Using Social Media for Public Health Communication to Young People: A Qualitative Study to Inform Emergency Preparedness

The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the role of social media for official health communication, especially for young people who rarely engage with other public health agency channels. This study explored the social media health communication experiences of health communicators and young people, during and outside the COVID-19 emergency. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with professional health communicators responsible for social media communication of Australian government health departments and young people aged 18-24 years (<i>n</i> = 21). Interviews were analyzed thematically using Framework Analysis. The results revealed health communicators faced challenges in their work, including organizational barriers and misinformation. Whilst the COVID-19 pandemic amplified these challenges, it also brought opportunities like innovation, streamlined approval systems and increased followership. Health communicators targeted young people by using channels popular with the age group and using trendy and engaging formats. Young people found these communications straightforward but not consistently engaging or humorous and recommended involving young people in future messaging to increase appeal. These findings highlight the need for further improvements in social media health communication to youth. Health communicators require increased support and mechanisms allowing innovation in future pandemics.