Doctors Association Kashmir (DAK) on Wednesday said good communication was crucial to defeat coronavirus.
“The consequences of an outbreak depend on the effectivenessof communication,” said DAK President, Dr Nisar ul Hassan. “During anunfamiliar public health emergency, anxiety is a normal human reaction to thefear of unknown. Fear can do more harm than the virus itself.”
He said in health crisis communicators need to be sensitiveto people’s fears and worries on a human and emotional level.
“Communicators need to show empathy and care whilecommunicating that builds trust which improves willingness of people to complywith recommended measures,” he said. “They have to help people understand whatis about to unfold keeping it simple and communicating what people need toknow.”
Dr Hassan said it was important to recognize that what wascommunicated was just as important as how it was communicated. “Clinicians mustunderstand that many words that seem perfectly normal to them areincomprehensible jargon to a lay audience,” he said. “When the communication isdone well, it helps in quelling people’s worries and fears. If it is donepoorly, people will not absorb the information they need.”
He said communication expertise was essential to outbreakcontrol and effective communication was an intervention in its own right. “Itis important to realize to include communication experts in the pandemicmanagement team and they should be doing most of the talking,” he said.