[afro-nets] Avian Influenza Communication

[Jawad Asghar <jawad@alumni.washington.edu>]

Avian Influenza Communication
-----------------------------


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Warren Feek <wfeek@comminit.com>
Date: Apr 7, 2006 1:37 PM
Subject: Avian Influenza Communication
To: jawad@alumni.washington.edu


To: UK people and organisations in The Drum Beat network
From: Warren Feek

Avian Influenza Communication

Many best wishes - given the recent developments re Avian in the
UK I thought I would share again the knowledge below on Avian
Influenza communication. Realise that Avian Influenza is an is-
sue on which there are a range of opinions and analysis.

However, assume, given the news over the weekend, that some of
you may be being consulted and engaged on this issue - and oth-
ers may be reporting on Avian developments. I hope that the
knowledge and ideas below are helpful and supportive. See
http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza.html for a full listing.
We are adding to this knowledge bank on a regular basis.

Plus we are very interested in sharing your knowledge, informa-
tion, reporting and insights on specific Avian Influenza Commu-
nication initiatives, analysis, strategies and ideas. Please
contact Deborah Heimann mailto:dheimann@comminit.com with any
new or additional resources, project summaries, events, etc. re-
lated to Avian Influenza. Many thanks!


AVIAN INFLUENZA COMMUNICATION RESOURCES

1. Global Strategy for the Progressive Control of Highly Patho-
genic Avian Influenza (HPAI)

This report provides approaches and implementation plans for the
global control of avian flu, which will be implemented over 3
time frames: immediate to short (1-3 years), short to medium (4-
6 years) and medium- to long-term (7-10 years). It outlines a
general global response rather than a local one, highlighting
the importance of capacity building, collaboration, and creation
of information systems in times of health emergency.
http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza/st2006/thinking-1540.html


2. WHO Handbook for Journalists: Influenza Pandemic

Produced by the World Health Organization (WHO), this handbook
was created to help demystify the science behind avian and pan-
demic influenza. It's an introduction to everything journalists
need to know about influenza, including about avian influenza
and the potential for a pandemic.
http://www.comminit.com/materials/ma2005/materials-2624.html


3. Situation Updates: Avian Influenza

A collection of web-based resources providing consistently up-
dated information on the spread of Avian Flu (Bird Flu) in both
animals and humans. This listing includes both international and
regional sources.
http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza/avianflu/general-19.html


4. Communication Messages: Avian Influenza: USAID

from the United States Agency for International Development
(USAID) Avian Influenza Program

Key Messages on Prevention and Control of:
* Human-to-Human Transmission
* Animal-to-Human Transmission
* Animal-to-Animal Transmission
http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza/avianflu/general-20.html


5. Influenza Pandemic Risk Assessment and Preparedness in Africa
(2005)

The report states that in Africa, activities that can be under-
taken by individuals and communities to reduce the risk of in-
fection or slow its spread may be the most powerful tools for
reducing morbidity and mortality during a pandemic. Mechanisms
need to be in place to communicate messages to the public via
broadly accessible communication channels and in a culturally-
appropriate language. Mass health promotion campaigns for other
diseases in Africa may serve as models.
http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza/ma2006/materials-2714.html


6. HEART (Hepatitis, AIDS, Research Trust)

A database of research reports, governmental reports, and busi-
ness reports on various aspects of HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis (primar-
ily Hepatitis C), and other infectious diseases such as avian
influenza.
http://www.comminit.com/links/linksngos/links-1778.html


7. Core Communication Messages: Avian Influenza

An outline of communication messages related to the Avian Flu
(Bird Flu) from various international and regional sources.
These have (currently) been organised according to the following
categories: Preventive Messages, No Outbreak; Outbreak Areas;
Poultry Industry; and Veterinarians.
http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza/avianflu/general-18.html


8. WHO Outbreak Communication Guidelines This document was cre-
ated by the World Health Organization (WHO) to identify and dis-
seminate information about best practices for communicating with
the public, often through the mass media, during a disease out-
break. It was developed based on a review of successes and fail-
ures of outbreak communication. It aims to help offer guidance
that will promote the public health goal of rapid outbreak con-
trol with the least possible disruption to society...
http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza/ma2006/materials-
2701.html


9. Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication Course (CERC): By
Leaders For Leaders

This book aims to give leaders tools for speaking to the public,
media, partners and stakeholders during an intense public-safety
emergency, including terrorism. According to the book introduc-
tion, in a crisis the right message at the right time is a 're-
source multiplier' - it helps officials get their job done. Many
of the predictable harmful individual and community behaviours
can be mitigated with effective crisis and emergency risk commu-
nication.
http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza/ma2006/materials-
2700.html


10. Planning Checklists: Avian Influenza

A list of links to planning checklists available from govern-
ments, United Nations agencies and non-governmental organisa-
tions (NGOs) to assist communicators and journalists in address-
ing prevention and outbreak communication.
http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza/avianflu/general-17.html


11. BBC Quick Guide to Bird Flu

Aims to assist media personnel worldwide in reporting on avian
influenza.
http://www.comminit.com/links/linksmedia/links-1733.html


12. Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication as an Integrative
Model

