Happy holidays from AHCJ
The AHCJ offices are closed down for the holidays and will re-open on Jan. 3.
As a result, blog postings and tweets from us will be light and sporadic as we get rested up for a new year of highlighting the best work in health journalism and finding resources for our members.
Contest reminder: Get your entries for the Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism in no later than Friday to qualify for the discounted entry fee. After Friday, you are still welcome to submit entries until Jan. 28, but it will cost a bit more. If you have questions about the contest rules or eligibility, please send them to contest@healthjournailsm.org. If you have questions about the submission process, you can send them to info@healthjournalism.org. Someone will check those messages once a day and get back to you.
We wish all our readers a happy holiday season and look forward to a 2011 full of health news!
AHCJ issues call for entries in annual contest
New this year: Submit your entries online
Early-bird (discounted entry fee): Dec. 24
Regular: Jan. 28, 2011
Since 2004, the Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism have recognized the best health reporting in print, broadcast and online media. For the first time, AHCJ is now accepting contest entries online. 
That means a streamlined entry process, quick and efficient access to entries for judges, and less paper consumed. Entrants will no longer have to submit paper copies of articles and, with the exception of unusually large electronic files, face no shipping costs.
“We’re pleased to launch our online contest portal for the 2010 Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism,” said Julie Appleby, Kaiser Health News reporter and chair of the AHCJ Contest Committee. “It will make it easier for journalists to submit their work, without the hassle of paper entries. It will also allow judges to review entries online and make it a more efficient contest.”
Entries can include a wide range of health coverage including public health, consumer health, medical research, the business of health care and health ethics. The contest was created by journalists for journalists and is not influenced or funded by commercial or special-interest groups.
First-place winners earn $500, a framed certificate and complimentary lodging for two nights and registration for the annual conference, to be April 14-27, 2011, in Philadelphia. First-place winners will be recognized at the conference and will be encouraged to appear on panels to discuss their winning work.
Erdely wins for story of bone marrow donation
AHCJ member Sabrina Rubin Erdely won a 2010 Clarion Award [press release] from the Association for Women in Communications for her piece in Self magazine about bone marrow donation. The award also cites AHCJ member Sara Austin, who is the magazines features director, news and health.
The story, of a bone marrow donor meeting the young woman whose life she helped save, is an arresting one, but the piece’s real strength is its focus on the mechanics of such donations. From the unlikely match to the surprisingly non-invasive extraction, Erdely uses the women’s story to demystify an otherwise intimidating process.
The piece is filled with moments like this, which cause less informed readers (like myself), to read the paragraph again just to make sure we’re understanding it right.
Say the words bone marrow transplant to anyone and the first reaction is probably a wince. “People imagine drilling through bone and pain and a long recovery,” says Katharina Harf, executive vice president and cofounder of the donor-recruitment organization DKMS Americas in New York City. In fact, nearly three quarters of so-called bone marrow donations involve no removal whatsoever of bone marrow—they’re done by extracting blood stem cells intravenously from the arm, like giving plasma. (Some doctors now prefer the term “stem cell transplant,” because both marrow and blood house these vital cells.)
Members earn Annenberg grants/fellowships
The USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism announced the winners of its Dennis A. Hunt Fund for Health Journalism grants and National Health Journalism Fellowships this week, and multiple AHCJ members earned honors in each category. The program seeks to fund explanatory and investigative reporting in underserved communities. The winning members are listed below; see the Annenberg site for a full list. All descriptions are taken directly from the press release.
2010 HUNT GRANT RECIPIENTS
Christina Hernandez, a freelance writer for The Philadelphia Inquirer, will receive a $5,000 grant to examine a troubled health care system in a New Jersey city and local attempts to find solutions.
Emily Ramshaw, an assistant managing editor and investigative reporter at The Texas Tribune in Austin, will receive $4,000 to analyze efforts to improve public health in colonias – 2,300 unincorporated and isolated border towns.
2010 NATIONAL HEALTH JOURNALISM FELLOWS
Pedro F. Frisneda, health editor of El Diario/La Prensa in New York City, will explore several serious threats to the health of Latinos in the United States: disparities in health care access and outcomes; obesity and diabetes; and HIV/AIDS.
Heather May, a reporter for The Salt Lake Tribune, will look at why children in some racially diverse neighborhoods in Salt Lake County are more likely than their neighbors to be born with birth defects, die from prematurity or SIDS or be hospitalized for asthma.
Elizabeth Simpson (Early), the medical reporter at The Virginian-Pilot in Norfolk, Virginia, will examine the contributing factors to infant mortality in African American neighborhoods throughout the Hampton Roads region.
Carol Smith, a Seattle-based reporter for InvestigateWest, will take a look at the health of predominantly minority communities that live and work along the Duwamish River in Seattle.
Mark Taylor, a freelancer writer based in Munster, Indiana, will produce a series of stories for the Post-Tribune that will examine the high rates of disease, infant deaths and chronic health conditions in Gary, Indiana’s poorer neighborhoods.
AHCJ members’ work honored by Journalism Center on Children & Families
Filed under: Children, Health journalism, Member news
Congratulations to the AHCJ members who earned 2010 Casey Medals for Meritorious Journalism for “distinguished coverage of disadvantaged children, youth and families.” Entries from AHCJ members who won are summarized below, with member names in bold and include comments from the Journalism Center on Children & Families.
PROJECT/SERIES: Over 200,000 circulation
Honorable mention: “Dubious Medicine,” Chicago Tribune, Trine Tsouderos, Patricia Callahan and George Papajohn
The Chicago Tribune courageously challenges doctors who peddle alternative autism remedies to parents desperate for help. Through inquisitive, fact-based reporting, the series exposes the flimsy science behind the anecdotal testimonials that underpin uncontrolled experimentation on children.
