November 2009 — Field epidemiologists are often on the front lines in emergency situations. Their scientific training allows them to manage outbreak investigations, analyze situations on the ground and develop public health recommendations. To successfully fulfill their responsibility to the public — to alert the public to risks, motivate people to take action and prevent further consequences — they must be able to communicate effectively.
This training program, created by the PREVENT project, provides field epidemiologists an opportunity to apply their technical expertise along with communication skills to practice the types of situations they may face during outbreak investigations or emergency responses. The program includes: 1) creating realistic recommendations by listening to those affected; 2) crafting and delivering messages to the public; and 3) speaking in the community. The activities in the lessons provide eight case studies to illustrate a variety of public health scenarios and practice communicating with a variety of audiences, from farmers to journalists.
