Key Messaging Research Articles

OA35 Amplifying young voices: the crucial role of young people living with rheumatic conditions in shaping information, advice and guidance

Abstract Background/Aims In 2021, Versus Arthritis launched Young Experts - a project to improve the quality and availability of information for young people aged 11-16 living with rheumatic conditions. The adolescent years are a distinct and formative period in life and a lack of youth accessible information had been identified. Methods Firstly, we completed an audit of current resources, research, and standards. This helped us identify best practice as well as gaps, including a lack of accessible developmentally appropriate resources and resources for families/professionals supporting young people. Secondly, we gathered insight through UK-wide surveys, focus groups and interviews with young people and parents. This helped us prioritise topics (school was selected as the initial priority topic) and identify key messages. Thirdly, we ran an online co-production project with over 30 young people. Creative activities were facilitated by youth workers and content creators over the course of several weeks on school based topics. Each week built on the last - building on themes, checking understanding, and prioritising. As themes emerged the team also engaged with healthcare professionals, health-based youth workers and education staff to explore key areas and professional perspectives. Results A wealth of insight has been gathered on supporting young people living with a rheumatic condition to thrive at school. The initial focus was on support development, but the insight has also had the added benefit of influencing campaigning and awareness raising work. Young people flagged a greater focus on creating films featuring young people and retaining hard copy resources, which fundamentally shaped the new resource development plan. Resources must be in accessible, engaging formats for all young people. Youth feedback led to a greater focus on resources that change their community and society (e.g. actions of school leaders and staff), alongside resources for young people. Prioritisation of messaging to include more content on ‘quality communication’, ‘school engagement’, ‘mental health and wellbeing’ and ‘relationships of trust between school and young people’. Impact on young participants included new friendships, self-management support, and a focus on youth social action to improve things for the next generation of young people. New resources included a series of films co-designed with young people, and school staff resources. Conclusion Engaging young people in shaping information should challenge assumptions on content, key messaging and approaches. To design without the involvement young people could lead to new resources that fail to lever their full potential - in both challenging communities to be more inclusive and/or meeting the needs of young people and their families. With thanks to the young people involved in the project and continuing to support this vital work. Disclosure L. Woolley: None. D. Bovey-Pilkington: None.

Development of a customized m-Health-based intervention to reduce loss to follow-up among patients undergoing treatment for cervical lesions at a rural referral Hospital, South Western Uganda

BackgroundLoss to follow-up (LTFU) in individuals undergoing cervical cancer treatment is a major challenge in many low resource settings. We describe development of a customized and tailored mHealth intervention for reducing LTFU among patients undergoing cervical cancer treatment at Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital (MRRH). MethodsWe interviewed all health care providers (HCPs) at the cervical cancer clinic of MRRH, between April and May 2023. Transcripts were subsequently derived, reviewed and coded to generate themes and categories using inductive content analytic approach. Four medical experts used this data to develop relevant SMS content, which was incorporated into an app. ResultsHCPs had owned a phone for 13.8 ≤ years, had worked at the clinic for 5 ≤ years, and used text messages regularly. Qualitative data revealed that the main challenge to re-engagement was absence of a reminder mechanism between HCPs and patients. HCPs preferred text and or audio mode of messaging to improve health care responsiveness to LTFUs, awareness, continuity of care, and health service uptake among the majority illiterate population; though with potential constraints of costs and workload. Identified key messaging content included; the importance of attending scheduled follow-ups, follow up visit date and clinic customization and tailoring the message to the intended recipient. SMS content was uploaded onto the cc-follow-up app platform and customized according to preferred language, day, frequency and time of delivery. ConclusionTailoring an mHealth messaging intervention could help re-engage and reduce LTFU through improved information sharing, awareness, responsiveness, care engagement and medical compliance. A pilot study is required for our intervention in South Western Uganda.

HipHop2SToP a community-led health promotion initiative empowering Aboriginal youth in the Kimberley region of Western Australia: a process evaluation.

