Communications

Recognize and Prepare Smallpox Communication Realities

It is very helpful if you anticipate the questions and concerns that different audiences will have regarding your smallpox preparedness efforts. One of the things we recommend doing is listing your specific target audiences. For each of the audiences, try to write down the kinds of questions, the kinds of interests, and kinds of concerns that those audiences may have. Then try to formulate answers to those questions right now. It is helpful to have more messages, more materials, and more resources prepared in advance and ready before a smallpox vaccination begins or before there is a confirmed case or outbreak. The more messages, materials, and resources that you have prepared in advance, the better you will be able to manage the communications needs.

Smallpox Communication Realities

It’s also important to recognize that different groups and audiences will have different information questions, different information needs, and different interests. And that one brochure, one pamphlet, or one fact sheet is not likely to serve all those different ways of being reached; will have different sources that they rely on for information; will use different media to learn about these recommendations; and finally, will have different educational, cultural, and occupational backgrounds. These backgrounds will affect the kinds of things they’re interested in and will also affect the kinds of things we need to provide in order to reach their needs. 

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