Thank you for the conversationI want to thank the Secretary, the Department and staff for taking the initiative to reach out to the public in this way. Blogs have a tendency to encourage informal two-way conversations, which can sometimes pose a challenge to those used to polished, one-way institutional communication. And this is a good thing! Ultimately people want to feel that they are being treated like real human beings, not just faceless citizens to whom government messages can be broadcast. We want to feel like we know our leaders, that they know us, and we want to be treated with respect. We want to be trusted with truthful information so that we can make the best decisions for ourselves, our families, and our communities. I hope the Department looks at this experiment not only as a new way to communicate with the public, but also as a way to enable real conversations with real people. The threat we face from pandemic flu is real, and I believe the best preparedness will come out of two-way conversations, not just one-way communication, when people are armed with complete and honest information. And also a big thank you to all the people who took the time to read the posts and to add their comments. Your participation made this experiment a real conversation, and I think sent a clear message that given the right information and support, private citizens are ready to take a primary role in preparing for a pandemic.
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Week 5: Making it Happen
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Making it happen for all AmericansI’d like to refer back to HHS’s stated goal on pandemic preparedness: “to help as many Americans as possible to understand that the threat of a pandemic influenza is real and to actively engage in personal preparedness.” That’s an appropriate goal and this blog and the summit have been an innovative approach. My sincere thanks to Secretary Leavitt, Admiral Agwunobi and their team at HHS for organizing this effort, and for the many partners who have contributed posts and comments. We’ve covered a lot of ground. But before this summit concludes, I want to underscore the importance of making sure we include all Americans in our planning and outreach in order to “help as many Americans as possible.” We may be too quick to dismiss the most vulnerable among us: “They’re unreachable, or they’re too difficult to identify, engage or motivate. They don’t have the resources.” This sets us up to fail. Vulnerable populations are woven into the fabric of the community, and we can’t expect to fully engage and strengthen a community in pandemic preparedness without reaching across all its threads. HHS’s “symphony” approach that Stephanie Marshall refers to http://blog.pandemicflu.gov/?p=70 is on target, and among the critical orchestral sections are our nontraditional partners — churches, schools and PTAs, community organizations and soup kitchens — along with health departments. These institutions know the community perhaps best, understand the unique challenges each community faces and already have programs in place working with those who are most vulnerable. From my own experience working with state and local health departments, these agencies have existing, robust programs in the communities — chronic disease programs, HIV outreach, maternal and child health programs — on which we can piggyback. Low-income mothers and children coming in for nutrition education through the WIC program can be referred to a preparedness class. Seniors being screened for high blood pressure or prostate or colon cancer can be handed culturally appropriate preparedness brochures. Parents bringing their infants in for newborn immunizations or adults getting their seasonal flu shots can also learn about the importance of preparing for pandemic flu. There may be jurisdictional hurdles to overcome, but HHS and state http://www.astho.org/ and local http://www.naccho.org/ health officials are well placed to identify solutions. My point is, we already know who these people are and in many instances, we’re already reaching them through existing programs. We can expand our impact in the community by buttressing these existing programs and including pandemic preparedness as a key component. It is doable. Some infrastructure is already in place and, most importantly, there’s already a great deal of interaction and trust.Again, I thank HHS for their leadership and for organizing this summit, and I encourage all of us in our efforts to ensure that all Americans are prepared.
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Where Do We Go From Here?As the HHS blog winds down, I will use my last entry here to lay out some ideas for what a comprehensive pandemic flu communications campaign might look like. The plan must address the various layers of interaction: HHS to individuals, HHS to intermediaries who then reach their constituents, and individuals to individuals. The first — and most obvious — piece that needs to be put in place is a media campaign. The message should probably be an “official” announcement from the CDC or the Surgeon General that makes it clear that pandemic flu is something to worry about, with clear steps that individuals can take to be prepared. This official imprimature needs to be done using a serious tone, combining facts while tapping into the deep-seated values that will get people to take action. The campaign should be customized for various ethnic and language-based groups to ensure that the message is understood by all. In addition to television, radio and print ads, news and entertainment programs, the campaign should include social media outlets as well — creating an ongoing “soap opera” portraying what could happen when a pandemic hits with 3-minute serialized spots on YouTube; a pandemic preparedness blog that provides a more conversational and informal, yet official, source of information and news; targeted websites in addition to the pandemicflu.gov site that tie into the media campaign; and a social networking site that helps people find others in their city or county who want to collaborate on getting their community prepared. This type of campaign will cost millions of dollars, but cannot be skimped on if HHS is serious about this issue. The second piece — reaching the intermediaries — is what HHS has been focusing on with its Leadership Forum and the toolkits designed for various industry and public sectors. As the word about preparing for pandemic flu comes down from the leaders of each field, professionals will be more likely to accept the new industry standards. Pediatricians may not be comfortable talking with their patients about pandemic flu until the American Academy of Pediatrics has recommended such a discussion. Companies may not think they need to make preparations for keeping their businesses running with a substantial percentage of their workforce absent until they see that other large, well-regarded companies are taking this possibility seriously. The easier HHS can make it for the information to be passed along and acted upon, the better. This can also be facilitated by building partnerships with businesses like supermarket chains and home improvement stores, who can help get the word out about suggested supply lists with prepackaged kits or sales on key components of a preparedness stockpile. The third key component of the campaign should facilitate the dissemination of information between individuals. To help empower and harness the energy of the many well-informed citizens who are already working to prepare their family, friends and communities, HHS should create something like a “Citizen Pandemic Preparedness Corps.” Centered around a website and the social network described above, the Corps would have its own online toolkit with a PowerPoint slideshow and presentation script, camera-ready handouts, a speaker’s bureau list, sample letters to the editor and other materials. The website could also provide an online location for people to meet virtually and tools to enable communities to schedule in-person “meet-ups.” Corps members could easily invite their colleagues, community members, friends and family to learn more online and have them then spread the word to their own extended social networks. The exact content and recommendations that would be included in the messages would need to be determined by HHS, but it should be informed by considering the expertise and concerns of those who have posted many comments here on this blog. HHS, I’m sure, has its own experts on pandemic flu, but they would be well-advised to tap into the vast extended knowledge found in flublogia, whether in a formal or informal way. I think this blog has served an important purpose as an introduction between HHS and individuals who have already been working to address pandemic flu on their own. This is the beginning of the conversation. Don’t let it be the end.
