Essay --

Healthcare is the fastest-growing industry in America, because health affects every facet of all Americans’ lives. People are living longer and longer than before. The lengthier life expectancy is due to advancements in the science and delivery of healthcare. Health communication has been an essential aspect of the delivery of healthcare. Also, health communication makes an impact and influence on healthcare policy and political initiatives, therefore, affects the health and lives of the people. Thus, it is important to understand the health communication’s overview, planning processes, techniques, and methods that affect and influence healthcare policy and political initiatives. Communications has long been essential part in the healthcare business. It goes back to the mid 1900s when hospital used communications professionals to delivered patient situation reports and release news about the facility. As seen in pharmaceutical corporations, they would employ communication consultants or internal workers to publicize a new drug approval. Now-a-days, healthcare companies also used vast staffs for trademark and corporate communications. Hence, there have been a growing numbers of consulting companies in public relations and medical advertisement due to many new advanced social media. In the addition, as the healthcare communications grow, more health communication specialists are needed. In the last thirty years, more health communication degrees are offered in universities (Hicks & Nicols, 2012). Through communication, health information can be shared to the public or the individual patient. Health material is transferred by newspaper, television, Internet, radio, flyers, or billboard, etc. Though there is a reduction i... ...tfeeding. They trained their staffs to educate new mothers about the important of breastfeeding (Mahone, 1996). Also, media campaigns reach and inform pregnant and lactating women and father the important of breastfeeding. The campaigns also reach general public about breastfeeding benefit through using public service announcements on radio, television, and in newspapers, journals, and magazines. From the campaigns, the publics are more aware of advantages of breastfeeding and women are more contented breastfeeding in public (Arias, 2005). Effective planning processes, techniques, and methods will make a major impact in healthcare policies and political initiatives. Individuals and groups definitely promote the public health through communication. Collaboration among individuals and different media outlets will transpire information throughout the nation.