Researchers in the making:
Health and science on the airwaves
Zaheed Damani and Kelsey MacLeod learned health promotion strategies while being reporters at CBC radio.
Story by Laura Ly/Photos by Trudie Lee and Laughing Dog Photography
If you tuned into CBC Calgary or Edmonton last summer, you might have heard segments about why the Incredible Hulk is green or whether people in Calgary are receiving enough vitamin D. Thanks to the Alberta Innovates - Health Solutions Media Fellowship program, two students got the opportunity to enhance the coverage of science and technology on the airwaves of Alberta by developing one-of-a-kind radio series.
The Media Fellowship program provides university students a unique opportunity to learn how events and ideas become news by spending a summer working at CBC Radio. Zaheed Damani, a University of Calgary student in the Bachelor of Health Sciences program, and Kelsey MacLeod, a student in medical school at the University of Alberta, were the recipients of the 2009 Media Fellowships. Damani was posted at CBC in Calgary, and MacLeod was at CBC in Edmonton.
Both students applied to the program because of its unique merger of journalism and science—a combination that appealed to their similar interests in health promotion. Health promotion refers to any programs or efforts that enable people to increase control over, and to improve, their health. By increasing the public's understanding and awareness of science, media plays an important role in health promotion. Damani explains, "You might have a study about a new enzyme. In and of itself, it means very little to the public, but if the media can contextualize it by explaining how the enzyme could be a possible future cure or treatment, it makes the story more meaningful and relevant to a public audience."
"Mass media is the best way to get information about science out to the public. By giving people access to the information they need in order to make informed decisions about their health, we're helping to promote healthy communities and allowing the public to have control of their own health," agrees MacLeod.
Damani and MacLeod contributed to health promotion efforts by developing radio series related to their own interests. Damani came up with his series, Medical Fact or Fiction, while thinking about information that is often misrepresented by the media and the public. The goal of his series was to prove or debunk conventionally held medical advice or wisdom, such as an apple a day keeps the doctor away.
In fact, his first segment was inspired by a voicemail from his mom advising him to drink eight glasses of water a day. "The eight glasses of water a day saying stems from early research that suggested we drink a millilitre of water for every calorie we consume. So eight ounces, eight times a day. But it's not necessarily water we need to be consuming; it's liquid. We need eight glasses of liquid a day, and that includes the liquid in our food. We technically only need three to four glasses of water a day—everything else is supplemented by our diet." Other segments included whether humans really only use 10% of our brains and if it is possible to die from a broken heart.
MacLeod used her degree in genetics and an interest in gene manipulation to develop her series: The Science of Superheroes. The series examined the superpowers of comic book heroes and interviewed researchers about the possible scientific explanations behind their powers. The series was intended to show listeners the potential extreme ramifications behind scientific and genetic manipulation. For example, MacLeod used the hemoglobin of crocodiles as an explanation for Aquaman's ability to breathe underwater. "Specific amino acids in crocodile hemoglobin bind to bicarbonate ions, allowing crocodiles to hold their breath for a prolonged period. Researchers have created a hybrid hemoglobin by combining crocodile amino acids with human hemoglobin. A far-fetched application of this technology would be transplanting the hybrid hemoglobin into humans, potentially giving them the ability to breathe underwater." Other superhero segments included Superman and his super strength, Batman's cunning wits, and Deadpool's inability to feel pain.
Damani is interested in pursuing public health or health promotion in the future, and he says that the media fellowship experience completely affirmed his interest in those areas. In fact, Damani loved his summer experience so much he received an extension on his fellowship to develop a series titled Mirror, Mirror on the Wall about beauty and aging. The series aired in fall 2009.
MacLeod praises the media fellowship for giving her the communication skills necessary to achieve a more effective health promotion message—skills she will employ as a future doctor. "This opportunity gave me insight into what methods are best, and what methods are available to increase the impact of health promotion to the public."
Interested in applying for a 2010 Media Fellowship? Visit http://www.ahfmr.ab.ca/communications/fellowship.php for more information.