Anna-Leena Lohiniva and Annika Pensola (THL) took part in the Global Health Security Conference (GHS) in Singapore at the end of June 2022 to present work conducted in WG3.
During the four-day convention in sunny Singapore we attended insightful sessions addressing themes such as debunking misinformation and disinformation, crisis communication as well as panels on challenges to social and health equity in a global pandemic.
On the final day of the convention, Anna-Leena introduced our work on a COVID-19 risk perception framework, titled “COVID-19 risk perception framework of the public: An infodemic tool for future pandemics and epidemics”. The presentation was part of a session on Non-Pharmaceutical Interventions & Pandemic Response with Dr. Ellie Graeden (Georgetown University) and Ramona Ludolph (WHO).
The framework includes 7 themes and further 20 subthemes related to the scope and severity of COVID-19 related risks. The themes were identified and qualitatively analyzed from social media data consisting of public Facebook comments and Twitter replies to the posts on THL’s social media pages. The framework and examples of its practical implementations to risk communication were met with excitement and interest among panelists and audience alike.