Group Work What IEC materials do you use in the community?

(type – title) What is the target audience? Where is it found? Which behavior is it addressing? How big is the problem? How did you learn about the problem? What are some of the messages? What behavior are you promoting? How much do you wish to achieve by end of 2003? How do you know you got there?

Strategic Communication

AFRWG Face to face meeting19-23 May, 2003.

Presented by Teopista NakyanziMU-JHU Community Educator/ Liaison

E-mail; community @mu-jhu.org

What is strategic communication

Strategic communication is the development of programmes designed to influence the voluntary behaviour of target audiences to achieve management objectives

Concept of strategic communication

Client centered

Begin where audience is. Know the audience. How people feel and see things. Put message in context. Client needs serve as foundation of a comm. Strategy

Goal

Influence the voluntary behaviour of target audiences (Take home Value)

Improve the chances of success of development projects

Why communication in Public Health

To increase Knowledge of health issues, problem or solution

Remind about or reinforce knowledge

Disprove myths and misconceptions

Why communication cont.

Show benefits of behaviour change

Prompt action, seeking behaviour, participation

Advocate for health issues or patient population

Why communication cont.

To ensure good public relations

Help mobilise organisational relationship

Influence perceptions, beliefs, attitudes and social norms

Developing a communication strategy cont.

Management decisions

Situation analysis

Communication analysis Communication planning

Developing a communication strategy cont.

Evaluation planning

Implementation & management

Feedback

Evaluation

Management decisions

A communication Reseach Plan

A budget

a Time line

A capacity building component

Situation anaylsis

Epidemiologic researchProblem definition , description & analysis;

What is the real problem?

How many people are affected?

Who is being affected?

Situation analysis cont.

Are there subgroups within the target audience that are different enough and large enough to justfy different communications strategy ?

Who is responsible for the problem?

What are the benefits and barriers people have?

Communication anaylsis

What are they doing? ( current behavior)

What do we want them to do? ( desired behavior)

What is the impact of communication on the cause of problem

Developing the template

Communication analysis cont.

What is the impact of communication on the problem

Take away message

Developing the template

Settings and channels

How are you going to reach the target audience ( media, Organizational, community, Interpersonal)

What channels & innovations; (stories, panels, film show),

What media will deliver the message? Radio spot, T.V, newspaper, )

Settings and channels cont.

Point of service; Market Schools Community educationUse Multiple channels

Settings and channels cont.

Community meetings

leaflets, info. Packets

electronic media

The message

Should be; Simple and comprehensive

Alerting

Involvingappeals to both mind and heart

The message cont.

Compassionate, Memorable

Persuasive

Culturally acceptable

Factors that motivate behavior

Benefits

Costs

Self efficacy

Delivery, reach and effectiveness phase

Look at process Is message reaching intended audience? How many will be reached? How quickly and cheaply will they be

reached? Are we actually making an impact?

Reach out phase cont.

Short term; effect Pre and post test survey

Mid-term; behavior change survey

Long-term; changes in health status- decrease in incidence

Test Message Phase

How do they react? Assess attention

Do they understand the story board or it was confusing? measure comprehension

Do they believe it was made for them?

Test message cont.

Identify strong and weak points

Gauge sensitivity and controversial elements

The research is small scale, low cost, rapid

Test message cont.

Answers “why” not “how many”

Samples not random

Data often words, not numbers

Opportunity to directly experience target audience

Commonly used qualitative methods

Key informants

Central intercept interviews( Go to a place where audience is)

Focus group discussions

Challenges to building teams to communicate strategically

Authority centered culture - open communication is impeded

Divergent organizational paradigms and culture

Political, economic and social instability

Challenges cont.

Organizational output oriented

Challenges to sustain the dialogue

Empowerment of the members

Developing strategic communication

Time line- development can not happen in a matter of weeks- Fairly long process

Develop your TOR

Relevant expertise

Acknowledgement

Ned Roberto; World Bank- Panos Institute, London

Linda Kavuma; Uganda Country team Strategic planning AIDS Project

Enginyu Sam; commmunications specialist AIDS Control Programme