10 Tips for Nurses to Engage with Mainstream Media: Expanding Your Impact Beyond the Bedside

As healthcare professionals on the frontlines, nurses possess valuable expertise and insights that deserve a broader platform. Yet, despite being the largest healthcare profession, nurses appear in only 2% of health news stories, according to recent research. This underrepresentation limits the public's understanding of nursing's vital role in healthcare delivery and policy.

At Herzing, we believe nursing students should develop media engagement skills alongside clinical competencies. Being media-savvy allows you to advocate for patients, address misinformation and shape healthcare narratives as a respected professional voice.

Why Media Engagement Matters for Nursing Students

Healthcare information flows constantly through traditional and social media channels, influencing public perception and health behaviors. As future nursing professionals, your expertise can help ensure this information is accurate, ethical, and patient-centered.

Media engagement extends your impact beyond individual patient care to broader public health advocacy. By sharing your knowledge, you can highlight important health issues, correct misconceptions, and represent nursing's crucial perspective in healthcare discussions.

1. Invest in Communication Training

Take public speaking, writing or journalism classes to build your communication toolkit. These skills enhance your ability to deliver compelling messages about complex health topics. Many nursing programs now recognize these as valuable professional development opportunities alongside clinical training.

2. Develop Your Professional Online Presence

Create and maintain professional profiles on platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter (X), where healthcare discussions happen. Your online presence is your digital professional card when journalists seek expert sources. Remember to separate personal and professional social media clearly accounts to maintain appropriate boundaries.

3. Understand Patient Confidentiality in Media Contexts

Protecting patient privacy remains paramount when engaging with the media. Never share identifiable patient information, even when details are altered or anonymized. Consider how combining seemingly harmless details might inadvertently reveal a patient's identity to their community. HIPAA violations can result in serious professional consequences.

4. Build Relationships with Journalists

Connect with health journalists and media professionals covering healthcare topics. Follow their work, engage thoughtfully with their content, and offer your nursing expertise when relevant. Journalists need reliable sources—position yourself as a knowledgeable resource they can call upon for nursing perspectives.

5. Prepare Key Messages and Practice Delivery

Before any media engagement, develop 3-5 clear, concise points you want to communicate. Practice delivering these messages in different formats—a 30-second sound bite, a detailed explanation and everything in between. This preparation ensures you communicate effectively regardless of the interview format.

6. Proactively Pitch Stories and Ideas

Don't wait for journalists to discover you. Identify relevant healthcare stories where nursing expertise would add value and proactively pitch these ideas to appropriate media outlets. Timely topics connected to current events or awareness months often generate media interest.

7. Use Social Media Strategically for Education

Leverage social media platforms to share evidence-based health information, correct misinformation and promote public health messaging. Focus on creating educational content that showcases nursing expertise while maintaining professional standards. Use these platforms to amplify your voice on healthcare issues important to you and your patients.

8. Advocate with Your Organization's PR Team

Many healthcare organizations have public relations departments that coordinate media interactions. Build relationships with your PR team and advocate for nursing voices to be included in media opportunities. Help them understand the unique perspective nurses can bring to healthcare stories.

9. Maintain Professionalism During All Media Interactions

Remember that you represent yourself and the nursing profession in every media engagement. Maintain professional language, appearance, and conduct. Avoid negative comments about colleagues, employers, or patients, even when discussing challenging healthcare issues.

10. Continuously Refine Your Media Skills

Seek feedback after media appearances, analyze successful healthcare communicators and adapt your approach accordingly. Media engagement is a skill that improves with practice and reflection. Consider joining professional organizations that offer media training for healthcare professionals.

Expanding Your Impact Through Media Engagement

Engaging with mainstream media allows nurses to amplify their influence beyond direct patient care to broader public health advocacy. As nursing students preparing to enter the profession, developing media engagement skills now will position you to be effective healthcare communicators throughout your career.

At Herzing, we encourage nursing students to view media engagement as an extension of their professional practice—another way to educate, advocate and promote health on a larger scale.

By following these tips, you can help ensure nursing's essential perspective is represented in healthcare discussions, ultimately benefiting patients and communities through more accurate, comprehensive health information.