Health and Communication in Health-care Institutions of Medellin, Colombia

Abstract

The “Life Park” or “Parque de la Vida” of Medellin, is the only public institution in Colombia focused on designing strategies towards health promotion, conducted a research project in 2014 through its Unit Strategic Communication and Health. Its main purpose was to understand the role that areas of communication played in healthcare organizations of Medellin, in order to propose ways to improve strategies for health promotion. The study was qualitative and exploratory and has a sample of 15 health care institutions. The main themes approached were: the profiles of professional communicators in these health organizations, the logics and practices in these areas of communication, their functions and objectives, their level of internal leadership, the training needs of professionals and the internal and external communication plans. It is concluded that the “communication and health” field in these institutions is incipient. Professionals of the Communications areas have no experience in healthcare organizations, nor have an interest in that training area. Moreover, these institutions do not require such knowledge in order to engage them. In fact, some of the strategic functions within health organizations that should be undertaken by the communication area are assumed by other areas or professionals. External communication appears to be more important in communication strategies and generally is aimed at strengthening the institution image and the management of mass media relations.