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A way to engage everyone…At the end of the HHS Summit last week in DC, a reporter asked, “besides feeling good that this group gathered, what results will we see from this meeting? “ Actually, I think there will be some concrete results (and I will speculate about them later), but I have been pondering this query on several levels. The implication seemed to be that gathering a group of high-level leaders to talk about the possibility of a flu pandemic was simply talk. In our test-taking, measurement-oriented American society, conversation or significant discourse is viewed by many to be a waste of time without outcomes. I know that I come from a different era than many of the people attending the summit, but I believe that engaging in focused discussion with other persons can significantly change hearts and minds. Margaret Wheatley, writer and organizational consultant, has said that “in these troubled, uncertain times, we don’t need more command and control; we need better means to engage everyone’s intelligence in solving challenges and crises as they arise.” Secondly, it has struck me that Secretary Leavitt, and the department of HHS has taken a risk in the very process of inviting commentary, feedback, criticism and participation regarding the topic of pandemic flu. One of the limitations of traditional media is that it is so passive. One can sit back on one’s couch and read or watch or listen and absorb what another person thinks or wants you to think. A blog demands that one consider one’s own convictions, opinions, etc. At its best, it can stimulate critical thinking. Thirdly, the Summit drew together leaders, leaders from various professions, backgrounds and walks of life. It was not necessarily an assembly of like-minded individuals prepared to do group-speak. The lectures and discussions evoked learning, reflection and mutual challenges, as well as provided a forum for necessary networking. Martin Luther King, Jr. asserted, “we must learn to live together as brothers (and sisters) or perish together as fools.” Such a summit is an excellent vehicle to stimulate dialogue and generate commitment from community leaders. It is a start in the long and challenging process of promoting public awareness of and commitment to the health of individuals and our society. There are and will be concrete results flowing from last week’s meeting. Among these are: I applaud Secretary Leavitt and Admiral Agwunobi for taking the risk to educate the public through this blog, and to challenge a variety of leaders to carry forth their message of preparedness. Although I realize that my sphere of influence may seem small, I now have a clearer insight into the ways that I can galvinize Catholic health care (and other Catholic ministries) for the challenge of a pandemic. Leaders throughout Catholic health care are expressing great interest in this topic and many are developing plans to respond to a pandemic within their facilities and communities
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Making it HappenMaking it happen. Now, there’s a concept we can agree on. So, let me give a hat tip to the two previous posts from Mike Coston (Breaking The Barriers) and Admiral John Agwunobi (Ideas Are Welcome). Mike talks about the need to tackle the pandemic severity threat head on, while Dr. Agwunobi shows a notable willingness to listen and learn (and for the sake of this discussion, let’s assume that’s official HHS policy). Combining those things would, indeed, be a “best practice” way to make it happen. There are HHS tool kits in development, a focus of the DC summit. We’ve not seen them, and the plan is for deliverables this summer and roll-out in fall (see Stephanie Marshall’s presentation): Overall HHS Communications Objectives:
I like the “many voices, one message” approach because it will take those many voices to reach everyone, and starting to reach out should not wait until summer or fall. HHS can surely help with the toolkits that are envisioned. But tools exist right now that can help further the message. For example, a group of concerned experts have put together a downloadable .pdf entitled Influenza Pandemic Preparation and Response - A Citizen’s Guide. With a superb foreword by David Heymann (WHO), this guide is free for the taking and would make a great handout at small meetings, or an email link to send, or as an authoritative source of pandemic information in any setting (more details here):
In addition to toolkits from American Red Cross, Santa Barbara has put together an automated slide show (with narration), which could be used in a local presentation by anyone, and Larimar County CO also has an excellent teaching slide show called Pandemics Happen. Folks online have for some time been trading presentations like this to help ourselves teach our communities. Want more slides? You can build a nice compliment to Secretary Leavitt’s 50 state historical round-up by using some of the quotes from this blog:
Are there people willing to go out and do this, to actually go back to their communities and discuss panflu prep? Are there people willing to support HHS and CDC? Sure there are. But it can’t happen without the federal government validating the pandemic threat and the need for preparations (HHS has already validated us, now we need to validate the threat of H5N1 and other flu viruses, as David Heymann does above). No one wants to go out there and have a local health official refuse to attend, or attend and downplay the risk of H5N1 or the need to prepare (and that is an all-too-often occurrence right now, as the online folks can attest to - please hear that, HHS). Public health folk need to consider the public as a full partner; only then can Stephanie’s articulated HHS Communications Objectives goals be met. HHS needs to help us so that we can help HHS by fostering resilient communities, with the authorities backing us up. That’s how we can make it happen, and that’s how we can best prepare for whatever comes. See also The Stuff Solutions Are Made Of.
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