For millennia, Aboriginal people's ways of knowing, doing and being were shared through art, song, and dance. Colonisation silenced these ways, affecting loss of self-determination for Aboriginal people. Over the past decade in Australia, hip-hop projects have become culturally appropriate approaches for health promotion. When community led, and Aboriginal worldviews centralised, hip-hop workshops are more likely to be effective. In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, a community-led health promotion hip-hop music video, 'HipHop2SToP' was produced involving young people in Dampier Peninsula communities address healthy skin and healthy living practices. We report here a qualitative process evaluation of the HipHop2SToP project. Participants who had been involved in the planning and production of HipHop2SToP were selected using a purposive approach and invited either by email or face-to-face to participate in semi-structured interviews and share their experiences. Semi-structured interviews ranged from 30 to 60 min in duration and were conducted either face-to-face or virtually over MS Teams. Due to personal time constraints, two participants provided written responses to the semi-structured questions. All interviews were audio-recorded with consent and saved as a digital recording in a de-identified format. All audio recordings were transcribed verbatim and uploaded into QSR NVivo v12 along with written responses. As a health promotion project, the critical success factors were community-ownership and discovering novel ways to collaborate virtually with remote communities using Microsoft (MS) software. Highlights included observing the young people actively engaged in the project and their catchy lyrics and key messaging for environmental health and skin infections. COVID-19 presented some challenges. Gaps in communication, clarification of stakeholder roles and expectations, and post-production outcomes were also identified as challenges. HipHop2SToP validates the need for Aboriginal community led health promotion programs. While creating some challenges COVID-19 also strengthened community ownership and created novel ways of maintaining relationships with remote Aboriginal communities. Future hip-hop projects would benefit from clarity of roles and responsibilities. Strengthening post-production outcomes by including a launch and well-planned, targeted communication and dissemination strategy will ensure the wider translation of important health messages and potential strengthen sustainability.

A Strengths and Needs Assessment of Campus Sexual Assault Response.

Sexual violence and sexual assault (SA) disproportionately affect the young adult population aged 18-24 years, half of which are enrolled in higher education. Campuses are tasked with providing a safe space for students and enacting an appropriate response to campus SA (CSA). As part of a grant-funded program to strengthen SA nurse examiner (SANE) services to those who experience SA on college campuses, we conducted a campus needs assessment and a campus website review for key messaging and analyzed the responses to identify strengths and gaps in campus resources related to CSA. These findings were the basis of individualized Campus Community Summary reports shared with participants from each campus. Guided qualitative interviews with interdisciplinary stakeholders across seven campus communities and campus website reviews were used to identify campus resource strengths, gaps, and recommendations for improvement. Common strengths included awareness of campus programs and community services, leadership support for CSA activities, and community CSA response. Identified opportunities for improvement included strengthening interdisciplinary collaboration, solving transportation issues to obtain care, mental healthcare and advocacy services, awareness and resource messaging, and fighting stigma and bias. Campus websites reviews indicated gaps in key information about SANE care and how to access SANE services. Numerous gaps and opportunities to strengthen campus SA awareness and coordination and access to a timely response to SA were identified. Addressing these gaps is essential to ensure quality care and services for individuals who experience SA on college campuses.

Efficient Facial Expression Recognition With Representation Reinforcement Network and Transfer Self-Training for Human–Machine Interaction

The emotion perception capability could endow machines with deeper feedback evaluation of human–machine interaction (HMI), which makes the experience of HMI more harmonious and natural. Currently, how to obtain the robust surface and semantic facial representation features has not been fully explored, moreover, the parameters and computation of conventional convolutional neural network models, which are adopted in facial expression recognition (FER) are too heavy, it is not conducive to the deployment of the HMI system. Therefore, this article proposes a representation reinforcement network (RRN) and transfer self-training (TST) based efficient FER method. Our designed RRN is mainly composed of two modules, i.e., surface representation reinforcement (SurRR) module and semantic representation reinforcement (SemaRR) module. SurRR module fuses the facial features in different dimensions and highlights key feature messaging nodes in feature maps. SemaRR module establishes the deep semantic representation of global facial regions on spatial and channel dimensions. Therefore, RRN has stronger feature extraction capability when the parameters and computational complexity are significantly reduced, and TST is proposed for contributing to the training effect of RRN at the condition of insufficient training data. We tested our method on CK+, RaFD, FERPLUS, and RAF-DB datasets, and the recognition accuracy are 100%, 98.62%, 89.64%, and 88.72%, respectively. Furthermore, the preliminary application experiment, which demonstrates the feasibility of our method in practice during HMI.

