Information Communication Channels Research Articles

Voices from the Workplace: Exploring Communication Practices in an Engineering Firm through an Interview-Based Study

Effective communication is crucial for organizational success. This study explores communication practices within an engineering firm, to understand how communication models impact project dynamics and stakeholder relationships. We adopted a qualitative approach, conducting face-to-face, semi-structured interviews with employees and executives. The firm’s unique approach to construction projects makes it an ideal case study for understanding how communication influences this field. This research aims to unravel the communication culture within the firm, including formal and informal communication channels, and how these practices affect workplace stability and effectiveness using communication models from past researchers, such as Organizational Culture Theory, the Transactional Communication Model, and the Interactive Communication Model. The findings can help reshape communication strategies in construction, fostering better stakeholder relationships and project success. This study contributes to the body of knowledge on communication in engineering workplaces by providing insights into communication practices and their impact on an organization's efficiency and stakeholder dynamics.

Navigating challenges and workarounds: A qualitative study of healthcare and support workers' perceptions on providing care to people seeking sanctuary.

Healthcare and support workers play a pivotal role in delivering quality services and support to people seeking sanctuary who have experienced poor physical and mental health linked to previous trauma, relocation and loss of freedoms. However, they often encounter various challenges in their daily work, ranging from communication barriers to resource constraints. This qualitative study seeks to delve into the perspectives of healthcare and support workers' experience of workarounds, employed to overcome barriers to providing care. This study aims to describe healthcare providers', practitioners' and health and third sector support workers' views on barriers and workarounds to providing care for people seeking sanctuary, to inform policy and practice. A qualitative study was carried out using semi-structured telephone interviews. This study focused on primary, secondary, community and specialist National Health Service (NHS) support services for people seeking sanctuary in Wales, United Kingdom (2018). We interviewed 32 healthcare providers, practitioners and support workers employed by primary care and third sector organisations. Our approach involved obtaining verbal informed consent before digitally recording and transcribing all interviews. To analyse the data, we used the Four Levels of Change for Improving Quality model as a guiding framework for interpretation. Our study findings reveal that certain respondents expressed challenges in meeting the needs of people seeking sanctuary; notably, their experience of delivering care differed by care settings. Specifically, those involved in providing specialist NHS care believed that there was room for improvement. Mainstream primary, secondary and community health practitioners faced limitations due to resource constraints and lacked tailored information to address the unique circumstances and needs of sanctuary seekers. To address these gaps, workarounds emerged at both individual and local levels (team/departmental and organisational level). These included establishing informal communication channels between providers, fostering cross service collaboration to fill gaps and adapting existing services to enhance accessibility. Understanding healthcare providers', practitioners' and support workers' perspectives offers invaluable insights into ways to enhance healthcare delivery to sanctuary seekers. Acknowledging challenges and harnessing innovative workarounds can foster a more effective and compassionate service for this vulnerable population. The HEAR study actively involved public contributors in the design, delivery and dissemination of the research. Two public contributors (S. M. and G. R.) who had personal experience of seeking asylum served as study co-applicants. They played pivotal roles in shaping the research by participating in its development and securing funding. Alongside other co-applicants, S. M. and G. R. formed the Research Management Group, overseeing study delivery. Their contributions extended to strategic decision-making and specific feedback at critical junctures, including participant recruitment, data collection, analysis and reporting. Additionally, S. M. and G. R. were instrumental in recruiting and supporting a team of peer researchers, enhancing respondent participation among people seeking sanctuary. To facilitate effective public involvement, we provided named contacts for support (A. K. and R. F.), research training, honoraria, reimbursement of expenses and accessible information in line with best practice.

