Health and Science Communication Research Group

Health and Science Communication Research Group was established in 2023. The health and science communication is an interdisciplinary specialization that deals with issues of the modern society related with public health and environmental concerns. The research group divides its research topics under health, environment, science, and technology. The Health and Science Communication research group aims to apply communication research fundementals to the field of health, environment, technology and science in the region by focusing on the individual, organizational, mass communication and societal perspectives with the objective of improving of individual, organizational, societal and global concerns of people, professionals and society at large. The purpose of the Health and Science Communication research group is three-fold. One of them is related with contributing and increasing the scholarship in the health, environment, technology, and science communication in the MENA region. The second purpose is to support the interdisciplinary (in the pipeline) master program of College of Communication, master's in Health and Science Communication. Thirdly, the research group aims to create awareness on the issues of health and science literacy among specific groups and professionals.

The purpose of the Health and Science Communication research group is three-fold. One of them is related with contributing and increasing the scholarship in the health, environment, technology, and science communication in the MENA region. The second purpose is to support the interdisciplinary (in the pipeline) master program of College of Communication, master's in Health and Science Communication.  Thirdly, the research group aims to create awareness on the issues of health and science literacy among specific groups and professionals.

Specific objectives of the Health and Science Communication Research Group are as follows: 

• To utilize sound communication strategy, tactics and technology to provide information, influence audiences, or affect change on health-related and scientific topics and issues,
• To apply knowledge of theory to solve the current issues with communicating health and science-related topics to experts and non-experts,
• To increase the health, science and digital literacy among students and professionals,
• To contribute to the healthy development and progress of related entities/bodies of the region with scientific research produced by the group,
• To help develop effective and ethical health communication practices that take into consideration privacy, regulatory, and legal issues specific to the healthcare industry and the UAE.

The current focus of the research group involves two projects. One of them is ideal health reporting in which the objective is to answer the concept of ideal health journalism, its main principles, and how to accomplish it -from different stakeholders’ perspectives. The second research project is on coverage of health in the UAE media. The study will reveal how the health issues are presented in the media by defining the dimensions of health information communicated to the public; including topics, issues, importance attributed to the topic, the source of the information, etc.