About AHCJ: General News

Journalists encouraged to apply for AHCJ International Health Study Fellowships Date: 08/12/19

COLUMBIA, Mo. - The Association of Health Care Journalists is accepting applications for the second class of AHCJ International Health Study Fellowships.

The fellowships are intended to help veteran U.S.-based journalists compare elements of the U.S. health system with those of similarly developed countries – for this year, in Europe. The program, supported by The Commonwealth Fund, provides for training as well as international field reporting assistance.

The program for mid-career journalists gives print, broadcast and online reporters an opportunity to study how one element of the U.S. health care system is handled in another country and to report on the differences. Fellows will be able to interview patients, health care providers and policymakers both in the United States and abroad.

Members of the first class of fellows compared the implementation of health IT in the U.S. and Denmark, efforts in the U.K. to combat social isolation, and whether Germany's shift in how it handles prescription drug pricing holds any lessons for the U.S.

Other projects could include examining access to health care providers, hospitalization, care for a chronic disease, life expectancy, maternal health, infant mortality, care coordination, use of resources or one of many other slices of the system worth evaluating.

The Commonwealth Fund grant will cover the costs of fellows attending a pre-reporting seminar in New York, a two-week reporting trip to a foreign country and a post-reporting seminar in London. Fellows will receive mentor support and individual consultation on their projects.

The application deadline is noon CT on Oct. 7, 2019. The application requires a letter of recommendation, as well as a proposal outlining your topic and other materials.

The Association of Health Care Journalists is an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing public understanding of health care issues. With about 1,500 members across the United States and around the globe, its mission is to improve the quality, accuracy and visibility of health care reporting, writing and editing. The association and its Center for Excellence in Health Care Journalism provide training, resources and a professional home for journalists. Offices are based at the Missouri School of Journalism.

The Commonwealth Fund is a private foundation that aims to promote a high-performing health care system that achieves better access, improved quality and greater efficiency, particularly for society's most vulnerable. The Fund carries out this mandate by supporting independent research on health care issues and making grants to improve health care practice and policy. The Fund is based in New York City and has supported this fellowship program since it began.