Trends in the Development of the Public Administration System

The paper considers specifics of narrow and broad approaches to public administration that existed in the USSR and the Russian Federation, as well as the modern concept of public administration related to the exercise of public power. The causes and periods of the emergence of these concepts are determined. Since public power unites state bodies and local self-government bodies, it is proposed to understand the term «public administration» integrally — as joint, coordinated managerial actions of state and municipal bodies. It is argued that, despite the differences in these concepts, the directions of development of the public administration system are determined by the same trends. Based on the analysis of the mechanism of development of this system, three similar trends are identified. It is shown that the first trend causes a permanent increase in the number of governing bodies (subjects) included in the public administration system. It is determined that at the same time, information communications in the public administration system are growing. Given this circumstance, it is concluded that the second trend in the development of the system is the complication of the architectonics of information communication channels during the transition from one system of public administration to the next generation system, which makes it possible to increase the efficiency of management in new socio-economic conditions. It is argued that public administration is carried out through the simultaneous implementation of different management approaches, in particular, centralization and decentralization of management, the use of cybernetic and synergetic tools. In this regard, the third trend in the development of the system under consideration is the transition to a new ideology of convergence of various management mechanisms.

Deinstitutionalized Careers: Intersectionality of Gender Pay Gap among Women Knowledge Workers

The purpose of this study is to explore women knowledge workers’ experiences of the intersectionality of the gender pay gap and to scrutinize the reasons behind gender pay gap. The study problematizes the gender pay gap phenomenon by using intersectionality theory. The study describes how the gender pay gap varies based on ethnical differences besides being women and reveals how this situation deinstitutionalizes women’s careers. The study utilized a descriptive qualitative research design employing thematic analysis conducted in Germany and Türkiye with a purposively selected sample of participants. The study’s empirical material was generated through semi-structured interviews with women knowledge workers who differ in ethnicity and generally work in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. The study’s findings indicated that ethnicity should be considered among other intersectional factors to analyze the gender pay gap comprehensively. The reasons behind the gender pay gap are found to be the lack of transparency in the workplace, gender-based occupational segregation, culture, the glass ceiling, the existence of male-dominated informal communication channels, and the fact that women workers are more easily preferred in organizational downsizing initiatives.

Why Talking Is Not Cheap: Adverse Events and Informal Communication.

Healthcare management faces significant challenges related to upward communication. Sharing information in healthcare is crucial to the improvement of person-centered, safe, and effective patient care. An adverse event (AE) is an unintended or unexpected incident that causes harm to a patient and may lead to temporary or permanent disability. Learning from adverse events in healthcare is crucial to the improvement of patient safety and quality of care. Informal communication channels represent an untapped resource with regard to gathering data about the development of AEs. In this viewpoint paper, we start by identifying how informal communication played a key factor in some high-profile adverse events. Then, we present three Critical Challenge points that examine the role of informal communication in adverse events by (1) understanding how the prevailing trends in healthcare will make informal communication more important, (2) explaining how informal communication is part of the group-level sensemaking process, and (3) highlighting the potential role of informal communication in "breaking the silence" around critical and adverse events. Gossip, as one of the most important sources of informal communication, was examined in depth. Delineating the role of informal communication and adverse events within the healthcare context is pivotal to understanding and improving team and upward communication in healthcare organizations. For clinical leaders, the challenge is to cultivate a climate of communication safety, whereby informal communication channels can be used to collect soft intelligence that are paths to improving the quality of care and patient safety.

The Importance of the Structure of Federal Executive Authorities in Public Administration

The paper shows that the current system of federal executive authorities, being an abstract category, is implemented only through the functioning of a specific structure of these bodies. As a set of real subjects, this structure materializes the management strategy embedded in the system of federal executive authorities, which, however, does not arise chaotically, but is formed in the process of development of the system of bodies and their corresponding structure. The paper examines the dynamics of the system and structure of the central executive bodies in the USSR and federal executive authorities in the Russian Federation. The author has analyzed the advantages and disadvantages of corresponding systems and structures that existed in post-Soviet Russia before 2004, as well as structures functioning currently. The information problems of the modern model of federal executive bodies, types and features of communication channels peculiar to the system under consideration have been analyzed. It is argued that the nature of information links between the elements of the system structure determines the degree of stability of the structure itself and, as a result, the entire mechanism of public administration, i.e., the probability of their preservation or destruction. It is concluded that the importance of the structure of federal executive authorities is explained not only in optimizing management activities, but also in forming such a configuration of information communication channels in a specific system of executive bodies that stabilizes the functioning of the entire mechanism of public administration.

