DQ1 & 2 WK7 PUB-610
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Medicine
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Nov 24, 2024
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docx
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1
DQ 1
Differences Between Emergency Risk Communication and Routine Health Communication
Effective communication in health care is critical during emergencies or routine
endeavors. However, the approach during communication for the two scenarios is different.
Below are some of the differences differentiating risk communication from regular health
communication.
Urgency and Time Sensitivity
Risk communication occurs in real-time during public health emergencies such as disease
outbreaks or humanitarian disasters. The information is relayed rapidly, and as WHO (2022),
puts it, this approach ensures that everyone affected by the disaster can conceptualize the
information to make informed decisions. However, routine communication assumes a relaxed
approach where the teams disseminating the information take time to plan and release it to the
public.
Uncertainty and Complexity
Emergencies make it a challenge to collect all necessary information simultaneously.
Therefore, information is primarily incomplete, evolving, and based on preliminary data. The
implication is that the information being disseminated changes depending on the emerging facts
(Hu et al., 2023). However, routine health communication takes shape through well-established
facts and guidelines.
Multiple Audiences
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Stakeholders such as government agencies, the public, media, and healthcare
professionals come together to contain health emergencies. Thus, emergency risk communication
in healthcare targets all the stakeholders in coordination work, making it crucial to tailor
messages to ensure that each group is well-versed in emergencies (Jha et al., 2018). However,
routine communication targets a specific group, implying the ease of coordination and
dissemination of information.
Recommendations for communicating during emergencies
Emergencies in healthcare are characterized by information from multiple sources.
Therefore, filtering and disseminating the most critical information remains critical to avoid
overwhelming the public and other stakeholders with excess data (Holroyd et al., 2020). Also, it
is necessary to maintain transparency in communication during a crisis. This is critical in an
environment characterized by uncertainty and evolving information, requiring accuracy and
completeness every moment new information emerges (Holroyd et al., 2020). Therefore,
maintain transparency and accuracy are most difficult to achieve.
3
References
Holroyd, T. A., Oloko, O. K., Salmon, D. A., Omer, S. B., & Limaye, R. J. (2020).
Communicating Recommendations in Public Health Emergencies: The Role of Public
Health Authorities.
Health Security, 18(1), 21–28. https://doi.org/10.1089/hs.2019.0073
Hu, G., Chen, Z., Wang, J., & Huang, S. (2023).
Editorial: Risk Communication and Community
Engagement During Public Health Emergencies.
Frontiers in Public Health, 11.
https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1164973
Jha, A., Lin, L., Short, S. M., Argentini, G., Gamhewage, G., & Savoia, E. (2018).
Integrating
Emergency Risk Communication (ERC) into the Public Health System Response:
Systematic Review of Literature to Aid Formulation of The 2017 WHO Guideline for ERC
Policy and Practice.
PLOS ONE, 13(10). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0205555
WHO. (2020).
Emergencies: Risk communication
. World Health Organization.
https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/emergencies-risk-
communication
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4
DQ2
The Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014 is a compelling example of emergency risk
communication. The
concepts of emergency risk communication applied in this case were
e
ffective risk messaging and Multiple-Audience Targeting. The Ebola outbreak presented a
substantial challenge that revolved around uncertainty and fear. Effective risk messaging was
critical to inform the public about the situation, risks, and preventive measures. A clear and
articulate communication of the dangers of Ebola and the significance of hygienic practices was
vital in reducing fear and miscommunication. Tetteh (2020) proposes using 3W's model (What
happened? What are you doing about it? What does it mean to me?), which is key to ensuring
quality and accuracy, avoiding conspiracy theories and misbehavior.
On the other hand, Multiple-Audience Targeting was applied since the Ebola outbreak
involved diverse stakeholders coordinating activities simultaneously. This required practical
tailoring of messages to meet the needs and expectations of the affected communities, healthcare
workers, government entities, and international partners. The public required simple messaging
highlighting the importance of hygiene and prevention, while the healthcare professionals
required detailed information to understand the emerging issues and areas that need immediate
attention. This strategy aligns with Winters et al. (2018), study findings that underscore the
significance of information sources influencing knowledge and behavior.
Ethical Factors in Public Health Emergency Communication
It is critical to consider ethical factors during public health emergencies, such as
transparency privacy, and confidentiality. Ensuring transparency during the health crisis is key,
requiring the health communicators to admit when the information is uncertain and facilitate
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constant updates to help build trust (Henry, 2019). At the same time, protecting the privacy and
confidentiality of affected persons is critical in ensuring their rights are protected (Henry, 2019).
The information sharing should consider data protection laws and the rights of the affected to
avoid subsequent legal tussles.
6
Reference
Henry, L. M. (2019).
An Overview of Public Health Ethics in Emergency Preparedness and
Response.
The Oxford Handbook of Public Health Ethics, 765–773.
https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190245191.013.66
Tetteh, H. A. (2020).
A Leader’s Guide to Crisis Communication: Lessons from Ebola For
Covid-
19. Military Medicine, 185(9–10). https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usaa158
Winters, M., Jalloh, M. F., Sengeh, P., Jalloh, M. B., Conteh, L., Bunnell, R., Li, W., Zeebari, Z.,
& Nordenstedt, H. (2018).
Risk Communication and Ebola-Specific Knowledge and
Behavior During 2014–2015 Outbreak, Sierra Leone
. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 24(2),
336–344. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid2402.171028
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