This article, written by Barbara Reynolds and Matthew W. Seeger
and published within the Journal of Health Communication, de-
scribes a model of communication known as crisis and emergency
risk communication (CERC). The model is outlined as a merger of
many traditional notions of health and risk communication with
work in crisis and disaster communication. The specific kinds of
communication activities that, according to the authors, should
be called for at various stages of disaster or crisis develop-
ment are outlined.
http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza/pmodels/planningmodels-115.html


13. Effective Media Communication During Public Health Emergen-
cies

This set of materials produced by the World Health Organization
(WHO) aims to assist officials and others to communicate effec-
tively through the media during emergencies. The handbook de-
scribes a seven-step process to assist officials and others to
communicate effectively through the media during emergencies.
The Field Guide is a shortened version of the Handbook. It high-
lights the practical aspects of the seven-step approach. The
wall chart shows the seven-step approach and aims to provide
easily recalled key information and advice.
http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza/ma2006/materials-2702.html


14. Preparedness & Community Response to Pandemics - On Demand

Offered by the University at Albany School of Public Health's
Center for Public Health Preparedness e-learning Center, this
online introductory course on pandemic influenza aims to help
the learner understand why this virus is capable of producing
worldwide outbreaks. Participants will explore the epidemiology,
historical context, and response efforts related to both sea-
sonal and worldwide influenza outbreaks. The course is intended
for a broad range of public health professionals and community
responders.
http://www.comminit.com/training2005/training2005/trainingonline-84.html


15. Facts & Frequently Asked Questions: Avian Influenza

A list of links to web-based resources of Frequently Asked Ques-
tions, Question and Answer, and Fact Sheets available from gov-
ernments, United Nations agencies and non-governmental organisa-
tions (NGOs) to assist communicators and journalists in address-
ing prevention and outbreak communication.
http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza/avianflu/general-16.html


16. Bird Flu: Communicating the Risk

This article provides discussion and recommendations on how to
communicate to the public the risks posed by the avian influ-
enza, or bird flu. Officials, the authors state, are wary of ei-
ther needlessly sounding the alarm over a risk that may prove to
be inconsequential, or of being accused later of having left the
public unprepared for a disaster. The public should be prepared,
the authors argue: so people will prepare themselves emotionally
and logistically; so people will help their schools, businesses,
hospitals, and other organisations prepare; so people will sup-
port the preparedness efforts of their governments; and because
if and when a pandemic begins, people who have had time to get
used to the idea are likelier to understand their risks, follow
official advice, and take an active role in protecting them-
selves.
http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza/st2005/thinking-1404.html


17. FluWiki

Offered in languages including English, French, Spanish, and
Turkish, this is an interactive weblog/portal designed to help
local communities worldwide to think about, prepare for, and
perhaps cope with a possible avian influenza pandemic.
http://www.comminit.com/links/linksngos/links-1834.html


18. Responding to the Avian Influenza Pandemic Threat: Recom-
mended Strategic Actions

This document sets out activities that can be undertaken by in-
dividual countries, the international community and the World
Health Organisation (WHO) to prepare the world for the next in-
fluenza pandemic and mitigate its impact once an outbreak oc-
curs. The document also describes issues that can guide policy
choices in a situation characterised by both urgency and uncer-
tainty.
http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza/ma2006/materials-2697.html


19. Avian Influenza in Africa: Statement by the Director-General
of WHO: Excerpts from Press Release

This press release issued by the World Health Organization (WHO)
following the confirmation of the of H5N1 avian influenza (avian
flu or bird flu) having been found in Nigeria states that this
first reported incidence on the African continent is a cause for
great concern. It explains that that the "single most important
public health priority at this stage is to warn people about the
dangers of close contact with sick or dead birds infected with
H5N1." The press release points to the experience in Asian coun-
tries and most recently in Turkey, as examples of the fact that
immediate, clear public information is critical to help protect
human health.
http://www.comminit.com/strategicthinking/st2006/thinking-1570.html

***

Avian Influenza
See http://www.comminit.com/avianinfluenza.html

***

 From The Communication Initiative... global forces... local
choices... critical voices... telling stories...

Partners: ANDI, BBC World Service Trust, Bernard van Leer Foun-
dation, Calandria, CFSC Consortium, The Change Project, CIDA,
DFID, FAO, Fundacion Nuevo Periodismo, Ford Foundation, Health-
link Worldwide, Inter-American Development Bank, Johns Hopkins
Bloomberg School of Public Health Center for Communication Pro-
grams, MISA, OneWorld, PAHO, The Panos Institute, The Rockefel-
ler Foundation, SAfAIDS, Sesame Workshop, Soul City, UNAIDS,
UNDP, UNICEF, USAID, WHO, W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

Website: http://www.comminit.com

***
Warren Feek
Executive Director
The Communication Initiative
mailto:wfeek@comminit.com
http://www.comminit.com

+1-250-658-6372 [ph]
+1-250-658-1728 [fx]
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--
Rana Jawad Asghar MD. MPH.
Coordinator South Asian Public Health Forum
mailto:jawad@alumni.washington.edu
http://www.DrJawad.com
Typhoid Net http://www.typhoid.net