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RESPONSIBLE ORGANIZING

in times of crisis

communication

Communicating with Constituents

        In times of crisis, many constituents are more likely to turn to community leaders for information and support. A UNICEF report found that people are more likely to pay attention to information from people they already know, trust, and whom they feel are concerned about their wellbeing. Regular and proactive communication with the public and at-risk populations can help to reduce stigma, build trust, and increase social support and access to basic needs for affected people and their families. Traditional forms of face-to-face communication are not recommended as the world continues to battle COVID-19. Does that mean that communication stops? No, but community leaders have to adapt in ways that both protect their health and safety while responding to the needs of their community. Some important tips for communicating with constituents are:

1. Make sure any information you’re sharing is from an accredited source. We are in the midst of compiling a list of resources, but encourage you to submit any sources that are relevant to your community or region. Our team will verify your submission in order to ensure any information we share is accurate before publishing them on the list.  There’s been widespread fake news about the coronavirus, its symptoms, the cure, and different actions people have been encouraged to take. In fact, there has been so much inaccurate information that most websites about the coronavirus have created a section dispelling myths. We encourage you to read up on those common myths here. Accurate information can help alleviate confusion and avoid misunderstandings.

2. Address misinformation quickly. If possible, set up and implement a rumour tracking system to closely watch misinformation and report to relevant technical partners/sectors. Make sure to respond to rumors and misinformation with evidence-based guidance so that all rumors can be effectively refuted in order to allay any fears in your community. 

3. Unpack unfamiliar terms for constituents. New terms such as ‘social distancing’, ‘flattening the curve’ and ‘shielding’ are not necessarily terms people understand, and have prompted many to seek clarification. We have compiled a working glossary of key terms and definitions for community leaders to refer to in these times. Once again, please feel free to contact us with additional terms you have encountered that we can add to our glossary. Our team will verify them and publish them on the list in order to ensure any information we share is accurate.  

4. Avoid attaching location or ethnicity to Covid-19. A UNICEF report found that language may have a negative connotation for people and fuel stigmatizing attitudes. They can perpetuate existing negative stereotypes or assumptions, strengthen false associations between the disease and other factors, create widespread fear, or dehumanise those who have the disease. Stigma can undermine social cohesion and prompt social isolation of groups, which might contribute to a situation where the virus is more, not less, likely to spread. 

5. Focus on modes of communication most commonly used in your community. Many governments and health departments have chosen to disseminate information through mass text or WhatsApp messages. As community leaders, you have the best sense of the ways in which members of your community receive information. Focus your attention on those. 

6. Leverage off pre-existing communication networks or resources. If you have pre-existing communication networks or online communities, this is the time to mobile them. Implement phone trees. Be creative in utilizing the resources that already exist in your communities. 

7. Practice social distancing as much as possible. This might be difficult especially if members in your community are used to your physical presence. However, as a community leader it is your responsibility to model informed leadership especially with the growing understanding that the disease can be transmitted by those who are asymptomatic or appear to be relatively healthy. As much as possible, conduct conversations over the phone, and if that technology doesn’t exist, do maintain a one meter separation (as per WHO guidelines). Here are six creative ways to communicate while maintaining social distancing with seniors, who may be among those feeling more isolated than ever. 

Public Health Guidelines

for Community Leaders and Volunteers

It is important to recognize that community leaders are neither health professionals bound by public health guidelines, nor recognized as essential service providers. The closest WHO regulation comes to offering guidelines for community leaders or volunteers are their recommendations for community health workers - but even then those recommendations cover only a fraction of the types of help community leaders have been engaging in. Community leaders and volunteers have been involved in food distribution, public health outreach, improving access to sanitation and offering childcare to children of essential service providers. 

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While recognizing the important and necessary work of community leaders and volunteers, we wanted to make sure that their health and well-being was similarly prioritized and protected. 

 

Based on a review of WHO’s Covid-19 publications, as well as additional materials from UNICEF or the Center for Disease Control (CDC) when WHO guidelines were not available, we compiled this list of considerations for community leaders and volunteers working hard to meet the needs of their communities. We divided this list into sub-categories based on the most common types of support offered by community networks: 1) food distribution; 2) public health outreach; 3) sanitation; 4) mask wearing and 5) childcare.

Food Distribution

Food distribution

As a result of lockdowns, food distribution became one of the main focuses for many community leaders and volunteers all around the world. In the UK, distributing these items came to the forefront of agendas with packed lunches being delivered to isolated families in North Tyneside and the expansion of food bank provisions in Hackney, east London. 

