Using online surveillance to characterize media health event reporting in Nepal for global disease recognition from a One Health perspective

Traditional media sources, as well as the internet, are crucial in the global communication of health information. Media can play a significant role in shaping public opinion, knowledge and understanding of emerging health threats, in addition to current endemic diseases in the region. As technological growth continues to occur, especially in developing countries, local sources of information play an increasingly important role on the global digital disease detection stage. To understand this role, the study objective was to characterize the media environment in Nepal for health event reporting from a One Health perspective using a global online disease surveillance and mapping tool. Utilizing HealthMap, health event reports in Nepal were gathered from October 2013 through December 2014. Event variables such as location, media source type, disease or risk factor of interest, and affected species were extracted from the database tool. Health event characteristics were assessed in order to construct a comprehensive picture of the Nepali online mass media environment. Findings showed 181 health events were reported during the evaluation phase from a variety of sources including national newspapers, Google News and ProMED Mail.  The majority (n=155; 86%) of health events reported involved direct human health concerns, but animal health events were also captured (n=26; 14%). Further research is needed to examine the potential impact of increased communication between journalists and human, animal, and ecosystem health professionals. Through the expansion of health event coverage, traditional media in developing countries can play a key role in national risk communication efforts.