Two resources worth sharing about health risks communications.
- What makes for good crisis communication?
In a 15-min format interview at "Corona nachgehakt", Professor Constanze Rossmann, expert of health communication at the University of Erfurt, offers a clear summary and an accurate assessment of crisis communication in Germany from the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic until mid-March 2021.
You can watch the entire interview in German (subtitles and youtube open-transcription -to read or translate– are available)
Here are some key takeaways.
Good crisis communication key elements:
- Crisis communication should be clear, simple and react quickly
- It reassures by saying what the government can do to help and what citizens can do to protect themselves
- It should be consistent, understandable but also disclose uncertainties if there are any. The scientific evidence situation of Covid-19 is still uncertain, and messages change due to changes of evidences: this must be disclosed to avoid losing trust
- It should also disclose when something has not gone so well, if there are explanations for it and apologise
- To reach everyone, it should create even better target group-specific measures based on different risks
Professor Constanze Rossmann teaches at Master of Health science communications.
- Soft skills in healthcare
City Centric is a podcast series from the Centric Lab, a neuroscience research lab working at the intersection of health, climate changes, and cities. In a 3-part mini-series, they talk with three brilliant medical students from University College London, Selina Aziz, Meryam Benaichouche, Manasvini Moni, on Covid-19, informed consent and the vaccine process.
The first episode breaks down how vaccines work, explains the technological difference between mRNA and live vaccines, and reasons why you see a particular type of side effect with one and not with the other kind of vaccine.
Here are some key points of the conversation, highlighting the importance of truthful and transparent communication:
- The virus continues to evolve, and there's a lot that is still unknown about how it operates
- Science isn't some bible that's written, and once it's written, you cannot touch it; it is an iterative process, and people are just finding out about new technologies, new methods and new properties of the virus every day
- Side effects are a part of any medical innovation conducted, but that doesn't mean that you have to pretend that these side effects are not happening
- There isn't so much information and evidence to give people a satisfactory explanation at this point. But people shouldn't feel pressured if they are hesitant. Questioning the vaccine does not make them anti-Vax, or less intelligent. It is essential to report any development to people in a transparent and accurate so they can be in control of their decisions.
Published by Daniela on Sun Jul 04 2021