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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