 

The associated risks of food distribution or running errands for the most vulnerable in your communities stem from the contact route of transmission of the COVID-19 virus. When an infected person coughs or sneezes, their respiratory droplets may also land on surfaces where the virus could remain viable; thus, the immediate environment of an infected individual can serve as a source of transmission (contact transmission). It is not certain how long the virus that causes COVID-19 survives on surfaces, but it seems likely to behave like other coronaviruses, which can range from 2 hours to 9 days.

 

We have adopted the World Food Programme’s recommendations for food distribution: 

  1. Organize and clearly mark the allocated spaces at the distribution site

  2. Organize food ahead of the scheduled distribution 

  3. Do not allow crowding around the distribution point

  4. Manage the flow of traffic at the distribution site 

  5. No physical contact between anyone (community leaders, volunteers, or community members) 

  6. Operators at the collection point should place the food on the tarpaulin/table and step back to allow community members to collect the food. 

 

We believe that food distribution guidelines should be applied to running errands or chores for the elderly or disabled in your communities. In particular the emphasis on having no physical contact (Points 5 and 6) are important. â€‹

sanitation, clean

The provision of safe water, sanitation, and hygienic conditions is essential to protecting human health during all infectious disease outbreaks, including the COVID-19 outbreak. Community leaders have been innovating around ways to ensure hygienic conditions and sanitation resources are available to those in her community.  Cape Town have created a starter pack that provides instructions on how to make “tippy taps” that can be tipped with a foot so that your hands don’t make contact with the device.

WHO recommendations are to: 

  1. Ensuring good and consistently applied wash and waste management practices in communities, homes, schools, marketplaces, and health care facilities will help prevent human-to-human transmission of the COVID-19 virus. 

 

We recognise that initiatives by different local communities might be more beneficial to our network here, and encourage community leaders to share their resources with us! 

Sanitation

Public Health Outreach

public health, CDC, hygiene

In times of public health crises, the dissemination of accurate information about the virus and preventative measures are of crucial importance. The IFRC + UNICEF recommend that their teams reach out to community members in several ways, such as radio, SMS message, posters, billboards, face-to-face visits, and community meetings. 

 

Many community leaders have also mobilised their networks of volunteers. Groups like Mutual Aid UK took to the streets to let people know about the support they are offering. 

 

The associated risks of outreach are the same as those for food distribution, stemming from the contact route of transmission through respiratory droplets of an infected individual. 

 

We have adopted the Center for Disease Control (CDC)’s recommendations here for outreach: 

 

  1. Greet community members from a distance of 1 meter and explain that you are taking additional precautions to protect yourself and the client from COVID-19.

  2. Continue conversations and provision of information while maintaining 1 meter of distance.

  3. Maintain good hand hygiene by washing your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds or using hand sanitizer (with at least 60% alcohol) on a regular basis.

mask, face mask

In addition to sanitation, wearing a mask is proven to help slow the spread of COVID-19. According to WHO guidelines, medical masks should mainly be worn by medical professionals, those who have COVID-19 symptoms, and high risk individuals which includes the elderly and those with preexisting conditions. However, everyone else can follow these guidelines by wearing fabric, non-medical, masks. Across the world, many volunteers have started initiatives to help make and disburse fabric masks to the community. 

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Here, you will find a helpful video on the correct way to wear a fabric mask. 

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This link will provide you with an easy way to make your own fabric masks from home. 

 

Even when wearing a mask, it is important that you follow the safety precautions provided by WHO so that you are maximizing your protection.

Mask-Wearing

Childcare

Children Playing Outdoor

This is less widespread than other forms of providing support, but we recognise that some community networks are offering childcare to children of essential workers. This is an important initiative in recognising the wider roles that essential workers play both in their families and communities. 

We have adopted the Center for Disease Control (CDC)’s recommendations here for childcare: 

 

Generally … 

  1. Encourage your staff or community members to protect their personal health.

  2. Post the signs and symptoms of COVID-19: fever, cough, shortness of breath.

  3. Encourage children to stay home when sick.

  4. Clean surfaces that are frequently touched – things such as shared desks, countertops, kitchen areas, electronics, and doorknobs.

  5. Limit events and meetings that require close contact.

  6. Stay up to date on developments in your community.

  7. Assess if community members are at higher risk and plan accordingly.

 

In the event a COVID-19 case is identified, 

  1. Coordinate with local health officials. 

  2. Dismiss students and most staff for 2-5 days. 

  3. Discourage staff, students, and their families from gathering or socializing anywhere. 

  4. Communicate with staff, parents, and students. 

  5. Clean and disinfect thoroughly.

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