Does it help to provide such posting content for interaction? An empirical study of physical and virtual goods branding

<p>The purpose of this study was to analyze several brands offering physical and virtual products to determine differences in content marketing, as well as the impact of content cues on brand awareness. An analytical framework examining the relationship between content messaging, cues, and positioning was also developed to investigate social media marketing and brand positioning. The study combines big data techniques, artificial intelligence and machine learning applications, data exploration, disambiguation, and model prediction techniques to observe public behavior and preferences. This study was intended to highlight the importance of functional cues (message recognition) and symbolic cues (positive emotional response) in brand communication, and the findings suggest that brands on social media platforms can use relevant messaging to stimulate brand awareness and facilitate user interaction. In summary, this study contributes to an understanding of key messaging characteristics of branding on social media, explores the differences in user behavior across brands, and documents the impact of cues on user engagement. The results demonstrate that advanced data analysis techniques can be used to extract representative keywords and determine their impact on brand interactions in the context of physical and virtual products. </p> <p> </p>

Feasibility and acceptability of inserts promoting virtual overdose monitoring services (VOMS) in naloxone kits: a qualitative study

BackgroundIn response to the ongoing opioid epidemic, there have been efforts to develop novel harm reduction strategies alongside scaling of currently implemented programs. Virtual overdose monitoring services (VOMS) are a novel intervention which aims to reduce substance-related mortality through technology for those who are out of reach of current supervised consumption sites. Scaling of naloxone programs presents a unique opportunity to promote VOMS to people at risk of substance-related mortality. This study aims to explore the feasibility and acceptability of naloxone kit inserts in promoting awareness of VOMS.MethodWe used purposive and snowball sampling to recruit 52 key informants, including people who use drugs (PWUD) with experience using VOMS (n = 16), PWUD with no prior experience using VOMS (n = 9), family members of PWUD (n = 5), healthcare and emergency services professionals (n = 10), community-based harm reduction organizations (n = 6), and VOMS administrators/peer support workers (n = 6). Two evaluators completed semi-structured interviews. Interview transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis informed to identify key themes.ResultsFour key interrelated themes emerged, including the acceptability of naloxone kit inserts to promote VOMS, best practices for implementation, key messaging to include within promotional materials and facilitators to dissemination of harm reduction material. Participants highlighted that messaging should be promoted both inside and outside the kits, should be concise, provide basic information about VOMS and can be facilitated through current distribution streams. Messaging could further be used to draw attention to local harm reduction services and could be promoted on other supplies, including lighters and safer consumption supplies.ConclusionFindings demonstrate that it is acceptable to promote VOMS within naloxone kits and highlight interviewees preferred ways to do so. Key themes that emerged from interviewees can be used to inform the dissemination of harm reduction information, including VOMS and bolster current strategies for reducing illicit drug overdose.

Geographies of COVID‐19

Geographies of COVID‐19

Using social marketing strategies to develop and pretest PrEP education materials for transgender women

PurposeThe purpose of this study was to develop pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) education materials that directly address the needs of trans women. PrEP medication is an effective HIV prevention strategy, but some groups at high risk of HIV, such as transgender (trans) women, have suboptimal uptake and adherence. Most PrEP marketing has been aimed fat men who have sex with men (MSM) and include trans women as part of that audience, but this strategy ignores important differences in perceptions of and barriers to PrEP.Design/methodology/approachThis study used a social marketing approach grounded in exchange theory to systematically develop and pretest PrEP messaging and communication materials for trans women through qualitative (focus groups: n = 5, 34 participants) and quantitative (surveys: n = 128) methods in Philadelphia and the San Francisco Bay area. Segmentation analysis, perceptual mapping and vector message modeling techniques were used to create three-dimensional visualizations of PrEP perceptions to identify highly targeted messaging. Working with trans artists, the authors developed prototype materials using the targeted messaging and pretested these (n = 11) in both locations for feedback on content, look and insight on appropriate intervention strategies.FindingsUsing segmentation and perceptual mapping, this study identified key PrEP messaging across different subgroups, including by demographic and psychographic variables. Differences by group were determined to not be significant and overall messages that would resonate with all groups were built into the materials. Pretesting sessions indicated high acceptability of the messaging and trans women-centered approach to increase PrEP uptake.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to use a social marketing framework to create targeted PrEP communication materials for trans women in partnership with trans women.

