Public Health Practices

Educational resources are available in more than 20 languages, including Bosnian, Burmese, Farsi, Korean, Punjabi, Romanian, Swahili, Tagalog, Tigrigna, and Ukrainian.

The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (WVDHHR) formed a close partnership with the West Virginia Department of Education (WVDOE) to produce educational materials on H1N1 for K-12 school professionals, teachers, students, and parents. DHHR and DOE also provided outreach and held several community activities designed to promote discussion and collaboration among schools, parents, and health planners.

The Ohio Department of Health (ODH) used National Influenza Vaccination Week (NIVW) to promote continued uptake of H1N1 vaccination. NIVW was observed during January 10-16, 2010, and ODH conducted a variety of activities to make vaccine accessible to diverse segments of the population. ODH health director began the week by issuing a letter to Ohio's local health departments.

The department maintains a clearinghouse of H1N1 resources in 32 different languages. Resources were gathered from numerous public health agencies and represent a variety of information. The quantity of materials available in each language varies. For instance, the CDC's vaccine information statements are only available in Spanish and Chinese, while H1N1 resources pertaining to refugees are available in Kirundi and Burmese.

WHACK the Flu is a community education plan designed to teach K-3 school children about improved hand hygiene habits in anticipation of the flu season. University volunteers are recruited and trained to conduct 15-minute classroom skit presentations, each of which requires three volunteers to perform. Incentives are distributed (i.e., stickers, activity sheets) to the children and posters/evaluation forms to the teachers.

A basic but complete overview of seasonal and pandemic issues focuses on education, basic prevention, and personal preparedness. The materials are simple, clearly branded, consistent, and pre-packaged into user-friendly campaign materials. A press release, fliers, and other materials allow others to conduct educational presentations. Use of the governor in a public service announcement helps to emphasize the importance of the message.

CodeReady.org is an all-hazards emergency preparedness campaign that was "branded" to enhance retention of personal preparedness information and prompt individual action. The State of Minnesota appropriated funds specifically for a pandemic preparedness campaign; however, the campaign steering committee and advisory group opted to employ a broader emergency preparedness approach.

Santa Clara County has developed a variety of risk communications materials. The materials are available in multiple languages and are consistently of very high quality. The execution of the messages is noteworthy, and the documents would serve as valuable templates for agencies that are beginning their pandemic risk communications.