Collaborative Governance in Countering Drug Control in Makassar City

This study seeks to determine how collaborative governance has been implemented in Makassar City’s drug prevention efforts. This study employs a qualitative, descriptive methodology. Observation, interviews, and documentation are methods for collecting data. In Yin’s case study pattern matching model, the data analysis technique is used. The results demonstrated leadership facilitation, with each collaborating actor demonstrating a dependable capacity for activity implementation and problem-solving. Each organization has a decision-maker and policy-maker in charge. In institutional institutions, the division of roles and responsibilities is specified in the Cooperation Agreement. In the process of collaboration, formal and informal communication channels are established to foster mutual trust, and each party’s Cooperation Agreement guides the implementation of collaboration. The true outcome of collaborative action is the achievement of the program goals of each government agency, the community, and the private sector, as well as reducing drug use in Makassar City. The outcomes indicated that Anshel and Gash’s Collaborative Government model was suitable for the drug prevention program in Makassar City. In institutional institutions, Anshel and Gash’s CG mode necessitates the creation of a more detailed Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) because the rules in collaboration only refer to the Cooperation Agreement.
 Keywords: collaborative governance, drug control, collaboration actors

Unlocking the Perceptions of Fishing Communities for a Credible and Effective Weather Forecasting and Early-Warning System in Zanzibar, Tanzania

Small-scale fishers are highly vulnerable to the impacts of weather conditions and climate variability, which can significantly affect their livelihoods and safety at sea. This study assessed the small-scale fishers' access and usage of weather forecasts and early warning systems in Zanzibar. It did so by examining the fishing communities' perceptions of the matter and patterns of utilisation of the weather information. It investigated the sources and accessibility of weather forecasts and early warning systems to the fishers. It utilised a descriptive and observational design using qualitative approaches. Data were collected through structured interviews, observation, and focus group discussions with samples of small-scale fishers in six villages in Unguja and Pemba in Zanzibar. The findings show that small-scale fishers in Zanzibar face significant challenges accessing reliable and timely conventional weather forecasts and early warning information. Limited access to communication technologies, including television and smartphones, emerged as a significant barrier. In addition, the utility of modern meteorological information and early warning systems is limited by their perceived unreliability to fishing communities. The fishing communities extensively use traditional weather forecasting methods informed by generations of tradition. Using informal communication channels and telephony services, local communities integrate conventional weather information served through short messaging services with traditional weather prediction systems. The integration provides credible results shared across the communities for collective decision-making on safer fishing practices. These findings are important for Zanzibar's policymakers, fisheries management agencies, and climate service providers. There is a need for the Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar and other stakeholders to deliberate and improve communities' access to reliable weather forecasts and early warning systems for their resilience and sustainable fishing practices. It is also important for the government and other stakeholders to promote integrating indigenous knowledge with scientific forecasting methods for a comprehensive and contextually relevant information framework for small-scale fishers and other consumers.

Doing Meso-Level Integration: The cultural, relational, and communications practices that draw primary care closer to the broader system.

Introduction: In alignment with the conference’s first theme, this paper draws on qualitative research to address issues of change management implementation at the meso-level in integration. It uses a case study of integration efforts as they played out during the first wave of the COVID-19 Omicron variant in Alberta, Canada to identify practical ways of doing organization-to-organization integration in Primary Care (PC).
 Background: While the existing literature describes three high-level approaches to enabling the integration of health and social systems in a range of contexts, it is unclear how stakeholders in PC and health system organizations might practically operationalize these approaches. How, specifically, should those stakeholders go about: enacting a pro-integration culture; doing the relationship work required for integration; and communicating to support integration? Put differently, what are the practical change management behaviours that give life to these three key approaches and make integration real?
 Approach: A subset of semi-structured interviews with key informant stakeholders was drawn from a larger study of policy and change management implementation under pandemic conditions in Alberta, Canada. Participants in these interviews were directly involved in efforts to integrate PC into the province’s health system response to COVID-19 generally, and specifically into the response to the Omicron wave. The 10 interviews averaged 65 minutes in length and included key informants from both independent PC and central health system organizations. The Interpretive Description technique was used to analyze the interview transcripts and so identify practical enactments of pro-integration culture, relationship work for integration, and integration-supportive communication.
 Results: Key ways of enacting a pro-integration culture included: sending signals with staffing choices; making personal expressions of commitment to the values of integration; and ensuring communal commitments to those same values. Doing integration relationships involved: following through on rhetorical commitments; and persevering at proving oneself in the eyes of counterparts from other organizations. Finally, communicating in ways that supported integration involved: bidirectional communication that included listening as well as talking; the elimination of intermediaries to close the social and knowledge distance between PC and health system stakeholders; and actuating a mix of formal and informal communication channels rather than relying on purely formal committee work or informal contacts.
 
