ML - Epidemiologic Reports Lesson

Epidemiologic Reports

Epidemiologic reports seek to disseminate information related to scientific studies performed on public health issues.   In order to be considered media literate in public health, an individual needs to be able to decode or construct meaning from an epidemiologic report.   The following information provides an outline on how to critique or analyze an epidemiologic study.

Outline for Critiquing Epidemiologic Studies

Is the Message Clear and Accurate?

News reporters who get their information from scientific journals might do a good job of explaining the study and what it means, but not always. Some reporters don't always wait until something is published before reporting it as news. Sometimes reporters hear information from researchers before a study has even been published and they want to bring it to the public's attention quickly. Without a published study, though, a reporter may not have all the facts. When journalists report news without having all of the facts, the message may become very misleading. You can get find your own information by searching the Internet for additional facts to fill in any gaps in information or to counter the information in a media message. You may need to find the actual research journal article that is referenced in a media report to determine if a message is accurate or misleading. In the following assignment, you will read a media report and an actual journal article to determine if the message is accurate.

[CC BY 4.0] UNLESS OTHERWISE NOTED | IMAGES: LICENSED AND USED ACCORDING TO TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION