Position: Executive Director
Organization: Emergency Health Communication and Outreach (ECHO) Minnesota
Location: St. Paul, MN
Keywords: Risk Communication, Channels of Communication, LEP Populations
It is generally accepted among emergency management and public health officials that there is no “one size fits all” messaging strategy for communicating risk. Culturally diverse communities that are limited English proficient (LEP) or obtain information from non-mainstream sources, such as ethnic media outlets, are often difficult to reach. Furthermore, issues surrounding distrust in government and other messengers may inhibit compliance with emergency warnings. While these challenges are well documented, their complexity, compounded with constraints of public agencies, has inhibited the development of novel risk communication strategies that are tailored to the distinct needs of diverse populations. Innovative strategies, however, do exist.
Founded in 2004,
Emergency Health Communication and Outreach (ECHO) Minnesota has successfully fused the power of broadcast media with the local knowledge of community-based organizations to disseminate culturally competent health information to diverse populations in the Minneapolis-St. Paul region and across Minnesota. We spoke with Executive Director Lillian McDonald to learn more about the ECHO model and promising practices for reaching, and engaging, racially and ethnically diverse populations in public health preparedness.
According to Ms. McDonald, the events of September 11, 2001 brought attention to deficiencies in existing risk communication systems. In addition to gaps in communication between organizations, it became evident that there was no integrated strategy for disseminating time-sensitive information to Minnesota’s immigrant and LEP communities. This was particularly problematic given the large immigrants and refugee communities, such as the Karen from Burma and Hmong from Southeast Asia, which live in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. ECHO has worked to fill this void by embraces multiple modes of mass communication and facilitating collaboration between local health departments and community/ faith-based organizations serving diverse communities.
The mission of ECHO is two-fold: 1) to provide health and safety education to Minnesota’s culturally diverse residents; and 2) quickly disseminate time-sensitive information in the event of a disaster or public health emergency. ECHO has developed a robust communication system broadcast emergency information. A 1-800 telephone line has been established where individuals can receive up-to-date emergency instructions and guidance in one of ten different languages. ECHO also works with their network of community partners to reach culturally and linguistically isolated communities. In addition to posting multilingual information on the ECHO website, ECHO TV disseminates emergency information over public broadcasting stations in English Hmong, Khmer, Lao, Somali, Spanish and Vietnamese. Ms. McDonald described how this system was recently used to disseminate information about a potential botulism outbreak that was being spread through contaminated eviscerated fish—a common dish among the large African population that reside in the Minneapolis-St. Paul region.
ECHO TV has proven to be a particularly successful in providing diverse communities with preparedness and health education. ECHO TV is broadcasted over Twin Cities Public Television and produces twenty-minute programs on topics pertaining to health and safety—such as H1N1, HIV/AIDS prevention, and cold weather safety.
2 In acknowledging the social determinants of health and the notion that community integration is essential for healthy living, ECHO TV has recently provided programs on topics such as civic engagement and elementary education. In addition to providing programs in multiple languages—such as English, Spanish, Somali, and Hmong—ECHO TV is unique as it utilizes local experts from diverse racial and ethnics backgrounds to discuss health and safety topics. As Ms. McDonald explained, this strategy both addresses issues pertaining to trust and gives representatives from diverse cultures a
“voice of visibility.”
While the ECHO model is a promising strategy for addressing the persisting barriers of language, culture, and trust associated with reaching diverse populations, it is not without its challenges. As Ms. McDonald explained, EHCO, like most non-profits, pieces together a fragmented budget drawing from a diverse array of local, state, federal, and philanthropic funding sources. Budget constraints often create a number of tough questions—such as selecting the languages into which resources will be translated.
EHCO Minnesota represents a promising model for reach culturally and linguistically isolated population with health and emergency information. While the services ECHO provides—such as multilingual television programming, multilingual call lines, and translated print materials—are part and parcel of its mission, multi-sector collaboration appears to be the key to its success. By forging partnerships between state and local health departments, public broadcasting, and community-based organizations, ECHO has integrate systems to meet complex health communication needs.
Written By: Jonathan Purtle