ASTHO Releases Ebola Communications Guide for Health Officials and Policymakers

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Association of State and Territorial Health Officials

Dec 04, 2014, 04:35 ET

ARLINGTON, Va., Dec. 4, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO), in consultant with risk communication experts and state health officials, has produced a new document that provides health officials and policymakers with clear, accurate answers to common questions about Ebola. Top Questions On Ebola: Simple Answers Developed by ASTHO is a comprehensive resource intended to ensure consistent messaging and provide clarity to the public on a wide range of Ebola issues, such as how Ebola spreads, why it is very unlikely to become airborne, and what the United States has done to prepare for the disease.

"Communicating about Ebola poses a number of challenges to policymakers and health officials," says ASTHO Executive Director Paul Jarris. "They have to translate complex science about the disease into actionable policies, deliver clear recommendations to healthcare providers, address the public's concerns with compassionate answers, and dispel rumors and misperceptions with accurate information. This document provides simple, direct, and honest responses to a myriad of Ebola questions."

Top Questions On Ebola: Simple Answers was developed with the science-based, risk communication message mapping development process. It includes more than 60 message maps that cover Ebola, as well as media interview tips. All of the messages are 3-5 short sentences, written in straightforward language that is appropriate for the 6th to 8th grade reading level.

ASTHO thanks the state health officials and Randall Hyer and Vincent Covello from the Center for Risk Communication for their work developing this guide.

ASTHO is the national nonprofit organization representing the public health agencies of the United States, the U.S. territories, and the District of Columbia, as well as the more than 100,000 public health professionals these agencies employ. ASTHO members, the chief health officials of these jurisdictions, are dedicated to formulating and influencing sound public health policy and to ensuring excellence in state-based public health practice.

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SOURCE Association of State and Territorial Health Officials