This piece also won an Award for Excellence in Health Care Journalism. See a tip sheet prepared by the reporters and the contest questionnaire in which the reporters write about how this story was written.
PROJECT/SERIES: Under 200,000 circulation
Winner: “Fatal Care,” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Gina Barton, Crocker Stephenson and Kristyna Wentz-Graff
This team went beyond the story of one child’s death in foster care to discover that 22 additional children died as a result of systemic neglect. The series features in-depth reporting matched with a strong analysis. The sidebars, graphs, photographs and a review of thousands of records add to the stories’ impact. It’s a series that got results, including a new state law that holds welfare officials accountable for the children under their watch.
MAGAZINE
Honorable mention: “School of Second Chances,” The Washington Post Magazine, Karen Houppert, Sydney Trent, Lisa Frazier and Beth Chang
A well-reported and powerfully written account of the Washington, D.C., Oak Hill Correctional Facility’s charter school and its efforts to overcome myriad challenges.
NONDAILY
Winner: “For Their Own Good,” Houston Press, Chris Vogel and Margaret Downing
Who knew that sheriff’s officials in Harris County, Texas, were placing children as young as 15 in solitary confinement, bereft of counseling, physical activity and education? No one, apparently – not even the judges who sent them there. With dogged reporting and compelling writing, Vogel exposes a justice system that seems to have given up on its most vulnerable. The project prompted outrage and action, among legislators, academics and advocates.
MULTIMEDIA
Runner-up: “The Price of Miracles,” The Providence (R.I.) Journal, Felice J. Freyer, Kathy Borchers, Susan Areson, Beth Heaney, Michael Foran, Maria Caporizzo, Tony LaRoche and Cecilia Prestamo
Each installment of this series on the costs and consequences of premature births is captivating and masterfully executed. The story flows from print to video to user-friendly charts and graphics, and the diversity of subjects presents a broad spectrum of perspective and effect.
Butcher, Rosenthal win APEX Awards
Congratulations to AHCJ members Lola Butcher and Eric Rosenthal, who won APEX Awards for Publication Excellence for work that appeared in Oncology Times.
Butcher won in the category of “How-to Series Writing,” for her articles about Twitter and cancer care:
- “How Twitter Is Transforming the Cancer Care Community“
- “Oncologists Using Twitter to Advance Cancer Knowledge.”
Rosenthal was reconized in the News Series category for his “Economy Watch” series:
- As the Economy Turns, Cancer Centers Employ Watchful Waiting
- American Cancer Society Eliminates Exhibitions at Major Oncology Meetings
- Some of This Season’s Oncology Society Meetings May be Scaled Back
- Recessional Updates Reported from AACR’s Annual Meeting
More information about the awards and a complete list of winners is online (PDF).
Send us your latest news
Got a new job? Earned a promotion? Won an award or fellowship? Just published a book? AHCJ members are encouraged to share your news by sending it to info@healthjournalism.org. Member news items are posted on Covering Health and in HealthBeat, AHCJ’s newsletter.
2009 winners named in health journalism awards
Investigations into questionable autism treatments, the safety of generic drugs, claims denials by disability insurers and the global trade in smuggled cigarettes were among the top winners in this year’s Awards for Excellence in Health Care Journalism.
The 2009 awards, announced today by the Association of Health Care Journalists, recognize the best health reporting in nine categories, covering print, broadcast and online media. The contest, in its sixth year, received more than 250 entries.
Links to the winning entries are available and AHCJ members also can read questionnaires about how the winning entries were reported and written.
Selden Ring finalists explored nurses, caregivers
Two stories about caregivers were finalists for the 2010 Selden Ring Award for Investigative Reporting:
- “When Caregivers Harm,” a collaboration between Maloy Moore of the Los Angeles Times and Charles Ornstein and Tracy Weber of ProPublica, exposed significant flaws in the oversight of California nurses with disciplinary problems.
- “Trust Betrayed,” a series produced by Sally Kestin, Peter Franceschina and John Maines of the South Florida Sun Sentinel, revealed inadequate screening of caregivers with criminal histories.
The award, with a $35,000 prize, recognizes published investigative reporting that has brought results.
Schwitzer’s HealthNewsReview blog wins award
MedGadget, the “Internet journal of emerging medical technologies,” announced that AHCJ member Gary Schwitzer’s HealthNewsReview blog, won Best Medical Weblog of 2009.
From the announcement:
The winner of the Best Medical Weblog of 2009 is Gary Schwitzer’s HealthNewsReview Blog. Gary used to be a professional health reporter. He is now a professor of journalism at University of Minnesota, focusing on medical reporting. Gary has become renowned for his critique of media’s coverage of health care topics. And that’s what his blog is mostly about: checking and correcting the weak, erroneous, and misleading reporting of medical science and industry on TV and in newspapers.
Other blogs recognized focus on narrative, clinical cases, health policy and ethics, medical technology and patient experience.
The awards are sponsored by Epocrates, a maker of medical software for personal digital assistants and smart phones.
Sarasota site hits milestone, wins unusual honor
It’s been three months since AHCJ member David Gulliver launched the nonprofit, online Sarasota Health News, and the site’s celebrating its first quarter with an unusual honor in an annual awards issue from Creative Loafing, the local alternative weekly.
Gulliver’s award? Best Reporter Cojones. Creative Loafing explained the honor thus:
Accustomed to the bureaucracy of a large newsroom, Gulliver now makes all the decisions: deciding which stories to cover, what the site should look like, how best to give readers content he believes in. There are plenty of ex-reporters out there, but there’s only one Sarasota Health News.
Gulliver, who says the award may be one of his favorite honors ever, is in good company. Other awards handed out by the weekly included:
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