Social media in public health: an analysis of national health authorities and leading causes of death in Spanish-speaking Latin American and Caribbean countries

David Novillo-Ortiz,Tony Hernández-Pérez

doi:10.1186/s12911-017-0411-y

Abstract

BackgroundInformation and communications technologies, like social media, have the potential to reduce some barriers in disease prevention and control in the Americas. National health authorities can use these technologies to provide access to reliable and quality health information. A study was conducted to analyze availability of information about the leading causes of death on social media channels of national health authorities in 18 Spanish-speaking Latin American and Caribbean countries.MethodsWe gathered data of national health authorities’s institutional presence in social media. Exploratory-descriptive research was useful for analysis and interpretation of the data collected. An analysis was carried out for 6 months, from April 1 to September 30, 2015.ResultsSixteen of the 18 countries studied have institutional presences on social media. National health authorities have a presence in an average of almost three platforms (2.8%). An average of 1% of the populations with Internet access across the 18 countries in this study follows national health authorities on social media (approximately, an average of 0.3% of the total population of the countries under study). On average, information on 3.2 of the 10 leading causes of death was posted on the national health authorities’ Facebook pages, and information on 2.9 of the 10 leading causes of death was posted on their Twitter profiles. Additionally, regarding public health expenditures and the possibility of retrieving information on the leading causes of death, an apparent negative correlation exists in the case of Facebook, r(13) = −.54, P = .03 and a weak negative correlation in the case of Twitter, r(14) = −.26, P = .31, for the countries with presences in those networks.ConclusionsNational health authorities can improve their role in participating in conversations on social media regarding the leading causes of death affecting their countries. Taking into account Internet accessibility levels in the countries under study and the high rates of people using social networks in even the poorest countries, further research is needed to provide evidence that more dedication to health promotion interventions through social media could significantly improve the impact and reach of public health messages and initiatives.

Highlights

Information and communications technologies, like social media, have the potential to reduce some barriers in disease prevention and control in the Americas
Presence of national health authorities on social media The analysis of the presences of national health authorities showed that these institutions have presences on six different social media, namely: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, Google+, and Instagram
The large number of institutional profiles on social media shows that national health authorities are aware of the relevance of having a presence on social media

Summary

Introduction

Information and communications technologies, like social media, have the potential to reduce some barriers in disease prevention and control in the Americas. Three examples illustrate the preventable nature of major causes of death: diabetes can be largely prevented by a healthy diet and lifestyle; HIV/AIDS can be prevented by taking adequate precautions during sex; and interpersonal violence is a scourge that must be confronted by the integration of actions in many sectors of society [2]. In all of these cases and in many others, access to reliable and quality health information and appropriate medical advice can contribute to a dramatic reduction in the mortality figures of these countries. From the Declaration of Alma-Ata [3] to the Millennium Declaration [4], access to reliable health information and knowledge sharing, through use of information and communication technologies, has been considered essential for health development [5]

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