Current Status of Health Reporting in Nepali Press

Abstract

With the introduction of the New Communication Policy 1992, the number of both electronic and print media has increased i n Nepal. The p rint among other media is important because of its ability to present news and views in detail, thus stimulat ing individual's level of understanding. As in other fields, the importance of newspapers in health is also significant, suggesting n eed of research on the quality and the quantity of health reporting in the Nepali press. The Health News Clipping Project studied 11 dailies and 7 weeklies for 28 months , to understand the range of health related topic s covered in the press. Out of 5,968 health news stories captured by the project, the contribution of the Gorkhapatra , the Kantipur and the Annapurna Post was prominent. More than 90% of the reporting was news stories and 83% of these stories' placement was in inside pages, and mostly these s tories covered national issues. The project tracked 42 health related key words in the reporting where health facility, health worker, ministry of health and population, district public health offices, and drug supply were ranked the top five issues. Conte nt analysis of sample coverage revealed that the main portion of reporting was about communicable diseases, health system, service delivery, and governance issues . Eventhough h ealth journal ism in Nepal has a long history, any empirical research has yet to be conducted . Monitoring of health reporting in print media is an important aspect of quality improvement of the health reporting as well as increasing awareness on health to people. It is suggested that the Project could be a role model for the Ministry of Health and Population