Foundation adds interactive boost to new program schedule
June 23, 2009New educational television programs on type 2 diabetes, men’s health, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander development, and end of life care will feature in the Rural Health Education Foundation’s late 2009 and early 2010 broadcast schedule.
The Foundation’s preliminary schedule of accredited satellite television broadcasts beginning July 2009 also includes a number of simultaneous interactive webcasts which enable program viewers to become active participants in the live broadcast while it is in progress.
July to December broadcast highlights
The Foundation’s 2009/10 schedule kicks off on July 14th with End of Life Care, an hour-long program which explores issues involved in end of life care, particularly in rural and remote Australia.
July 28th sees the return of Open Wide: Oral Health in the Bush, a 90-minute program which first aired in September 2008, examining the special circumstances faced by people living in rural and remote areas, where the dental workforce shortage is particularly acute.
A new program on men’s health will be presented live as a simultaneous interactive satellite broadcast and Internet webcast on August 11th. The program looks at preventative approaches in improving men’s health and the need to make health services more attractive to men.
Also in August is a program on Suicide Prevention which will be broadcast on August 25.
September marks the premiere of the first in a four-program series on type 2 diabetes, the T2DM Guideline Series:
• Primary Prevention, Case Detection and Diagnosis – September 8th
• Blood Glucose Control, Patient Education in Type 2 Diabetes - September 22nd
• Diabetic Retinopathy, Chronic Kidney Disease - October 13th
• Diabetes and Indigenous Australians - November 10th
All four T2DM programs will be simulcast (satellite and web) to enable interactive viewer participation.
And early in 2010 the Foundation will continue its successful Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander development series with Live Strong, a new program which addresses chronic disease prevention and risk modification in Indigenous communities, and showcases successful community-based primary healthcare initiatives which emphasise safe and successful models of practice.
Deeper viewer involvement in wider range of programs
“Our preliminary broadcast schedule for 2009-10 reflects the Foundation’s commitment to expand the frequency and scope of our programs and to provide more opportunities for our viewers to access those programs,” says Rural Health Education Foundation CEO Don Perlgut. “The next 12 months will be a very productive period for us, with more than 20 programs designed for Australia’s rural and remote health professionals set to be produced and distributed.”
“And the Foundation is now an Australian pioneer in terms of empowering viewers and giving them a bigger voice in the educational content targeted,” Mr Perlgut says. “Most of our programs in the next twelve months will be interactive satellite-web simulcasts, enabling our viewers to shape the discussions as each live broadcast goes to air.”
Multiple viewing options
The 2009/10 programs will be broadcast across the Foundation’s national satellite viewing network, usually on a Tuesday evening, with repeats during the daytime on Friday of the same week.
After the initial broadcast, each program will be available free on the Foundation’s website for viewing via web-streamed video or listening via an audio podcast. DVD copies of each program can be purchased via our website.
More interactive web simulcasts
The Foundation’s 2009/10 broadcast schedule will feature even more simultaneous interactive webcasts than in previous years. The majority of new programs which go to air live will be simulcast on the web, enabling viewers to use the web to pose questions and make comments directly to the program presenters while the live program is still in progress.
Further information
Broadcast times and other program details are available on the Foundation’s upcoming programs page. To find a satellite viewing site near you, go to our viewing sites page.
For other information about the Foundation’s programs and activities, please browse our website or contact the Foundation.