 Conclusions: Practical steps towards achieving meso-level organization involve making high-level approaches to culture, relationships, and communication real in everyday behaviour. Efforts to integrate PC into a broader pandemic response in Alberta Canada provide a window on these specific change management implementation behaviours and so how to ‘do’ integration. Doing pro-integration culture involves sending signals through staffing choices, personal, and group commitments. Doing integration relationships involves following through on commitments and persevering. Doing integration communications involves listening as well as talking, closing the distance between stakeholders, and taking advantage of formal and informal channels. Stakeholders seeking to integrate at the meso-level may wish to consider these practical action

Facilitators and barriers to communication in rehabilitation services across healthcare levels: a qualitative case study in a Norwegian context

BackgroundPeople with problems in functioning following severe injury or illness often need multiple and combined interventions in their rehabilitation processes. In these processes, communication and collaboration between the involved healthcare professionals are essential. Despite efforts in research and policy, communication across hospital and primary healthcare services and within the primary healthcare settings remains challenging. In one region of Norway, a new intermunicipal rehabilitation team has been established to supplement the traditional services and context-bound research is needed to gain insight into the complexity of the new communication structures that are developing. The aim of this study was to explore facilitators and barriers to communication to inform further improvement of the services.MethodsA qualitative case study design was used to explore the exchange of patient information in the rehabilitation processes of four patients. Data collection included participant observations in communication situations and an exploration of the electronic patient records of these four patients. Reflexive thematic analysis was used to analyse the empirical data.ResultsThe complex rehabilitation processes explored involved a large number of actors across healthcare organisational levels. Lacking a common culture for rehabilitation, poor access to written information and unclear responsibility for sharing information across organisational boundaries seemed to represent barriers to interprofessional communication. Joint meetings, the use of common rehabilitation tools and language and establishing informal communication channels served to facilitate communication.ConclusionThe intermunicipal team collaborating across different organisational levels added complexity to communication structures, but also facilitated interprofessional communication by promoting formal and informal ways of exchanging information. However, the intricate organisational divisions of healthcare provision in the Norwegian context represent boundaries which can be difficult to overcome. Therefore, cross-organisational coordination services should be developed.

Influence of Socio-economic Factors on the Use of Information Dissemination Channels among Groundnut Farmers in Northwest Nigeria

The study assessed the influence of socio-economic factors in the use of information dissemination channels among groundnut farmers in Northwest Nigeria. The research used primary data collected from 349 smallholder groundnut growers. Chi-squared was used in data analysis. The results indicated that farmers’ place of residence (X2 =169.417, df=15) and sex (X2 =14.049, df=5) had a significant association with the farm visit extension pieces of advice. Also, significant associations were found between respondents’ place of residence (X2 = 169.417, df=15), sex (X2 =14.049, df=5) and income (X2 = 30.956, df= 15) with the use of radio. Furthermore, significant associations were found between respondents’ place of residence (X2 =103.417, df=15), sex (X2 =13.777, df=5) and income (X2 =22.973, df= 15) with the use of mobile phones. The article concludes that farmers’ place of residence, sex and income have a significant effect on their preference to the use of extension visits, radio and mobile phone technology transfer mechanisms in the study areas. It is recommended for constant training and retraining of extension workers to enhance their information delivery skills. Also, government and other stakeholders should give financial and logistic support to the extension workers to make use of diversified information communication channels.

