Media and Social Media Training for Physicians and Health Professionals
SPARC, the Centre for Health Communications at the University of Toronto's Dalla Lana School of Public Health, trains clinicians, scientists and health professionals to communicate clearly with the public: in news interviews, in op-eds and on social media. Our programs are evidence-based, hands-on and taught by physician-journalists.
Who it's for
Physicians, residents and medical students
Nurses, pharmacists and other health professionals
Public health experts, researchers and scientists
Faculty and program leaders who want to train their teams
What you'll learn
Explain research and health information clearly, without jargon
Handle media interviews with confidence
Engage with the public on social media
Evaluate media content and shape a clear message
Pitch stories to journalists and newsrooms
Write op-eds that get published
Training options
Simulated Newsroom (SimNews) workshop
Our flagship in-person workshop. Participants step into a simulated newsroom to learn how health stories are made, and how to make their own. SimNews is a validated educational innovation, published in AEM Education and Training (Bigham et al., 2022), and has been delivered more than 100 times at universities across Canada.
Workshops for health professions learners (3–6 hours)
Skill-building sessions in health advocacy, investigative journalism and science communication, designed for health professions learners.
SPARC Teaching Newsroom elective (4 weeks)
An elective with Healthy Debate for residents who want to write about health care for the public. Any resident at a Canadian medical school can apply, and the elective is available virtually.
Longitudinal placement (1–3 semesters)
A longer-term version of the elective, with a minimum of 8 hours a week, that fits around clinical commitments.
Fellowship in Journalism and Health Impact (7 months)
A part-time, hybrid fellowship at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health for experts in health, medicine, science and policy who want to become effective public communicators through journalism.
Faculty development and focused mentorship
Tailored sessions (3–6 hours) and one-on-one mentorship (1–4+ months) for faculty and professionals working toward a specific communication goal.
Why train with SPARC
Evidence-based. Our Simulated Newsroom is a peer-reviewed, validated approach to teaching media skills to clinicians.
Taught by people who do the work. Our team includes physician-journalists such as Dr. Blair Bigham, an award-winning journalist, scientist and physician.
Rooted at the University of Toronto. SPARC is based at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health and works with partners including Healthy Debate and the Investigative Journalism Bureau.
Frequently asked questions
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Clinicians, residents, medical and health science students, researchers, public health experts and other health professionals. Some programs, like the Teaching Newsroom elective, are designed for residents; our workshops and Community of Practice are open more broadly.
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No. Any resident at a Canadian medical school can apply to the Teaching Newsroom elective, we run Simulated Newsroom sessions for programs and organizations across Canada, and our Community of Practice is free and open to anyone.
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Our training focuses on shaping a clear message for a public audience. In the Simulated Newsroom, you practise turning complex health information into plain language in a realistic newsroom setting.
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Yes. Building confidence in engaging with media and social media is one of the core outcomes of the Simulated Newsroom workshop.
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Our workshops teach you to evaluate media content, shape a clear, accurate message and get it in front of the public through interviews, op-eds and social media.
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Yes. We schedule Simulated Newsroom sessions for residency programs, faculties and organizations across Canada. Contact us to book a session.
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It depends on the program. The Simulated Newsroom is in person, the Teaching Newsroom elective is available virtually, and the Fellowship in Journalism and Health Impact is part-time and hybrid.
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Fill out our learner intake form with a few details about yourself and the opportunity you're interested in. Our team will follow up to match you with the right program.
Ready to get started?
Tell us a bit about yourself and we'll match you with the right workshop, elective or fellowship. Want SPARC to train your department, residency program or organization? Get in touch to book a session.