Communicating EMSC Data Information Effectively: It

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Communicating EMSC Data Information Effectively
Its More Than About Numbers

• Cindy Wilmshurst, MA, MPH
• Lisa Hyde, MPA
• National EMSC Data Analysis Resource Center

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Importance of Communicating EMSC Data Information

• The need to communicate EMSC information,
  specifically informational data, is significant
  for
• EMSC decision makers
• EMS providers
• Legislators
• Local, state national
• agencies

• Media
• Program justification
• Public
• Research and evaluation

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Potential Problems with Reporting

• Some EMSC announcements, reports, and studies
  generate substantial attention yet,
• others receive little notice and even less
  response. WHY?
• Information is not shown to be important or
  newsworthy
• General message is ambiguous
• Methodology is confusing
• Data are too complex or look unreliable

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Prerequisites for Communicating EMSC Data
Information
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Effective EMSCCommunication Requires

• Step 1 Identifying your Audience
• Step 2 Ensuring Readability
• Step 3 Explaining your Methods and Results
• Step 4 Accurate Statistical Analysis
• Step 5 Intuitive Charts, Graphs, Tables, etc.
• Step 6 Concluding Effectively

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Communication Objectives are Applicable to EMSC

• Reports
• Presentations
• Web pages
• Fact sheets
• Published research

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So I just dumb it down, Right?
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So I just dumb it down, Right?

• Not an easy task
• Takes work to convey information succinctly and
  effectively
• Understanding how to communicate your data
  information effectively will make a difference!

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Communicating Effectively

• Step 1 Identifying your Audience
• Step 2 Ensuring Readability
• Step 3 Explaining your Methods and Results
• Step 4 Accurate Statistical Analysis
• Step 5 Intuitive Charts, Graphs, Tables, etc.
• Step 6 Concluding Effectively

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Identify Your Audience

• Administrators (EMS, hospital, public health)
• Agencies (funding, local non-profit, state,
  national)
• Educators
• EMSC Personnel (MDs, RNs, EMTs)

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Identify Your Audience

• Law enforcement
• Legislators
• Media
• Peer-reviewed journals
• Public
• Researchers

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Scientific versusNon-Scientific Audiences

• Scientific Audience
• Follows standard format
• Focuses on methods and data analysis
• Emphasizes specific outcomes
• Addresses limitations and uncertainties

• Non-Scientific Audience
• Focuses on message rather than on format
• Simplifies methods, results, and data analysis
• Summarizes by advising a course of action
• De-emphasizes limitations and uncertainties

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When Communicating to Non-Scientific Audiences

• Remember first impressions--ensure the document
  looks and is readable
• Facilitate comprehension of methods and results
• Perform accurate statistical analysis and
  communicate in basic language

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When Communicating to Non-Scientific Audiences

• Create intuitive charts, graphs and tables
• Reemphasize what the data mean when summarizing
  and making recommendations

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Communicating Effectively

• Step 1 Identifying your Audience
• Step 2 Ensuring Readability
• Step 3 Explaining your Methods and Results
• Step 4 Accurate Statistical Analysis
• Step 5 Intuitive Charts, Graphs, Tables, etc.
• Step 6 Concluding Effectively

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What Readers Look for First

• Is the title interesting?
• Who is the author(s)?
• Does it have a summary or abstract?
• Is it professional looking and readable?

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Is the Title Interesting?

• Always give your document a clear, descriptive
  title that can be referred to by others
• Preferably, a catchy, memorable name combined
  with a descriptive subtitle
• Should capture the primary take-home message you
  want people to associate with your data
• Good Wisconsin Driver Fatality Report
• Better Fatal Distraction? A Comparison of
  the Cell Phone Driver and the Drunk Driver

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Who is the InformationComing From?

• Readers want to know if they can trust the
  institution
• Be sure to include your organization name, logos,
  and contact info
• List the author(s) names, positions, degree(s)

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Is There a Summary or Abstract?

• Include a data highlights, executive summary or
  abstract at the beginning
• Most end-users of your data will never read the
  entire report

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Does it Look Readable?

