Health Communication & Marketing
Getting the right public health message to the right audience
ORAU health communication and marketing professionals collaborate with leading public health organizations and share expertise and experiences in the United States and around the world.
Whether delivering preventive health messaging on vaccines in Asia, preventing transmission of Ebola in Africa, containing pandemic flu in the Americas, or addressing the opioid challenge in Appalachia, the ORAU team builds effective communication strategies and creates interventions and products tailored to specific audiences facing serious health issues.
ORAU develops measurable health communication interventions to effectively reach high-risk audiences in an effort to prevent or mitigate critical health concerns. Our experts employ proven marketing strategies and innovative technologies to disseminate tailored disease prevention messages and materials.
What we offer
- Social marketing plan development, including concept discovery and design
- Formative research, such as focus groups and online surveys
- Product and resource development for print or electronic dissemination
- Concept testing of proposed interventions
- Writing and editing, including message mapping and message testing
- Public and media relations, such as digital press kits and media buys
- Audience specific and community-based interventions
- Meeting, conference and expert panel support
See how we've helped our clients
I gave the highest marks to ORAU for helping to conceptualize, develop, and evaluate over 25 major projects including the development of web and social media-based tools and conducting research-based projects on cardiovascular health, heart disease and stroke prevention, diabetes, smoking, cancer, immunization, STD prevention, violence prevention, social marketing and emergency risk communication. Each of these projects were consistently high quality, on time and often under budget. The ORAU staff were people of integrity that were dependable—consistently delivering as promised.
Galen Cole PhD, MPH, LPC, WCP
CDC Senior Scientist and Project Officer (Retired)
Our Experts

Jennifer Reynolds, M.P.H.
Expertise: Health communication, social marketing, social media, behavioral science research
Reynolds has more than 15 years of experience managing research, health communication, and social marketing projects for local, state, and federal entities and nonprofit agencies
Publications:
- Communicating about Opioids in Appalachia: Challenges, Opportunities, and Best Practices
- Young Women’s Perceptions Regarding Communication with Healthcare Providers about Breast Cancer, Risk, and Prevention
- CDC MessageWorks: Designing and Validating a Social Marketing Tool to Craft and Defend Effective Messages
Certification: Certified Health Education Specialist, ThinkTank Certified Facilitator, Certificate of Proficiency in Qualitative Research

LaFrancis Gibson, M.P.H.
Expertise: Health education and training, health promotion, community outreach and engagement to special and underserved populations, formative research
Gibson has more than 10 years of experience working with federal agencies, HBCUs, MEIs, public health departments, community- and faith-based organizations and national organizations. Her specialties include consumer, medical, HIV/AIDS, toxicological and environmental health.
Certifications: Certified Health Education Specialist, ThinkTank Session Leader Training Course Certification

Kristin A. Mattson, M.P.H.
Expertise: Health education, communication, and promotion; social media, social marketing, qualitative research, training development and implementation
Mattson is a project manager leading strategic public health communication projects for her clients including federal, state, and local agencies and organizations. Prior to entering the public health field, Mattson earned a B.S. in Micro and Molecular Biology and worked in both education and healthcare.
Publications: Communicating about Opioids in Appalachia: Challenges, Opportunities, and Best Practices
Certification: Master Certified Health Education Specialist, ThinkTank Certified Facilitator, Certificate of Proficiency in Qualitative Research
Contact us
For information about ORAU’s health communication, preparedness and response solutions, contact Freddy Gray, director, Health Communication and Preparedness programs, at 865.576.0029 or freddy.gray@orau.org.