ASEF Public Health Network’s Workshop Risk Communications for Public Health Emergencies: Bridging the National Mechanism with Healthcare Workers was held on 2-4 Sep 2015 in Langkawi, Malaysia in partnership with the Ministry of Health, Malaysia.
48 experts in public health and risk communications attended this workshop and produced the following set of recommendations based on the 4 featured topics of the workshop:
1) Risk Management Transparency: Rapid approval of warnings and advisories are key for timely communication; adherence to decision-making principles allows maintaining transparency.
2) Communication Coordination: Identification of focal points and sharing risk communication strategies during public health crises enables better coordination structure.
3) Dialogue with the Affected: Reflecting views and perceptions in the community back into emergency management decision-making, is a key in working with those are affected.
4) Communication Evaluation: For an effective emergency risk communication evaluation, there should be clear objectives, a regular monitoring system and integration of risk communication perspective into preparedness strategies.
The workshop report will soon be available on ASEF website.