Crisis & Communication: A Chat with Dr. Frazier Beatty

With the coronavirus top of mind for many of us these days, it is important to appreciate all the hard work that public health professionals are doing to help keep our communities safe and informed. We spoke with Dr. Frazier Beatty, program director of the Master of Public Health program, to understand what the role of a public health professional is during a public health emergency.

Crisis and Communication in Public Health

By Dr. Frazier Beatty

Public health authorities should always be prepared to communicate during a crisis situation that may threaten life or cause public alarm. During epidemics, terrorism, or natural disasters, public health officials should be involved in a number of strategies to respond to potential myths, rumors, or negative social media stigma. Given the potential harm that a crisis may cause, communication is a critical part of any organized response. Communication strategies should include various innovative social media, radio, and television ads to respond to all crisis situations.

For example, if there was a scare of a potential infectious disease outbreak that could wreak havoc on any sector of the population like Avian Flu, the public health communication strategies would need to be well thought out, specific, and deliberately concise to address all of the important elements for the target population affected by the disease outbreak. Once adopted, the public health communication would be shared via social media, radio, TV, etc. (Please note that depending on a number of criteria or conditions, public health communication may not be used. For example, for global issues your local or state public health authorities may not communicate).

Here’s how two areas of public health specialization would assist in communicating information to the public during a public health emergency:

Epidemiology:

From an epidemiologist perspective, communication would:

• Empathize, then dispel myths and rumors about how the disease is spread. This is to calm any fears the public may have.
• Provide accurate information about how to protect oneself. This is to create a sense of self protection and security.
• Explain how public health officials are responding to the crisis. This is to assure public trust.

Health Policy & Management:

From a health policy perspective, communication would:

• Empathize, then dispel myths and rumors about how the disease is spread. This is to calm any fears the public may have.
• Provide specific information that eases fear about how the population may get services, or ensure that adequate services are available for all people who may be affected to get services (the health policy management professional looks at things from an access to care perspective). This is to create a sense of protection and security.
• Explain how public health officials will respond if the crisis expands and care may be limited or compromised. How will officials respond when resources are scarce? The health policy management professional has to be ready to make quick revisions to communication when things change. This is to assure public trust.

If you’re interested in becoming involved in these areas of public health, I encourage you to visit our online MPH program page to learn more about how an MPH can help position you for a career in public health.

Dr. Frazier Beatty, PhD, MPH, CHES
Program Director & Assistant Professor
Master of Public Health online program