ADDRESSING ALZHEIMER’S DISPARITIES AMONG BLACK POPULATIONS WITH BRAINGUIDE BY USAGAINSTALZHEIMER’S

Abstract Older, Black Americans are disproportionately impacted by Alzheimer’s disease (AD), accounting for 15% (~1 million) of all individuals aged 65+ living with AD (5.8 million). Stigma, fear, and gaps in education contribute to 60% of undetected AD cases. In Georgia, AD remains the 6th leading cause of death. By 2029, cases are projected to spike by 46%, from 130,000 to 190,000. Given these alarming statistics and in response to AD health disparities in this population, UsAgainstAlzheimer’s, in partnership with community leaders and organizations, launched a pilot outreach program to promote AD prevention and brain health awareness in Atlanta. Program goals included: increasing knowledge about brain health, emphasizing the importance of early detection and diagnosis, raise awareness of BrainGuide™ by UsAgainstAlzheimer’s and other brain health resources, and develop a network of organizations for ongoing collaboration, awareness, and education. Program strategies included accessing highly saturated, faith-based spaces like mega churches, circulating key messaging through paid and earned media, and hosting widely received community webinars. UsAgainstAlzheimer’s collected participant feedback and examined BrainGuide website traffic to evaluate the effectiveness of community engagement on increasing brain health awareness and addressing AD stigma in Atlanta. Preliminary findings indicate a 96% increase in BrainGuide traffic from Atlanta and 70% increased engagement with BrainGuide resources, compared to the national average. UsAgainstAlzheimer’s’ pilot program suggests that brain health promotion, grounded in community engagement from trusted influencers, has potential to raise brain health awareness and empower people to take action. Further research and learnings are required to determine program scalability.

Risk Communication in Public Health: Lessons from a Historic Fluoridation Debate in Saskatchewan

ABSTRACT Effective risk communication is critical to gain public support when implementing population-level health interventions. Analysis of previous public health campaigns can provide guidance for future efforts. This case study examined a successful community water fluoridation campaign in Saskatoon, Canada, during 1953/54. The key strategies and messaging used by both sides of the debate were assessed using two publicly available historic data sources: documents in the city archives and newspaper coverage. The anti-fluoridation campaign approaches (e.g. misinformation, innuendo, half-truths and scare words, requesting a plebescite) were similar to those used elsewhere by this movement as described in the literature. Key features of the effective pro-fluoridation campaign included extensive community outreach, involvement of local experts, dissemination of supporting evidence while aggressively addressing misinformation, highlighting the support of relevant health organizations, and ensuring key messages received media coverage. This study illustrates how misinformation and public opposition has posed a challenge to public health efforts long before the advent of social media and highlights strategies, consistent with current risk communication principles, that have stood the test of time.

P02 ThinkJIA: A campaign to raise awareness that children and young people get arthritis, enabling families and frontline health professionals to recognise symptoms and refer to specialist services

