Emergency Risk Communication Principles and Applied Practices in China ???????????????

1
Emergency Risk Communication Principles and
Applied Practices in China???????????????

• Melinda Frost, MA, MPH
• Health Communications Officer
• US Embassy, Beijing

2
Presentation Outline????

• Emergency and Risk Communication Definitions
  ????????????
• Emergency Risk Communication Principles
• ?????????
• Emergency Risk Communication in China
• ?????????????
• Rapid Assessment and application in outbreak
  settings
• ?????????????

3
What is Emergency Risk Communication???????????

• The attempt by science or public health
  professionals to provide information that allows
  an individual, stakeholders, or an entire
  community to make the best possible decisions
  during an emergency about their well being.
• ????????,???????????????????????????(??)??????????
  ,?????????????????????

4
Emergency and Risk Communication Working
Definitions/Concepts??/??

• Emergency Risk Communication
• ??????
• Encompasses the urgency of crisis (disaster or
  disease outbreak) when an organization must
  communicate with affected audiences with the need
  to communicate risks and benefits to target
  audiences?????(???????)???,???????????????????????
  ??
• Explain crisis and empower decision making
• ????????????????????????

5
Emergency Risk CommunicationPurpose??

• To provide accurate and timely information as
  well as essential coordination during an
  emergency
• ????????,???????????,???????

6
Emergency Risk CommunicationPurpose??

• To inform the public of potential risks and steps
  being taken during an emergency
• ??????????????????????

7
Emergency Risk CommunicationPurpose??

• To aid individuals, stakeholders, or communities
  to accept the imperfect nature of choices and to
  make best possible decisions during an emergency
  ??????????(??)??????????????????????????????????

8
Emergency Risk CommunicationLifecycle ?????????
Maintenance ???
Resolution ????
Evaluation ??
Initial ????
Pre-crisis ?????

• To facilitate and anticipate the needs of the
  public, the media, and partners at different
  stages ???????????????????????
• Each stage has unique communications and
  information requirements
• ??????????????????

9
Pre-Crisis Communication ????????

• Be prepared ????
• Foster alliances ????
• Develop recommendations through
  consensus???????????
• Test audience messages
• ????

Pre-crisis
10
Risk Perception ????

• Voluntary vs. involuntary ???/???
• Personally controlled vs. controlled by others
  ?????/?????
• Familiar vs. exotic ???/???

11
Risk Perception????

• Nature vs. manmade ???/???
• Reversible vs. permanent ???/???
• Statistical vs. anecdotal ????/????

12
Risk Perception????

• Fairly vs. unfairly distributed ????/????
• Adults vs. children ??/??
• Understood benefit vs. questionable benefit
  ??????/??????

13
WHO Outbreak Communication (Emergency Risk)
Principles ??????????????????

• Trust ??
• Announce early????
• Transparency??
• Listen to and involve the public??????????????
• Planning??

14
Emergency Risk Communication

• Credibility
• ???
• Trust
• ??

Accuracy of Information ????

Speed of Release ????
Successful Communication ?????

Empathy ?? Openness??
15
Components of Trust ???????

• The public perception of ?????
• Motives ??
• Are responders acting to protect my health and
  the health of my family? ?????????????????????
• Honesty ??
• Are the responders holding back information?
  ?????????????
• Competence ??
• Are the responders capable of controlling the
  outbreak? ?????? ???????
• Trust must come before the crisis ????????????

16
Announce Early????

• First Announcement ?????
• The most critical of all outbreak communication
  messages ?????????????????
• Must be early ????
• Likely to be wrong
• ??????

17
Transparency??

• Barriers to Transparency ??
• Real or perceived competing interest (economic
  vs. public health) ???????????? (?? vs. ????)
• Spokespersons uncomfortable with delivering bad
  news ???????????????

18
Transparency??

• Barriers to Transparency??
• Fear the media will misrepresent bad or uncertain
  news ????????????????
• Concern the public cant tolerate uncertainty or
  will panic ?????????????????
• Official belief that if you say nothing, nothing
  will happen ???????????????

