Media coverage of adverse health events in Brazil: Multiple correspondence and hierarchical clustering
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.62827/eb.v25i2.4215Keywords:
Patient Safety; Adverse Event; Mass Media; Public Health Surveillance.Abstract
Introduction: Adverse health events represent a global patient safety challenge, with significant underreporting in formal surveillance systems. Journalistic media operates as an informal detection system for these failures, but the selective profile of such coverage in Brazil remains underexplored. Objective: To analyze the profile of Brazilian journalistic coverage of adverse health events and identify statistically validated newsworthiness clusters. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study of 200 news reports published between 1998 and 2025 on the portals G1, O Tempo, UOL, CNN Brasil, and Folha de São Paulo. Variables were analyzed using descriptive frequencies, Pearson's chi-square, Cramér's V, Fisher's exact test, and multiple correspondence analysis with hierarchical clustering on principal components (HCPC). Results: Hospital settings predominated (79.9%), in capital cities (54.0%), involving female patients (68.3%), surgical procedures (56.1%), and severe or fatal outcomes (83.6%). The Benzécri-adjusted inertia rate for the first two dimensions was 60.1%. HCPC identified three clusters: mild incidents (n = 4), hospital-surgical profile (n = 129), and pediatric-clinical interior profile (n = 56). Conclusion: Media coverage concentrates on extreme outcomes, acting as a selective filter shaping the public narrative on patient safety.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Vitor Comassetto Paes, Reinaldo dos Santos Moura , Carla Louise Alves de Azevedo, Isabel Comassetto, Gabriel Henrique Carvalho Leite Romeiro, Francisco Joilsom Carvalho Saraiva, Lavínia Vital Quixadá Souza , Ana Flávia Rodrigues Leão Melro (Autor)
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