Social Media at the CDC

Dr. Bernhardt started his academic career here at the UGA before his career at the CDC and is excited to be returning to Athens.

The CDC is part of the federal government, and many people don't know that. There are 14 national offices and Centers. About 15,000 people are on staff with a budget of $9 billion per year, but about 1/3 of that goes to buying vaccines for children. The vision of the CDC is "Healthy People in a Healthy World through Prevention.

The National Center for Health Marketing's vision is for people to actively use accessible and accurate health information to protect their health. They aim to provide programs, products and services that are customer based, science based, and high impact.

"Health Marketing" is defined as an organizational function and a set of scientific processes for creating, communicating and delivering value to customers in ways that protect and promote the health of diverse populations. It is a "multi-disciplinary area of practice."

Both health marketing and PR use audience segmentation and have a goal of influencing behavior and policy change. But, health marketing advances public health instead of advancing client interest.