19
Listen to and involve the public ???????????

• State continued concern before stating updates
  ?????????????
• Acknowledge uncertainty ??????
• Emphasize a process in place ?????????
• Tell people what to expect ??????????
• Give people things to do ???????
• Let people choose their own actions ?????????
• Ask more of people ??????

20
Listen to and involve the public???????????

• Dont try to allay panic????????
• Acknowledge peoples fears ???????
• In every message, try to use ??????????
• Empathy ??
• Action ??
• Respect ??

21
Planning ??

• Communicators
• ???
• Technical staff
• ????
• Policy makers
• ?????

Communicators
Technical staff
Policy makers
22
Fujian Province Project on Emergency Risk
Communication Training, Message Testing and
Focus Group Evaluation??????-??????,???????????

• Marsha Vanderford. PhDMelinda Frost, MA, MPHLi
  Richun, MPH
• Please enter the names of MoH Partners

23
Testing and Training of Effective Risk
Communication Principles ?????????????????

• In January 2007 activities in Fujian Province to
  test 2007?1??????????,???
• If training on the risk communication principles
  in the guidelines was effective?
  ???????????????????
• Whether the risk communication principles in the
  guidelines were effective for Chinese public
  audiences. ?????????????????????

24
1 Was training risk communication principles in
the guidelines effective????????????????????

• Did the training enable local health officials to
  write messages that included the risk
  communication principles? ????????????????????????
  ??????
• Message development and risk communication
  training January 22 and 23, 2007
  1?22-23????????????
• 19 Sanming City and Zhangzhou City officials
  19??????????????
• Hospital administrators ?????
• Local Health Emergency Response Office (HERO)
  officials ???????
• Local China CDC officials ??CDC????

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1 Was training risk communication principles in
the guidelines effective in helping local health
authorities to better communicate with the public
during an emergency? ?????????????????????????????
??????????

• The health officials participated in a
  hypothetical case study involving a 3 stage
  scenario involving an outbreak of H5N1.
  ?????????????3??????????????????
• After each stage they wrote messages they thought
  would best meet public need for information based
  on the scenario. ?????,??????????????????????????,
  
• Stage 1 a large outbreak of human H5N1 was
  discovered in Indonesia. ??1???????????????
• Stage 2 the outbreak spreads to China, Thailand,
  Malaysia, but not yet to Fujian Province.
  ??2,??????,??,????????????
• At this stage of the scenario it is confirmed
  that the virus is spreading from human to human.
  ???,???????????????
• Stage 3 of the outbreak reaches Fujian Province.
  ??3 ?????????

26
1 Was training risk communication principles in
the guidelines effective in helping local health
authorities to better communicate with the public
during an emergency?

• Following the case study and pre-training message
  writing, health officials participated in
  training on selected risk communication
  principles. ???????????????,????????????????????
• They also received a copy of the draft Guidelines
  on Risk Communication Principles. ?????????????
  ?????
• The health officials were then asked if they
  would change any of their messages based upon
  what they had learned about risk communication
  principles. ??,??????????????????????,????????????
  
• Each group had the opportunity to rewrite their
  messages to reflect risk communication
  principles. ??????????????????????

27
1 Was training risk communication principles in
the guidelines effective? Outcomes
????????????????

• The risk communication training was effective.
  The messages that health officials wrote after
  the training included ??????????????????????

• More examples of risk communication principles
  ???????????? ??

28
1 Was training risk communication principles in
the guidelines effective? Outcomes
????????????????

• The risk communication training was effective.
  The messages that health officials wrote after
  the training included ??????????????????????
• More and different types of principles. The press
  statement, bulletin and daily reports written
  following the training better addressed 3
  psychological needs ?????????????,???????????????
  ???3?????
• Decrease feelings of uncertainty. ??????
• Increase feelings of control. ?????
• Increased trust in health authority. ????????????

