Ethical consideration about health risk communication and professional responsibility

The question of what probability actually is has long been debated in philosophy and statistics. Although the concept of probability is fundamental to many applications in the health sciences, these debates are generally not well known to health professionals. This paper begins with an outline of some of the different interpretations of probability. Examples are provided of how each interpretation manifests in clinical practice. The discipline of genetic counselling (familial cancer) is used to ground the discussion. In the second part of the paper, some of the implications that different interpretations of probability may have in practice are examined. The main purpose of the paper is to draw attention to the fact that there is much contention as to the nature of the concept of probability. In practice, this creates the potential for ambiguity and confusion. This paper constitutes a call for deeper engagement with the ways in which probability and risk are understood in health research and practice.

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Key Challenges and Concepts in Health Risk Communication: Perspectives of Agency Practitioners

Journal of Public Health Management and Practice ◽

10.1097/00124784-200107010-00011 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 7 (1) ◽

pp. 67-75 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Tim L. Tinker ◽

Eric Zook ◽

Thomas J. Chapel

Keyword(s):

Health Risk ◽

Risk Communication

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Communicating Information About Environmental Health Risk: Perspectives from Environmental Civil Society Organizations

Proceedings of the Annual Conference of CAIS / Actes du congrès annuel de l'ACSI ◽

10.29173/cais896 ◽

2016 ◽

Author(s):

Shelagh K. Genuis

Keyword(s):

Civil Society ◽

Health Risk ◽

Risk Communication ◽

Environmental Health ◽

Civil Society Organizations ◽

Non Profit ◽

Environmental Health Risk ◽

Information Worlds

We examine the role of Canadian non-profit and nongovernmentalenvironmental groups in publicdiscourse about environmental health risk.Organization representatives were interviewed;implications for risk communication areconsidered. Findings suggest: organizationscontribute to the information worlds of citizens;benefit may be realized from fostering dialogue andpartnership with these organizations.environnementaux sans but lucratif et les organismesnon gouvernementaux du Canada dans le discourspublic sur les risques de santé dus à l’environnement.Des représentants des organisations ont étéinterrogés; les implications pour la communicationdes risques ont été prises en compte. Les résultatsindiquent que ces organisations contribuent auxmondes informationnels des citoyens, et qu’il y aavantage à favoriser le dialogue et les partenariatsavec ces organisations.

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Pandemic Influenza Preparedness in Africa

Proceedings ◽

10.3390/proceedings2020045003 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 45 (1) ◽

pp. 3

Author(s):

Evanson Z. Sambala ◽

Tiwonge Kanyenda ◽

Chinwe Juliana Iwu ◽

Chidozie Declan Iwu ◽

Anelisa Jaca ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Risk Communication ◽

International Health ◽

Ethical Consideration ◽

World Health ◽

African Region ◽

Member States ◽

Case Investigation ◽

Health Organization ◽

Health Regulations

Background: Prior to the 2009 pandemic H1N1, and the unprecedented outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) caused by the H5N1 virus, the World Health Organization (WHO) called upon its Member States to develop preparedness plans in response to a new pandemic in humans. The WHO Member States responded to this call by developing national pandemic plans in accordance with the International Health Regulations (IHR) to strengthen the capabilities of Member States to respond to different pandemic scenarios. In this study, we aim to evaluate the quality of the preparedness plans in the WHO African region since their inception in 2005. Methods: A standard checklist with 61 binary indicators (“yes” or “no”) was used to assess the quality of the preparedness plans. The checklist was categorised across seven thematic areas of preparedness: preparation (16 indicators); coordination and partnership (5 indicators); risk communication (8 indicators); surveillance and monitoring (7 indicators); prevention and containment (10 indicators); case investigation and treatment (10 indicators) and ethical consideration (5 indicators). Four assessors independently scored the plans against the checklist. Results: Of the 47 countries in the WHO African region, a total of 35 national pandemic plans were evaluated. The composite score for the completeness of the pandemic plans across the 35 countries was 36%. Country-specific scores on each of the thematic indicators for pandemic plan completeness varied, ranging from 5% in Côte d'Ivoire to 79% in South Africa. On average, preparation and risk communication scored 48%, respectively, while coordination and partnership scored the highest with an aggregate score of 49%. Surveillance and monitoring scored 34%, while prevention and containment scored 35%. Case investigation and treatment scored 25%, and ethical consideration scored the lowest of 14% across 35 countries. Overall, our assessment shows that pandemic preparedness plans across the WHO African region are inadequate. Conclusions: Moving forward, these plans must address the gaps identified in this study and demonstrate clarity in their goals that are achievable through drills, simulations and tabletop exercises.

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