While our hearts are certainly all aflutter for the hubbub and fanfare surrounding the Olympics this year, the digital health communication wonks at Danya are also eagerly awaiting the upcoming sixth annual National Conference on Health Communication, Marketing, and Media (NCHCMM) hosted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta on August 7-9. The highly anticipated conference brings together research, public health, and communication experts from across governmental and private sectors to discuss, evaluate, and take in the newest research, trends, and lessons learned in the health behavior change world.

Like many of the campaigns we have touted about in posts here (and the Olympics, too, for that matter), the CDC’s conference topics have been taken over by digital marketing and social media this year. With nearly half of the conference sessions covering digital health efforts, health communicators and marketers alike are being forced—if they have not jumped on the bandwagon already—to recognize the success and benefits of taking health campaigns into the digital realm. Influencing health behavior change within a particular audience is often easier said than done, but digital strategies are offering proven solutions for communicating with patients, providers, and caregivers in what are becoming traditional outlets.

Topics covered during the 25+ digital sessions range from using social media with hard-to-reach audiences, mobile platforms to improve sexual health outcomes, and new innovations in gaming to influence health behaviors. Certainly, attendees will have a plethora of sessions to choose from to uncover what works, what does not, and what is next in the ever-growing field of innovative communication tools and technologies. (For those of you out there excited as much as we are, we have listed the digital session topics, times, and locations that will be hosted, below, for your convenience.) With so many opportunities to hone our own skills, our team’s strategy is simple and recommended to first-timers: divide and conquer. Can’t be at the conference? Follow us on Twitter @DanyaIntl at #DanyaDigital to uncover the cutting-edge digital details remotely, and look for a post-conference digital overview blog to come soon! 

Digital Sessions at NCHCMM 2012

Tuesday, August 7

2:00-3:30 p.m.

• New Approaches to Evaluation (Hanover C/D/E)
• Strategies and Evaluation of Social Media Channels Used to Promote Smoking Cessation (Grand C/D)

3:45-5:15 p.m.

• Innovative Technological Tools Used to Reach Diverse Audiences (Centennial IV)
• Twitter and Beyond: Implementing Successful Social Media Strategies and Showing Impact (Grand C/D)
• Using Mobile Technologies to Connect the Disconnected (Centennial III)

Wednesday, August 8

10:45 a.m.-12:15 p.m.

• Applying Digital and Social Media Strategies to Improve Efficiencies of Health Communication Activities (Centennial I/II)
• Health Solutions: It Can Be All Fun and Games (Hanover F/G)
• The Role of New Technologies in Engaging and Linking People in Organizations (Hanover A/B)
• Using Social Media to Share Your Preventive Health Messages (Grand C/D)

4:00-5:30 p.m.

• Social Media and Videos: New Methods for Messaging and Storytelling (Hanover F/G)
• Using Innovative Methods to Communicate with Teens about Sexual Health (Centennial III)
• Using Mobile and Other Innovation to Promote Health (Grand C/D)

Thursday, August 9

10:00-11:45 a.m.

• Strategies and Evaluation of Social Media Used to Reach Youth and Promote Healthy Behavior Change (Hanover C/D/E)
• Using Technology to Provide Targeted Substance Abuse Support (Grand C/D)

12:45-2:15 p.m.

• Analyzing Your Social Media: Techniques for Success (Centennial III)
• Sexual Health in a Digital Age (Grand C/D)

By Katy Capers

Health Communications and Digital Marketing Specialist

Danya International