Maize farmers’ use, preference, and trustworthiness of information sources and communication channels in Dormaa, Ghana: A gender comparison.

Maize farmers’ use, preference, and trustworthiness of information sources and communication channels in Dormaa, Ghana: A gender comparison.

FEATURE SUPPLICATION AND CLASSIFICATION MARITIME UNMANNED SURFACE VESSELS IN UKRAINE NAVAL FORCES

The work examines the relevance of the issue of the comprehensive development of the class of unmanned surface vehicles for the implementation of civil and military tasks at sea. The list of tasks that can be most successfully solved using unmanned surface vehicles has been determined. The most typical and relevant tasks at sea are various monitoring activities, search operations in accident areas, support of industrial activities, compilation and refinement of models of the sea floor relief, coastline, and so on. The circle of relevant military tasks has also been outlined, namely reconnaissance, damage to the enemy, protection of coastal areas, setup of mines, mine countermeasures, delivery of personnel and cargo to designated areas, and so on. An analysis of the characteristics of existing unmanned surface vehicles of the leading countries of the world has been conducted, as well as the possibilities of their application for the performance of a wide range of civil tasks at sea and features of their use as vehicles for carrying out military missions. It has been determined that in the process of further development, the main priorities are seen as increasing autonomy, equipping unmanned surface vehicles with modular executive systems, introducing artificial intelligence for direct control of unmanned vehicles and weapons, increasing the system's survivability, improving the technical characteristics of communication channels for information and task exchange. Currently, the most relevant channel for control is considered to be the satellite communication channel, as it is distance-independent, resistant to jamming and interception, and does not require significant energy consumption. Proposals have been made regarding the distribution of unmanned surface vehicles into classes, namely small, medium, and large, which cover all existing types of unmanned surface vehicles. The main terms and definitions of unmanned surface vehicles that are using in NATO countries have also been analyzed, and the main terms and definitions in this direction have been proposed. The purpose of the article is to make proposals for the development of unmanned surface vehicles and to identify promising areas for their use in solving various tasks at sea.

Overview of Tensor-Based Cooperative MIMO Communication Systems-Part 1: Tensor Modeling.

Due to increasingly strong and varied performance requirements, cooperative wireless communication systems today occupy a prominent place in both academic research and industrial development. The technological and economic challenges for future sixth-generation (6G) wireless systems are considerable, with the objectives of improving coverage, data rate, latency, reliability, mobile connectivity and energy efficiency. Over the past decade, new technologies have emerged, such as massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) relay systems, intelligent reflecting surfaces (IRS), unmanned aerial vehicular (UAV)-assisted communications, dual-polarized (DP) antenna arrays, three dimensional (3D) polarized channel modeling, and millimeter-wave (mmW) communication. The objective of this paper is to provide an overview of tensor-based MIMO cooperative communication systems. Indeed, during the last two decades, tensors have been the subject of many applications in signal processing, especially for digital communications, and more broadly for big data processing. After a brief reminder of basic tensor operations and decompositions, we present the main characteristics allowing to classify cooperative systems, illustrated by means of different architectures. A review of main codings used for cooperative systems is provided before a didactic and comprehensive presentation of two-hop systems, highlighting different tensor models. In a companion paper currently in preparation, we will show how these tensor models can be exploited to develop semi-blind receivers to jointly estimate transmitted information symbols and communication channels.

The nexus between institutional framework and employee performance in Tanzania’s maritime sector

