Coventry University to host prestigious health care conference

Journalists and educators from at least ten countries, including a high-flying delegation from the USA, will take part in the first-ever European conference on Health Journalism, to be hosted by Coventry University.

US journalist Trudy Lieberman, who will also be visiting Coventry University in June as a Fulbright Senior Scholar, is just one of the guest speakers who will share her expertise on health care journalism at the conference.

John Lister, senior lecturer in health journalism at Coventry University, has organised the event. He said:

Conferences like this happen every year in the USA, but have never been attempted before in Europe. We are very excited about this conference and we have been able to attract a top line up of speakers from Europe and the US.

The event promises to offer a rich resource for journalists in terms of information, guidance and potential stories.

The health care business is the biggest industry in the world with revenues of around $5 billion per annum. Yet what we are seeing is journalists without proper training in the subject reporting on political hot potatoes – such as NHS reform or new medical research - from a diet of press releases from the Department of Health or major pharmaceutical companies.

US-based Lieberman has over 40 years’ experience in health journalism, writing about health care and income security issues, and is a contributing editor and blogger at the Columbia Journalism Review. She is a specialist in the current Obama health reforms, on which she is writing a book.

During her two week visit to Coventry she will also be meeting local NHS health professionals and MA students.

The European Conference on Health Journalism is taking place from June 23-24. It is being organised by Coventry University with support from the Association of Health Care Journalists (US) and the UK Medical Journalists’ Association.

For more information about the conference, with links to online registration, a speakers list with biographies and an outline timetable, visit http://www.europeanhealthjournalism.com/ or contact John Lister on 07774 264112.