Health Message Development
The Health Department provides evidence-based information about health risks related to certain behaviors, including substance use risks. Working with experts in the field of health communication - at the Department and beyond - we develop this messaging through evaluation to inform our campaigns. We consider:
- Who is at risk for health consequences due to substance use?
- What does this audience need to know about the health consequences of substance use and what might they already know, think and believe?
- Why should the audience change their behavior – what are the health benefits of this change?
- When is the best time to reach this audience – when will they be most receptive to the message?
- Where is the best place to reach this audience – what are their normal influences of their behavior?
The Department’s health messaging campaigns follow a science-based development process that includes: formative research, brand development and testing with the intended audience, strategy and creative development, implementation and evaluation.
The 2019 Policy and Communication Evaluation (PACE) Vermont study found that up to 62% of people who were aware of specific Health Department campaigns described changing their behavior as a result of the messaging. Read about the PACE Vermont study and the results. Learn more about this evaluation at pacevt.org.
