About Melissa Sweet
I am an independent journalist with a focus on innovation in public interest journalism.
Follow me on Twitter – @croakeyblog – for news about Indigenous health, climate change and health, public health, health policy, equity concerns, the social determinants of health, and social media and journalism.
I am managing editor of the social journalism project for health, Croakey.org, and a director of Croakey Health Media, which is in the process of setting up as a non profit journalism organisation. Initiatives include the rotated curated Twitter account @WePublicHealth, the Croakey Conference News Service, and a number of crowd-funded projects such as #JustJustice. Read more about Croakey here.
I am a founding member of the Public Interest Journalism Foundation, and specialise in covering public health matters, with a particular focus on under-served areas and issues. My work appears in a wide range of professional and general publications, including the online publication Inside Story. You can read more about my books here.
I have been writing about health and medical issues since the late 1980s, and am one of Australia’s most experienced health reporters. Prior to becoming a freelancer in the late 1990s, I covered health and medicine for The Sydney Morning Herald and Australian Associated Press.
I am also involved in various research and teaching activities, and have an honorary appointment as Adjunct Senior Lecturer in the Sydney School of Public Health at the University of Sydney.
In 2017, I completed a PhD at the University of Canberra, titled: “Acknowledgement”: A social journalism research project relating to the history of lock hospitals, lazarets and other forms of medical incarceration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. In April 2018, I was awarded the Parker Medal for the University of Canberra’s most outstanding thesis of 2017.
My particular areas of interest include climate change and health, Indigenous health, decolonising practice, public health, equity-related issues, the social determinants of health, mental health, rural health, media and health, health policy, conflicts of interest, consumer participation in decision-making, evidence-based care, and quality and safety issues.
My conflicts of interest declarations are detailed and updated here.
Books
Inside Madness
10 questions you should ask your doctor
The Big Fat Conspiracy
Smart Health Choices