Introduction/BackgroundAwareness that Children and Young People (CYP) may develop arthritis (Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis, JIA) is low within the general population and amongst non-rheumatology frontline health professionals. This can lead to delays in diagnosis and reduced access to treatment, with consequential risk of joint damage and permanent eye complications through undiagnosed JIA-associated uveitis. The aim of this work was to develop a campaign to enable frontline health professionals and families to be aware that CYP can develop arthritis, to know the main signs and symptoms, and to pursue early referral to speciality services.Description/MethodAn awareness-raising campaign was developed by UK charity Juvenile Arthritis Research working with parents of CYP with JIA, adults with JIA, teachers, campaigners, paediatric rheumatologists, ophthalmologists, and other interested lay and professional individuals. The campaign, called #ThinkJIA, includes postcards with key messages and a supporting website, www.thinkjia.orgResources are aimed at both the general population, to help improve recognition of the signs and symptoms and encourage early attendance at primary care health services; and at non-rheumatology frontline health professionals to support recognition of JIA symptoms and the need for prompt referral. Whilst the key messaging is common to both audiences, the language used differs to reflect the lay and medical professional expectations.Once draft campaign resources were developed, they were shared with clinical professionals and tested by parents and school teachers.Discussion/ResultsOf the pilot group of parents and teachers receiving draft resources, 100% of parents and 68% of teachers agreed that they would feel confident in seeking medical attention if their child, or a child in their school, started showing signs of JIA. Following feedback from recipients in the pilot group resources have been updated with clearer imagery. These are also supported by posters for use in health clinics and general circulation.Key learning points/ConclusionThe development of the #ThinkJIA awareness-raising resources has helped ensure frontline health professionals and the general population can have access to information about JIA. This can help facilitate early referral and improved access to treatment. The broad rollout of awareness resources is essential to appropriately support CYP with JIA and ensure they receive the treatment they require promptly.AcknowledgementsThanks to Prof Helen Foster for her vital role in the initial development of these resources, and to all those involved in the development and pilot testing.

Legumes-A Comprehensive Exploration of Global Food-Based Dietary Guidelines and Consumption.

Despite the well-known human and planetary health benefits of legumes, consumption is often low. This scoping review aimed to evaluate the inclusion of legumes in global food-based dietary guidelines (FBDG), and to review consumption data against global food group classifications for legumes. The review of FBDG from 94 countries identified legume-based key messaging, the key terms used to define legumes, recommended serving size and frequency of consumption and the classification of legumes into food groups as depicted by food guides. The 2018 Global Dietary Database isolated consumption data of legumes and beans using individual-level, nationally representative dietary survey data for matched countries. Food-based dietary guidelines from 40/94 countries most often identified legumes utilising the term legumes, followed by beans (n = 13), pulses (n = 10), or as beans, peas and lentils (n = 5). The serving size recommendations for legume consumption varied widely, and there was no consistency in the suggested frequency of consumption. Median bean and legume consumption for countries with FBDG ranged from 1.2 g/d (Norway) to 122.7 g/d (Afghanistan). Classification of legumes into food groups varied, with 38% of countries categorising legumes in the protein-rich food group, 20% were in a group on their own and 15% were in the starchy staples group. In countries where legumes were together with either nuts or seeds had the greatest range in intake (11.6–122.7 g/day), followed by those that grouped legumes together with protein-rich foods (4.0–104.7 g/day), while countries that grouped legumes into two food groups, in an attempt to promote consumption, tended to have a lower consumption. Greater emphasis and perhaps repositioning of legumes in dietary guidelines may be required to encourage consumption for health, environmental and economic benefits.

‘I need time to start antiretroviral therapy’: understanding reasons for delayed ART initiation among people diagnosed with HIV in Lusaka, Zambia’

Introduction Rapid antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation can improve patient outcomes such as viral suppression and prevent new infections. However, not everyone who can start ART does so immediately. Methods We conducted a qualitative study to inform interventions supporting rapid initiation in the ‘Test and Start’ era. We purposively sampled 20 adult patients living with HIV and a previous gap in care from ten health facilities in Lusaka, Zambia for interviews. We inductively analysed transcripts using a thematic, narrative approach. In their narratives, seven participants discussed delaying ART initiation. Results Drawing on messages gleaned from facility-based counselling and community information, many cited greater fear of rapid sickness or death due to imperfect adherence or treatment side effects than negative health consequences due to delayed initiation. Participants described needing time to ‘prepare’ their minds for a lifetime treatment commitment. Concerns about inadvertent HIV status disclosure during drug collection discouraged immediate initiation, as did feeling healthy, and worries about the impact of ART initiation on relationship dynamics. Conclusion Findings suggest that counselling messages should accurately communicate treatment risks, without perpetuating fear-based narratives about HIV. Identifying and managing patient-specific concerns and reasons for the ‘need for time’ may be important for supporting individuals to rapidly accept lifelong treatment. Key messages Fear-based adherence messaging in health facilities about the dangers of missing a treatment dose or changing the time when ART is taken contributes to Zambian patients’ refusals of immediate ART initiation Responsive health systems that balance a stated need for time to accept one's diagnosis and prepare to embark on a lifelong treatment plan with interventions to identify and manage patient-specific treatment related fears and concerns may support more rapid ART initiation Perceived social stigma around HIV continues to be a significant challenge for treatment initiation.