Employee performance has been a critical theme which has received global attention in the mainstream literature of public sector governance. In developing countries, the need for employee performance is backed up by public dismay on declining public sector performance. Some of the causes attributed to low performance are the meagre resources allocated to the public sector and the existing formal rules and regulations which mould the behaviour of employees. So far, the existing informal social rules which also regulate the behaviour of employees have received little attention. This article is therefore set to explore the relationship between the formal institutional framework, the informal social rules and the availability of resources on one hand, and employee performance within Tanzania's maritime sector on the other. Accordingly, the study adopted a mixed approach with a case study of the Tanzania Port Authority in Dar es Salaam. To this end, a stratified simple random sampling technique was used to get a sample of 318 respondents for a questionnaire and a purposeful sampling technique was used to get a sample of 30 respondents for in-depth interviews. Quantitative data were analysed through descriptive statistics of employee performance variables and interviews were analysed through a thematic approach to get in-depth information concerning the influence of formal and informal institutions and resources on employee performance. The study found that employees’ performance behaviour at Dar es Salaam port authority is regulated by formal system such as the Open Performance Review and Appraisal System and informal channels of communication. The formal rules define the targets to be reached by each employee but the informal social rules and the resources provide the conditions to achieve the predetermined target. Points for practitioners Public managers should be aware that employee performance in the public sector is a function not only of formal rules and regulations in place but also of the availability of resources and the informal social rules which set the conditions and influence the way public officials perform their daily duties and responsibilities in the public office.

Provisional by design. Frontex data infrastructures and the Europeanization of migration and border control

ABSTRACT Data infrastructures for the Frontex joint operations are often only temporary and thus in need of being built up and removed easily, adjustable to changing constellations of security actors, and adaptable to new situations. They need to work through flaws, gaps, and inconsistencies. Still, they fabricate data used for the re-identification of migrants, police investigations, situational pictures, or risk analysis and lead to the intensification of security practices of Frontex. This is accomplished by data infrastructures that are provisional by design. People and forms are used as provisional gateway to interconnect various installed bases of national police and coast guard authorities, informal communication channels and ‘other’ entry fields proliferate around partially standardized classification systems, and ongoing coordination and repair tame and validate the proliferation of data. With this, the data infrastructure of joint border operations hints to a mode of Europeanization that is neither supranational nor intergovernmental. Instead of centralized administrations or fully integrated information systems, it aims for partial harmonization through interconnecting loosely information systems and institutional ecologies of national and EU agencies alike. This causes issues of accountability and requires an analysis that takes the mundane socio-technical conditions of knowledge production into account.

Communication and engagement of community members from ethnic minorities during COVID-19: a scoping review

ObjectivesThis review examined the factors influencing communication and engagement with ethnic and racial minority groups in Australia during the COVID-19 pandemic. It aimed to answer two main questions: (1) what...

The purpose of whisper networks: a new lens for studying informal communication channels in organizations

IntroductionThis paper explores whisper networks, which are informal communication networks women use to share information about sexual harassment and sexual harassers in the workplace. Women use whisper networks to share information about people known for sexual harassment or assault. This study offers an innovative approach to studying the nuances and dynamics of sexual harassment and communication in the workplace by focusing on women's experiences in whisper networks.MethodsTo examine these back-channels, I conducted 20 semi-structured interviews with participants who participated in whisper networks in their organizations. Using grounded theory, I established three emergent theories about the purposes whisper networks serve in organizations.ResultsWhisper networks (1) serve as protection in organizational cultures of harassment and (2) help women make sense of their harassment experience through sensemaking. Whisper networks also serve the purpose of (3) identifying harassers because harassers are not readily apparent when entering a new work situation.DiscussionThese findings establish a baseline of theories to explain whisper networks' purposes and offer theoretical and practical implications for future research on sexual harassment, whisper networks, and informal communication networks.

“A balancing act of keeping the faith and maintaining wellbeing”: perspectives from Australian faith communities during the pandemic

