October 7, 1997

When I read healthcare news, I’m struck by two things:
1.  Many reporters don’t understand healthcare issues.
2.  Nurses and allied health professionals are mentioned far too rarely.

It can be hard for reporters to get the inside scoop. They’ve been patients, perhaps, but they don’t know what health care looks like from the other side of the otoscope.

They know what it looks like on TV, though. There they see physicians saving lives, grappling with decisions, and generally looking like experts. And when reporters go to cover news about health and health care, they, like most of the public, naturally think of talking to physicians.

I bet it would surprise a lot of reporters to know there are 2.6 million nurses in the country and fewer than 738,000 physicians. You know nurses and other healthcare professionals make plenty of treatment decisions and   they do the lion’s share of patient education, listening, counseling, and caring. You know—but does the average reporter?

The other day I read about a terrific program that lets journalism students follow physicians and residents on rounds. The students raved about their experience. They felt enlightened by hearing physicians talk formally and informally about a range of healthcare topics, and they loved seeing the physicians and residents collaborate on care.

I was delighted by the thought of impressionable journalism students getting first-hand experience with health care. It can only help them think more clearly about the issues and ask better questions when they report their stories. Unfortunately, that program also helps perpetuate a deeply entrenched myth: that physicians—and physicians alone—are experts on health care. To oversimplify, I’m sure those students learned that to get a good source they need to talk to an MD.

Wrong. They could also talk to an RN, a PT, an OT, an LVN, an RT ... the list goes on. And journalists will be more likely to do that if you talk to them first.

Why not call the journalism department of the community college or university near you and volunteer to give a guest lecture for journalism students? Tell them how the healthcare system really works, educate them about your role and education, explain some healthcare jargon.

Or get a few colleagues together and form a panel that can answer students’ questions.

Arrange to have a class shadow you on rounds or to have a group of two or three students spend a few hours with you during a shift.

Whitney Wood
Managing Editor
Nurseweek/Healthweek's print publications

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