29
Outcomes Post-Training Messages Included More
Messages Designed to ???????????????

• Decrease feelings of uncertainty. ??????
• Where the public can go for more information
  ??????????????
• How the virus was transmitted ????????
• What actions the government was taking to control
  the outbreak ??????????????
• What agencies were in charge of activities to
  control the outbreak ??????????
• What the public should expect in days to come
  from health authorities and the outbreak
  ???????????????????/???????

30
Outcomes Post-Training Messages Included More
Messages Designed to???????????????

• Increase feelings of control. ?????
• Prevention steps that the public and communities
  should take to prevent the spread of the disease
  ?????????????
• Steps the health
  authorities were
  taking to prevent the
  spread of the disease
  ?????????

31
Outcomes Post-Training Messages Included More
Messages Designed to???????????????

• Increased trust in health authority. ???????????
• Demonstrating concern for publics worries about
  the outbreak ??????????
• Acknowledging the need for partnership with the
  public to protect peoples health.
  ????????????????????

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2 Would Chinese audiences be more satisfied
with messages that included more risk
communication principles?

• Message Testing January 24-26, 2007
  2007?1?24-26????????
• Hypothetical scenario Human-to-human
  transmission of avian influenza ????????????

• Message development
• based on risk communication principles
  ????????????
• Testing messages with Sanming City and
  Zhanghou residents ??????????????????

33
Were Risk Communication Principles Effective with
Chinese Audiences? ???????????????

• All 6 groups of citizens who participated in
  message testing were more satisfied by messages
  that included more risk communication principles.
  ???????6???????????????????????
• Only 3 votes out of 174 cast by participants
  chose messages with fewer risk
  communication principles
  ????174????3?
  
  ???????????
  ?????

34
What the Public Wants to Know????????

• Topics from US Audiences
• What is the health threat?????????
• How does it harm people????????
• How will I know if Ive been exposed??????????????
  ??????
• Signs and symptoms (long/short term)?????(??/??)
• How can I protect myself/my family??????(????)
• How is it treated????????
• Where can I get more information???????????????

• Feedback from Fujian Province Audiences ???????
• How can I prevent getting the disease?
  ????????????
• How is the disease transmitted?????????
• Is what Im hearing about the disease true?
  ????????????????
• What is the disease? And how serious??????????????
  ?
• What is the government doing to prevent the
  spread of disease? ????????????????????
• Where can we go for more information??????????????
  ??
• Is there a vaccine available? ?????

35
Where are people going for information? ?????????

• Television news ????
• CCTV ???
• Newspapers ??
• Website ??
• Health bureau, News Website, Sina.com,
  Xinhua.com, MSNBC.com, Baidu search engine
  ??????,????,??,???,???
• Local health bureau ????????
• Community residents committee ???
• Telephone line for public inquiries (hotline)
  ??????(??)
• Local health department, national hotline
  ??????,????
• CDC ????
• Local hospital ????
• Emergency Center ????
• Neighbors ??

36
Channels Used by The Public to Seek Emergency
Information ???????????

• Distant threat passive channels ??????????
• TV news, newspaper ????,??
• Threat is close by, but not in our community
  more active information seeking, but impersonal
  channels ??????????????????????
• Internet, Website, Search engines ???(??,????)
• Threat is here pro-active search through
  interpersonal channels ?????????????????????
• Hotlines ??
• Visit local health bureau ???????????
• Call hospital ??????
• Visit or call local community residents center
  and committee ??????????????
• Call CDC ????????

37
Rapid Assessment and application in outbreak
settings ?????????????

• What are the real risks? ?????????
• What are the concerns and perceived risks of the
  community? ?????????????????
• What messages can bridge these two questions?
  ???????????????????

38
Rapid Assessment and application in outbreak
settings?????????????

• Development of standardized risk communication
  tools ?????????????
• Collection of risk data collected from each
  outbreak ?????????????????????
• Database of health messages available
  nation/worldwide ??/?? ??????????
• Rapid development of health materials for
  outbreak purposes ????????????????

39

• Thank you
• ??
• Questions?
• ???