PurposeThe pandemic presented many new challenges is all spheres of life including faith communities. Around the globe, lockdowns took pace at various stages with varying restrictions that included the closure of places of worship which significantly affected the way people serve God and gather as a community. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the wellbeing and resilience of members of Christian faith communities in Melbourne (Australia) who had experienced one of the longest lockdowns in the world.Design/methodology/approachThe authors draw on online survey N = 106 collected between November 2021 and May 2021. Participants were over the age of 18 from Catholic, Anglican, Uniting Church, Baptist and Pentecostal/Evangelical faith communities. They employ thematic analysis to analyze, and code open-ended responses from four questions in relation to the research question: In what ways has your wellbeing been impacted during the pandemic?FindingsMelbourne experienced one of the longest lockdown periods in the world between 2020 and 2021 when blended modes of worship forced people to congregate in new and different ways. The empirical insights of participants express their views in relation to celebrating faith and hope, connecting with community, pursuing leisure activities and pursuing leisure in relation to the PERMA model of wellbeing. The findings may resonate with other faith communities in Melbourne and around the globe. They may also lead to new and innovative ways of planning and envisioning modes of worship that may be helpful in a variety of faith contexts.Research limitations/implicationsThe research was limited by its sample size (N = 106) and its geographical restriction of Christian faith communities in the Melbourne metropolitan area. This means that broad generalizations cannot be made. Nevertheless, the findings may resonate with other faith communities in Australian and in other parts of the world.Practical implicationsIn highlighting the impact COVID-19 had in Australia and ways people balanced their sense of faith and wellbeing, this study raises concerns about the lack of funding that supports mental health initiatives in faith settings and the wider community. The study recommends that faith community leaders and members use informal communication channels to foster hope building wellbeing and resilience, and that pastoral care networks be established in the wider community to promote leisure activities that nurtures social connection, builds faith and resilience.Social implicationsWhilst the pandemic has provided new openings for members of faith communities to engage with God, the scriptures, each other and leisure, it remains “a balancing act of keeping the faith and maintaining wellbeing”. Such a balancing act may positively enliven a sense of wellbeing and resilience as people continue to navigate the uncertainty inherent in a milieu beginning to be named as “post-Covid”.Originality/valueThis is an original work carried out by the authors. It raises concerns about the lack of funding that supports mental health initiatives in faith settings and the wider community. While much research, news and social media discussed the pandemic's impact on communities, there is an urgent need for ongoing research that encourages, supports and connects people to faith and to leisure activities in order to promote a continued sense of wellbeing as communities begin to transition to a “post-Covid” world. This study contributes to the growing body of knowledge about the impact COVID-19 had in Australia and ways people balanced their sense of faith and wellbeing.

Exploring communication and implementation challenges of the HIV/AIDS policy change to test-and-treat-all in selected public health facilities in Lusaka District, Zambia

BackgroundThe World Health Organization has promoted a shift towards the test-and-treat-all strategy to accelerate the elimination of HIV/AIDS. Zambia was one of the early African countries to adopt this strategy as the policy change was officially announced on national television by the republican president on 15th August 2017. This study explored the communication and implementation challenges of the HIV/AIDS policy change to test-and-treat-all in selected public health facilities in Lusaka District, Zambia.MethodsA qualitative case study design was employed with a purposeful sample of policy makers, international partners, National AIDS Council representatives, health facility managers, and frontline health providers in selected tertiary, secondary and primary health facilities in the Lusaka District, Zambia. Thematic data analysis was performed using NVivo 12 Pro software.ResultsIn total, 22 key informant interviews and 3 focus group discussions were conducted. The government relied on formal and informal channels to communicate the test-and-treat-all policy change to health providers. Whilst HIV policy changes were reflected in the National HIV/AIDS Strategic Framework, there was little awareness of this policy by the frontline providers. The use of informal communication channels such as verbal and text instructions affected health providers’ implementation of the test-and-treat-all. Electronic and print media were ineffective in communicating the test-and-treat-all policy change to some sections of the public. Top-down stakeholder engagement, limited health worker training, and poor financing negatively affected the implementation of the test-and-treat-all policy change. Acceptability of the test-and-treat-all policy change was shaped by positive provider perceptions of its benefits, limited sense of policy ownership, and resistance by the non-treatment-ready patients. Furthermore, unintended consequences of the test-and-treat-all policy change on human resources for health and facility infrastructure were reported. ConclusionEffective test-and-treat-all policy change communication is vital for successful policy implementation as it enhances interpretation and adoption among health providers and patients. There is a need to enhance collaboration among policy makers, implementers and the public to develop and apply communication strategies that facilitate the adoption of the test-and-treat-all policy changes to sustain gains in the fight against HIV/AIDS.