Process and strategies for patient engagement and outreach in the Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) community to promote clinical trial participation

IntroductionSickle cell disease (SCD) is the most common inherited blood disorder in the United States. The Cure Sickle Cell Initiative (CureSCi) was created by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) to improve the lives of people with SCD by accelerating the advancement of safe and promising genetic therapies, engaging the SCD community and healthcare providers, and encouraging collaboration among stakeholders. CureSCi is a collaborative, patient-focused research effort that includes patients at every level of the Initiative. Patient engagement is a key component, particularly during the development of clinical trials. ObjectiveTo describe the processes and strategies utilized by the CureSCi to engage individuals living with SCD about genetic therapy clinical trials. MethodsThe CureSCi Patient Engagement team conducted nine Community Outreach visits in 2019, each of which was structured to include separate group interviews with patients and medical providers. A set of guidance questions was developed for each audience and the interviews lasted approximately 60 minutes. ResultsPatients were asked about their participation in a clinical trial, and approximately 50% had participated in a trial. SCD individuals reported trusting their medical provider to provide them with information relevant to trials. Medical providers emphasized the individual, family, and health aspects of SCD that warrant additional investigation. Providers reported barriers encountered by patients as transportation, childcare support, infertility, and trust in the healthcare system. ConclusionLessons learned from the community have helped to influence recommendations for clinical trial design and key messaging development for the Cure Sickle Cell Initiative.

Lights, camera…research! Short film and social media to recruit to HIV research in Indonesia.

IntroductionHIV prevalence among men who have sex with men has increased in Indonesia, amid reports of growing stigma against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals and policies that have pushed back public health outreach to these groups.MethodsWe assessed the utility of tailored short film and targeted social media engagement to recruit men who have sex with men in Indonesia to HIV social science research. A short HIV testing promotion film, anonymised short survey and invite to a wider research study was embedded on a website platform and disseminated using geo and social/community group targeting for 1 month via a social networking app and social media platforms.ResultsFrom 3 January 2021 to 3 February 2021, there were over 2200 hits of the website within Indonesia. A total of 177 male web users who identified as men who have sex with men or preferred not to declare their sexuality, engaged by watching the short film and completing the survey, they were aged between 17 and 60 years old, of Indonesian nationality and living in Indonesia. Of these, 88% indicated having at least one HIV test in their lifetime, 66% had felt shame with respect to their sexuality and 53% indicated feeling afraid to have a HIV test. Ninety (51%) of the 177 validated using their email or mobile phone number demonstrating willingness to be contacted to join a further study. Twenty-three eligible men who have sex with men, aged 21–55 years old, joined a further social science research study. Participants were from diverse backgrounds and included men born in provinces outside Bali, of different socio-economic and employment backgrounds and diverse relationship contexts.DiscussionEngaging, empowering digital media involving key health messaging can provide health education in more effective ways, build trust and bring communities together. Targeted digital and social media approaches could reach increasingly marginalised and vulnerable communities to promote individual and public health and enable recruitment to valuable medical research.

DengueChat: A Social and Software Platform for Community-based Arbovirus Vector Control.

The mosquito Aedes aegypti transmits arboviral diseases at extraordinary rates. Dengue alone afflicts 50 to 100 million people each year, with more than 3 billion at risk globally. This indicates that current approaches to prevention and control are inadequate, and that a paradigm shift from one that largely promotes vertical chemical-based control and vaccine development to one that also concentrates on eliminating the mosquito through actions by the communities it plagues is necessary. We have developed a new social and software platform, DengueChat (denguechat.org), to advance community interventions in arbovirus vector control. It is an interactive platform combining open-source digital communication technologies with face-to-face assemblies. It promotes resident participation in evidence collection, reporting, and analysis, and it incorporates pedagogic information, key messaging, and game concepts to motivate communities to implement vector reduction strategies. Using DengueChat, we conducted a 19-month pilot study in five neighborhoods of Managua, Nicaragua. The results strongly suggest that using the software produced value-added features that enhance community engagement. We measured the entomological and behavioral impacts at different time points and relative risk reduction of entomological indices at the end of the study. The entomological results showed significant risk reductions in disease transmission: Ae. aegypti larvae and pupae indices were reduced by approximately 44% in neighborhoods using DengueChat during one epidemic year, whereas control neighborhoods experienced an increase of more than 500%. A cluster permutation test determined that the probability of household positivity was significantly reduced in neighborhoods that participated in DengueChat compared with the reference neighborhoods (P = 0.0265). Therefore, DengueChat is a promising resource for vector control.