• Lots of text on each page? Complex data tables?
• BAD

• Lots of white space, contrast, color, pictures,
  and charts?
• GOOD

                                                           
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Readability

• Keep sentences and paragraphs as short as
  possible for non-scientific audiences
• Sentences to fewer than 20 words
• Paragraphs to no more than 4 short sentences
• Dont make people read all the way across the
  page
• 3-4 inches is ideal

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Undifferentiated Text is Daunting

• Use different-sized fonts, bold, and italics to
  emphasize sections
• Use pull quotes, headlines, subheads, and
  sidebars for variety
• Helps break up the text and magnify the key
  points you want readers to remember
• Most important be consistent

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Document Design and Layout
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Color and Shading

• Color and shading can be used to provide
  professional-looking contrast
• Use carefully Too much color looks juvenile and
  unprofessional
• If materials are likely to be photocopied, use
  gradations of black and white

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Other Readability Tips

• Dont overestimate your audiences knowledge
• Avoid technical jargon and overly technical
  language
• Use consistent key words throughout the document
• Example vehicle vs car
• Example fever vs febrile

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Communicating Effectively

• Step 1 Identifying your Audience
• Step 2 Ensuring Readability
• Step 3 Explaining your Methods and Results
• Step 4 Accurate Statistical Analysis
• Step 5 Intuitive Charts, Graphs, Tables, etc.
• Step 6 Concluding Effectively

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Describing Methodology

• Explain it very simply and briefly
• Non-scientific audiences dont want to know that
  much about study methodology
• They will respect your position of authority and
  assume the information is credible
• Complex methodology may be confusing
• Use appendices for more details
• Use footnotes for explanations

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Planning your Results Section

• Data communicators believe
• that their audience shares a sincere interest in
  the data information
• AND OFTEN THINK
• that more data will help justify the approach,
  results, or conclusions
• HOWEVER . . .

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Data Caveat

• 1 Mistake of communicating data information is

DATA OVERLOAD
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You Need to Provide Data and Information That

• Shows the magnitude of the problem
• Provides context
• Provides meaning
• Is interesting or noteworthy
• Suggests an action

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Shows Magnitude of the Problem

• How big of a problem is this?
• More than 10,000 children die each year because
  of . . .
• How does the problem compare with other problems?
• More children die of injuries than all the
  diseases combined.

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Provides Context for the Problem

• How do the data compare with data elsewhere?
• How do they compare with other groups of people
  (age, sex, race/ethnicity)?
• Is the problem getting better, worse, or staying
  the same over time is there a trend?

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Provides Meaning to the Problem

• Why should we care?
• Children are suffering needlessly
• spent, wasted, or could be saved
• Impact on quality of care, time, or efficiency
• Is the problem preventable?
• Is the audience accountable for addressing the
  problem?
• Is the audience, their friends or family at risk?

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Is Interesting or Noteworthy

• Hot, controversial issues
• Surprising, counter-intuitive or against
  expectation
• Significant rises or falls from the previous year
  
• Unusual trends in your region compared to other
  regions

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Suggests an Action

• As a result of these findings, what needs to be
  done?
• Who needs to carry out the action?
• When should the action be done?

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Lastly, Remember . . . Less is More

• Avoid data overload
• Most people can comprehend only a few key pieces
  of information
• Only provide what is absolutely necessary
• People generally want less than you think

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Communicating Effectively

• Step 1 Identifying your Audience
• Step 2 Ensuring Readability
• Step 3 Explaining your Methods and Results
• Step 4 Accurate Statistical Analysis
• Step 5 Intuitive Charts, Graphs, Tables, etc.
• Step 6 Concluding Effectively

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Why did the statistician become a statistician?
. . . . He found accounting too exciting.
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Statistics

• Whether you have done the statistics yourself,
  used a statistician or compiled them from
  different sources . . . it is how you present
  your statistics that will make the difference!

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Statistics

• Statistical terminology should be avoided when
  there are simpler ways to explain results
• Most people have low math literacy, even highly
  educated persons

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Terms to Avoid

• The phrase statistically significant is rarely
  meaningful to non-scientists
• Consider saying more or less likely
• If possible, avoid using the terms
• p-value
• 95 confidence limits
• correlation coefficient
• regression analysis
• chi square

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Statistics that are Effective

• Keep your statistics basic and easy to
  understand. Use . . .
• Numbers/counts
• Rankings
• Percents
• Averages

• Odds ratios
• Rates
• Simple relationships

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Turn Numbers into Words

• Instead of presenting a relative risk as 2.0
• Say, Smoking cigarettes doubles the risk of
  dying from a heart attack.

• Instead of saying, 25 of children do not wear
  seatbelts.
• Say, One out of every four children does not
  wear a seatbelt.

