Emergency Risk Communication

The ACME framework refers to a communications approach based on:

• Audience -- drives the selection of the health campaign, including message strategy and channels of delivery
• Channel -- determines and employs the best way to reach the target audience
• Message -- delivers accurate information 
• Evaluation -- measures the ongoing success of the campaign or communication initiative

Health communication campaigns that adhere to the ACME Model integrated set of principles have a greater chance of success than those using the principles idiosyncratically. (Source: An ACME Framework for Health Communication Campaigns, Journal of Health Promotion Practice, 2011)

Antimicrobial resistance occurs when microorganisms that cause disease stop responding to antimicrobial drugs and medicines that were once effective in treating them. In many cases, these new strains of old microorganisms have developed through the misuse or overuse of antimicrobials in food, agriculture, and human health.

The process of identifying groups within a specific audience, defining them by their shared qualities.

Discrete segments within an audience:

• Share similar knowledge, concerns, and motivations;
• Respond to messages tailored to their knowledge, concerns, and motivations; and
• Can be reached through similar media, organisational, or interpersonal channels

When a person changes his or her routine so that a new action becomes part of their everyday life. 

A specific group of people, often living in a defined geographical area, who share a common culture, values, and norms; and who are arranged in a social structure according to relationships which the community has developed over time. Members of a community gain their personal and social identity by sharing common beliefs, values, and norms. 

The process of building two-way collaboration and communication with people at risk to create effective and acceptable solutions to solve common problems. Building relationships with affected communities supports buy-in and strengthens trust and partnership. Community engagement also supports improved levels of response acceptance and ownership of problems and solutions. 

Community engagement standards:

• Involvement – Identify and involve people, communities, and organizations impacted and/or with an interest in the focus of the engagement;
• Effectiveness – Meets the needs and expectations of the people involved;
• Efficiency – Planned, organized, and well-informed;
• Supportive – Address and overcome potential barriers to involvement
• Collaborative – Work together using clear communications and procedures to build trust and share accurate information;
• Transparency – Ensure necessary information is communicated and shared between community members promptly and honestly.
• Shared – Encourage contributions and support communities in taking the lead in preparedness and response efforts.

An unstable or crucial time or state of affairs in which a decisive change, with the possibility of a highly undesirable outcome, is impending. A crisis is characterized by these three elements: Threat, surprise, and short response time.

Disease surveillance is an information-based activity involving the collection, analysis and interpretation of large volumes of data originating from a variety of sources. 

An intervention performed during the emergency phase -- but ALSO before (as part of preparedness activities); and after (to support recovery) -- to enable everyone at risk to make informed decisions to protect themselves, their families and communities against threats to their survival, health, and well-being. 

A disease that is natural to, prevalent within, and/or confined to a particular area.