Public Education Campaign - Florida Psychological Association

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The APA Public Education Campaign

"For a Healthy Mind and Body, Talk to a Psychologist”

FPA members are spreading the word: "For a Healthy Mind and Body, Talk to a Psychologist” as part of the American Psychological Association Public Education Campaign. Because sometimes, you may face overwhelming feelings or serious illness. A psychologist can help.

FPA members have participated in health fairs, spoken to reporters and given presentations all over the state about this important topic.

APA’s Help Center provides informational articles on stress, dealing with difficult life events and more.

What is the APA Public Education Campaign?

The American Psychological Association launched its first public education campaign in 1996 to communicate the value of psychology to the public and provide them with information about when and how to seek help. It is based on a grassroots model with messages carried out by APA members at the local level and has proven to be an effective tool for increasing the visibility of psychologists in their communities.

Campaigns Objectives:

Encourage access to psychological services
Increase understanding of psychology as a behavioral science
Demonstrate the value of the psychology profession in a variety of settings, including research, clinical and organizational
Raise awareness of psychology as a science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) discipline

The campaign messages cover a range of topics:

From illness…to prevention, wellness and health promotion
From traditional mental health care…to physical health care
From treatment of traditional depression and anxiety…to providing strategies for handling everyday stressors

Chair of the Public Education Campaign Committee

Laura Cohen, PhD

A MODEL MEETING FOR MEDIA OUTLETS
Oregon Psychological Association Public Education Committee uses the following format:

Arrange to meet with the News Director and some Reporters.
Send several Psychologists with differing areas of expertise.
Introduce yourselves and your areas of expertise, with the reporters describing their “beats” and the psychologists describing areas they are comfortable discussing with the media.
Offer some suggested story lines that would make use of your area of expertise.
Exchange cards and information about how to access you quickly

Follow-up: It’s important to be really available to accept media calls.
They often need turn-around on the same day when they call. Making yourself available for a quick interview at lunch often works, as they typically only need a few minutes of your time.

Other Helpful Links

FPA Youtube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/user/FloridaPsychAssn/feed

APA Youtube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyeqhudto-SyIjO5fZG89gA

Public Education site:

http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/

APA blog site:

http://www.yourmindyourbody.org/