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Ethics

• You are perceived as an expert on your data by
  non-scientific audiences
• Important to be ethical, which is to be careful,
  honest, and accurate
• Always have others examine your statistics!
• Never skew data to make it look better
• Resist the temptation to over-interpret or
  over-generalize findings
• Remain unbiased in your language

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Communicating Effectively

• Step 1 Identifying your Audience
• Step 2 Ensuring Readability
• Step 3 Explaining your Methods and Results
• Step 4 Accurate Statistical Analysis
• Step 5 Intuitive Charts, Graphs, Tables, etc.
• Step 6 Concluding Effectively

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Useful Graphics for Non-Scientific Audiences

• Pie charts
• Bar charts
• Line graphs

• Tables
• Pictures
• Maps

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Charts

• Wonderful for illustrating data clearly
• Good for highlighting the data you want to
  emphasize
• Useful with break-up of text

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Pie Charts
Major Causes of Death

• Good for highlighting either the largest or the
  smallest piece
• No more than six slices
• Largest piece starting at 1200
• Slices should be displayed clockwise in
  descending order

6 Poisoning
12 Falls
22 Drowning
60 Car crash
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Bar Charts
Major Causes of Death

• Most versatile means for displaying data
• Often used to visually show magnitude of numbers
  and compare groups
• Most effective if they contain only a few bars
• Avoid stacked bar charts

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Line Graphs
Number of Crashes and Drownings by Year

• Effective for sequential time, age groups, etc.
• Time is generally shown on the x-axis, and
  numbers are on y-axis, with plotted points
  connected
• Avoid the clutter of too many data lines (lt4) or
  poor labeling

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Tables

• Least preferred method necessary to decode
• Best choice when the goal is to stress a few
  specific pieces of info
• Should contain the minimum number of elements
  needed
• Should contain few if any lines

Major Causes of Death
Car Crashes 60
Drownings 22
Falls 12
Poisonings 6
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Pictures

• Include photographs, diagrams, clip art,
  drawings, and video
• Attract attention, illustrate ideas, evoke
  emotion, and add realism to your subject
• Pictures should support the message, not detract
  from it

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Maps

• Best method for showing geographic clustering
• Can demonstrate local, county, state, national,
  or international variations
• Make good use of shading
• Minimize clutter on the map

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General Chart Tips

• Charts should be able to stand alone
• Include appropriate titles and labels
• Use solid fill patterns wherever possible
• Darker chart colors usually represent
  significantly higher risks, rates, or numbers
• Avoid using 3D Charts
• Makes all the bars or pie slices stand out too
  much and diminishes the data presentation

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PowerPoints Default Chart Settings
Major Causes of Death
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Current Chart Conventions
Major Causes of Death
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Informational Bullets

• Help the reader understand the significance of
  the data theyre looking at
• May include additional data that help put the
  chart in context
• Be sure to stick with the facts

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Examples of Explanatory Bullets
Number of Crashes and Drownings by Year

• The number of car crashes has decreased by X
  since 1998, whereas the number of drownings has
  increased by Y
• The increase in drownings may be due to increases
  in flooding during recent years

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Communicating Effectively

• Step 1 Identifying your Audience
• Step 2 Ensuring Readability
• Step 3 Explaining your Methods and Results
• Step 4 Accurate Statistical Analysis
• Step 5 Intuitive Charts, Graphs, Tables, etc.
• Step 6 Concluding Effectively

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Conclusion

• Reemphasize what you what the audience to
  remember from the data
• Focus on the key points
• Dont over-interpret your conclusion must be
  supported by the data
• Stress why the information is significant

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Propose Action Steps

• Make your message memorable. For example
• Always use a seatbelt
• Go to a certain website to learn more
• Apply gentle pressure so the audience feels a
  responsibility to act
• Apply a time constraint if appropriate

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Make Recommendations Carefully

• Be careful not to compromise your position of
  authority and objectivity
• Avoid saying A primary seatbelt law must be
  enacted
• Instead say, Primary seatbelt laws have been
  shown to be effective and may be an appropriate
  solution

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What Weve Learned

1. Identify your audience
2. Readability is very important
3. Facilitate comprehension of methods and results
4. Use statistics that make sense
5. Use intuitive charts, graphs, tables, etc.
6. Support your conclusion, propose action steps,
   and make proper recommendations

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A Final Key to Communicating Data Information
Effectively

• Revise
• Revise
• Revise

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Any Questions?
www.nedarc.org