Rural Health Journalism Workshop

06/04/10     Kansas City, MO

Speaker presentations and tip sheets

This is a special one-day, no-fee workshop to help you find and cover health stories in rural America. Just join AHCJ – or make sure your membership is up to date – to attend.

 Nearly a quarter of America's population lives in rural areas. Look past the idyllic settings, though, and signs of serious health issues are everywhere: Rural residents are generally older and more likely to live in poverty. Chronic conditions such as diabetes and heart disease are rampant in rural America, and residents tend to live miles away from doctors and hospitals.

AHCJ’s Rural Health Journalism Workshop, set for June 4, will focus on special health concerns of rural populations and how reporters can better cover their stories. The workshop will offer a primer on what journalists need to know about rural residents and rural health issues, a chronic doctor shortage, the stories of an aging population, children and their special health needs, and the growing concerns of oral health and mental health in large underserved areas. And what will health reform mean in that context?

• What journalists need to know about rural residents and rural health issues
• Children and seniors: Vulnerable populations in rural America
• Reporting on rural health disparities
• Health care reform: Community matters
• Status of oral health for rural residents
• Mental health stories in your community

Even if your newsroom is in a bustling city, there are untold rural health stories down the road. So join us in Kansas City and start your journey.

The workshop includes breakfast, lunch and a closing reception. The workshop will be at the Holiday Inn at the Plaza in Kansas City, Mo.