The Student Health Service is experimenting with a digital health magazine as a preventative measure.
The University of Miami is subscribed to a national, online magazine called Student Health 101 (SH101). The magazine features six pages of original content specific to UM. The other 15 pages are the same for all subscribers.
“The health and wellness of the campus community was our primary consideration in acquiring and creating content for SH101,” said Adam Troy, health educator for the Student Health Service.
Students who work as health outreach peer educators (HOPE) create and develop content for SH101. Campus services such as the Student Health Service, Wellness Center and Counseling Center also contribute.
As health educator for the Student Health Service, Troy attempts to prevent health problems at the individual and population levels. He started his position last semester and made flu outreach, safe sex, HIV and other STD testing among his goals.
“The specific purpose of health promotion in higher education is to support student success,” he said.
SH101 is emailed to students and the university community once a month. Each issue is focused on a specific topic. December’s issue included articles about safer sex, since Dec. 1 is World AIDS Day.
The magazine also covers broader topics that may not relate to health such as finding internships. Troy describes SH101 as a “supplementary component” to the services offered at the Student Health Service, Wellness Center, Counseling Center, Dean of Students office and other student organizations.
Health peer educators Madelyn Elia, Matt Graca and Elizabeth Guirado collaborated to create a video for the December edition. The group shot a video explaining the general topics that the magazine covers such as fitness and nutrition.
“It was really fun to do,” Elia said. “I was doing handstands in the library and yoga between the book stacks.”
HOPE will begin to meet regularly this semester and encourage members to submit articles for the publication, according to Elia, a human and social development major.
“It’s written by students, revised by students, and for students,” she said. “It’s a cycle of beneficial knowledge that’s out there.”
Ansh Grover, the president of the UM chapter of United Against Infectious Diseases, believes in the outreach through publications like SH101.
“The key to public health is awareness and education,” he said. “I think that a magazine like this can make initiatives that nonprofits like UAID head up much more effective on campus.”
UAID aims to tackle more than infectious diseases. The organization focuses on public health awareness initiatives like free HIV testing on campus and in the community and promoting health literacy.
According to Troy, anyone is welcome to submit material to the magazine by emailing the Student Health Service at healthed@miami.edu. Content must be submitted by the 10th day of the month to be included in the next issue. To see the latest issue of SH101, visit readsh101.com/miami.html.