Development of a community-informed communication toolkit to prevent spread of viral illness in schools, including SARS-COV-2
IntroductionSchools were uniquely impacted during the COVID-19 (SARS-COV-2) pandemic. We sought to elucidate how parents/guardians of elementary and middle school students in Maryland navigated the return to in-person school following remote instruction. We also sought to understand how they perceiv...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-10-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Public Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1285453/full |
| _version_ | 1797649992786116608 |
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| author | August Summers Gabriela V. Calderon Lauren M. Klein June Wang Janny Dinh Tina Suliman Erin R. Hager Lorece Edwards Megan E. Collins Megan E. Collins Sara B. Johnson Sara B. Johnson |
| author_facet | August Summers Gabriela V. Calderon Lauren M. Klein June Wang Janny Dinh Tina Suliman Erin R. Hager Lorece Edwards Megan E. Collins Megan E. Collins Sara B. Johnson Sara B. Johnson |
| author_sort | August Summers |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | IntroductionSchools were uniquely impacted during the COVID-19 (SARS-COV-2) pandemic. We sought to elucidate how parents/guardians of elementary and middle school students in Maryland navigated the return to in-person school following remote instruction. We also sought to understand how they perceived communication about school-based COVID-19 mitigation strategies and their preferences for the content and format of public health communication about COVID-19 mitigation in schools.MethodsWe engaged a community advisory board comprised of key partners and implemented a survey and focus groups.ResultsResults indicated that parents/guardians wanted clearer communication about COVID-19 mitigation policies in schools and were experiencing fatigue and confusion. These insights informed the development of a tailorable communication toolkit. The toolkit was designed to (1) inform parents/guardians about the importance and effectiveness of mitigation strategies for preventing viral spread to keep children in school, (2) promote a sense of community and support, and (3) help school communication teams effectively communicate information about mitigation strategies being implemented.DiscussionWe describe a process for leveraging schools as a trusted messenger, engaging school communities in the development of communication messages, and utilizing a tailorable communication toolkit in the context of shifting public health guidance and local needs. The toolkit development and dissemination process offers a model for targeting public health messaging to parents/guardians in school settings. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T15:54:06Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8261eef1343c4e21ba8cbec67085644b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-2565 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T15:54:06Z |
| publishDate | 2023-10-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Public Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-8261eef1343c4e21ba8cbec67085644b2023-10-25T11:38:39ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Public Health2296-25652023-10-011110.3389/fpubh.2023.12854531285453Development of a community-informed communication toolkit to prevent spread of viral illness in schools, including SARS-COV-2August Summers0Gabriela V. Calderon1Lauren M. Klein2June Wang3Janny Dinh4Tina Suliman5Erin R. Hager6Lorece Edwards7Megan E. Collins8Megan E. Collins9Sara B. Johnson10Sara B. Johnson11Center for Communication Programs, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesDepartment of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United StatesDepartment of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United StatesKrieger School of Arts and Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United StatesDepartment of Population, Family and Reproductive Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesCenter for Communication Programs, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesDepartment of Population, Family and Reproductive Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesSchool of Community Health & Policy, Morgan State University, Baltimore, MD, United StatesDepartment of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United StatesWilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United StatesDepartment of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United StatesDepartment of Population, Family and Reproductive Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United StatesIntroductionSchools were uniquely impacted during the COVID-19 (SARS-COV-2) pandemic. We sought to elucidate how parents/guardians of elementary and middle school students in Maryland navigated the return to in-person school following remote instruction. We also sought to understand how they perceived communication about school-based COVID-19 mitigation strategies and their preferences for the content and format of public health communication about COVID-19 mitigation in schools.MethodsWe engaged a community advisory board comprised of key partners and implemented a survey and focus groups.ResultsResults indicated that parents/guardians wanted clearer communication about COVID-19 mitigation policies in schools and were experiencing fatigue and confusion. These insights informed the development of a tailorable communication toolkit. The toolkit was designed to (1) inform parents/guardians about the importance and effectiveness of mitigation strategies for preventing viral spread to keep children in school, (2) promote a sense of community and support, and (3) help school communication teams effectively communicate information about mitigation strategies being implemented.DiscussionWe describe a process for leveraging schools as a trusted messenger, engaging school communities in the development of communication messages, and utilizing a tailorable communication toolkit in the context of shifting public health guidance and local needs. The toolkit development and dissemination process offers a model for targeting public health messaging to parents/guardians in school settings.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1285453/fullschoolshealth communicationrisk communicationCOVID-19public health communicationparent engagement |
| spellingShingle | August Summers Gabriela V. Calderon Lauren M. Klein June Wang Janny Dinh Tina Suliman Erin R. Hager Lorece Edwards Megan E. Collins Megan E. Collins Sara B. Johnson Sara B. Johnson Development of a community-informed communication toolkit to prevent spread of viral illness in schools, including SARS-COV-2 Frontiers in Public Health schools health communication risk communication COVID-19 public health communication parent engagement |
| title | Development of a community-informed communication toolkit to prevent spread of viral illness in schools, including SARS-COV-2 |
| title_full | Development of a community-informed communication toolkit to prevent spread of viral illness in schools, including SARS-COV-2 |
| title_fullStr | Development of a community-informed communication toolkit to prevent spread of viral illness in schools, including SARS-COV-2 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Development of a community-informed communication toolkit to prevent spread of viral illness in schools, including SARS-COV-2 |
| title_short | Development of a community-informed communication toolkit to prevent spread of viral illness in schools, including SARS-COV-2 |
| title_sort | development of a community informed communication toolkit to prevent spread of viral illness in schools including sars cov 2 |
| topic | schools health communication risk communication COVID-19 public health communication parent engagement |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1285453/full |
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