Global Review of Dairy Recommendations in Food-Based Dietary Guidelines.

At present, there are ~100 countries with national food-based dietary guidelines. While the intent of these guidelines is to inform national-level dietary recommendations, they also tie into global health and sustainable development initiatives, since diet and nutrition are linked to outcomes for all 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Therefore, key messaging in food-based dietary guidelines plays an important role in both national and global health efforts. However, this type of national-level dietary guidance is not standardized and varies considerably from country to country, and from food group to food group. The main objective of this review is to provide a novel look at dairy food group messaging within global food-based dietary guidelines, focusing specifically on nutrient-based and health-based messaging. Dairy-based messaging from 94 national food-based dietary guidelines was reviewed and grouped by region, with an emphasis on messaging regarding dairy's contribution to nutrients of public health concern for both underconsumption and overconsumption. The results showed that most nutrient-based dairy messaging relating to underconsumption was focused on calcium, followed by vitamin D, iodine, potassium, and protein; whereas messaging related to overconsumption was focused on saturated fat, added sugars, and salt. Health-based messaging specific to dairy food intake typically coalesced around three types of health outcomes: (1) bone, teeth, and muscle, (2) cardiometabolic, and (3) gut and immune. Although a fundamental concept of food-based dietary guidelines is to provide dietary guidance in a manner that is both “food-based,” and in the context of “dietary” patterns, most food-based dietary guidelines still express the health value of dairy foods (and potentially other foods groups) solely in terms of their nutrient content – and often times only in the context of a single nutrient (e.g., calcium).

Enhancing the Adoption of Evidence-Based Health Marketing and Promotion Strategies in Local Communities: Building a Communication Dissemination and Support System for the National Diabetes Prevention Program.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) created a health communication marketing and promotion support system (support system) to help 10 CDC-funded national organizations (recipients) grow enrollment of underserved populations in the National Diabetes Prevention Program. This article describes the creation of a successful support system to increase the use of effective marketing approaches and key messaging. The support system was developed using a systematic approach. It included a needs assessment, audience research, marketing strategy identification, expert panel review, materials development, and dissemination guidance. Hands-on, individualized, and group end-user training and technical assistance was also included. Recipients received culturally and linguistically tailored marketing materials to support their specific priority audiences, as well as corresponding training on recommended dissemination methods. In in-depth key-informant interviews, staff from six recipients reported increased knowledge of local communities and audiences, efficacy and skills to conduct media interviews, capacity to identify and train champions and influencers, and greater community partner investments. With marketing support, 90% of recipients reported increased enrollment, of which 40% exceeded self-set targets and another 40% doubled or tripled their enrollment numbers. These findings indicate that a customized strategic health communication marketing and promotion support system presents a significant opportunity to help recipients increase enrollment in evidence-based interventions. Practitioners disseminating evidence-based interventions may consider a support system to increase program uptake.

Unearthing the Facets of Crisis History in Crisis Communication: A Conceptual Framework and Introduction of the Crisis History Salience Scale

Coombs’s Situational Crisis Communication Theory suggests performance history, composed of relationship history and crisis history, intensify crisis responsibility attribution. Relationship history is organizations’ actual and perceived rapport with publics, while crisis history is an organization’s previous crises. Extant literature has only examined crisis history one-dimensionally. This study proposes the Crisis History Framework that provides insight into influential factors that can make crises more or less salient to individuals. Furthermore, the study introduces the Crisis History Salience Scale that can help crisis communications scholars conduct empirical research examining crisis history’s multiple facets. Moreover, the study offers suggestions for how crisis history considerations can inform proactive crisis management, key messaging, and strategy development during crises.