Physicians' perception of health topics covered by traditional media in Morocco: opinion of physicians as consumers of the media

INTRODUCTION: In Morocco, the traditional media allows messages of non-scientific prescriptions for the treatment of diseases and statements criticizing doctors to pass, which are considered by doctors as defamation and attacks on the honor of the medical profession. The aim of this study was to analyze physicians’ perception in Morocco regarding health topics in the traditional media (TM). METHODS: This is a descriptive transversal study of physicians practicing in Morocco. The data were collected using a questionnaire that included questions on reliability, speed, up-to-dateness and influence of TM, also trust and interest in TM, quantity, and quality of health messages in TM. RESULTS: A total of 417 physicians responded, among them 234 (56.1%) had little or no interest in health topics in TM; 248 (59.5%) considered the quantity of transmitted messages to be low; 234 (56.1%) considered that health messages in TM are of low quality; 248 (59.5%) had little or no trust in health topics in TM. Also, three-quarters, 314 (75.3%), of the physicians recognized a moderate to strong influence of TM on health behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that physicians have a perception that seems negative towards TM. This may partially explain the chronic tension situation between physicians and journalists/media in Morocco. To better understand this situation and improve this relationship in favor of health promotion, it is necessary to conduct a research addressing the opinion of journalists and the propositions of solutions of both parties.