fisher Institute has benefited from the partnership financially, received national recognition as a programme, and been able to use the writing project as an immersive learning experience for students. WELCOA has also benefited significantly in that it has received a large amount of quality health and wellness information that is consistently delivered on a predetermined schedule of production, from a single source, and at an appropriate cost. The Fisher Institute and WELCOA continue to explore ways in which to expand the partnership. This expansion will allow the existing partnership to grow into a synergistic strategic alliance that can significantly impact the profession and enable both entities to work towards goals that would be beyond the reach of each individually.