Improving and Advancing Improving and Advancing CommunicationsCommunications

Around Around “Foodborne Illness Source “Foodborne Illness Source Attribution”Attribution”Dana Pitts, MPH

Associate Director of CommunicationsDivision of Foodborne, Waterborne , and Environmental Diseases

National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious DiseasesCenters for Disease Control and Prevention

January 31 , 2012

“The main problem with communication is the assumption that it has occurred”

– George Bernard Shaw

Improving and Advancing Improving and Advancing Communications Communications

Overview

Merging science and communicationsMaking it relevant and “action-able”Developing a plan Communicating complexityThe potential

Merging Science and Merging Science and Communications Communications

Science Communications

Merging Science and Merging Science and Communications Communications

Making it RelevantMaking it Relevant

To prevent illness and death by gathering and analyzing information to create collective knowledge and stop food problems before they happen

A Real Story of Relevance A Real Story of Relevance

Every discovery during an investigation of foodborne illnesses informs prevention

Internal Communications Aligned thinking Consistent terminology Shared processes (common projects) Project management

External Communications Messages, products, audience testing, media, progress, hot issues ; strong risk

communication principles Leverage visibility of food safety issues to advance understanding of foodborne

illness source attribution, when relevant

Partnership Communications Respond to stakeholder requests for information , meetings Advance scientific literacy, education, and exchange about relevance of assigning

risk to food

Developing a PlanDeveloping a Plan

Public “metrics” meetings (Industry, academia, and consumers) 2010, 3 states, ~ 600 participants FSMA Surveillance Working Group feedback Expert review of early draft strategic plan

FDA Risk Communication meeting Review by renowned experts in risk communications “…an opportunity to apply an evidence-based approach to

communicating risks and benefits. “(Fischoff, 2011)

Connection to body of ongoing work Awareness of, and informal engagement with , “source

attribution” community

Expert InputExpert Input

2010 Public Meetings: 2010 Public Meetings: Measuring Progress on Measuring Progress on Food SafetyFood Safety

~600 participants total*(Federal, state, local government represented)

“Government” includes federal, state, and local, distributed approximately evenly unless noted.Numbers estimated manually; minor error might occur in counting.

Chicago, IL - 101 participants (7/21)

Washington, DC - 389 participants (3/30)

Portland, OR - 105 participants (10/20)

Making something simple is very difficult

— Jack Dorsey, founder of Twitter

FoodSafety.govFoodSafety.govwww.foodsafety.gov

Communicating ComplexityCommunicating ComplexityJanuary 2011: New EstimatesJanuary 2011: New Estimates

First new estimates offoodborne illness in a decade

2 Scientific publications Major pathogens Unspecified agents

1 online table 6 online appendices

Editorial Complex Timed during FSMA

www.cdc.gov/foodborneburden

June 2011 : Annual TrendsJune 2011 : Annual Trends

FoodNet “report card”

Tracks trends Tri-agency program and

publication 15 years Tracks 9 pathogens State authors Many messages Released during Shiga

toxin-producing E. coli O104 outbreak

July: Food Safe Families Ad July: Food Safe Families Ad CampaignCampaign

Ad Council, released 6/30/11

August: 2011 FDA Risk Communication Advisory Committee Meeting:

Communicating about attribution of foodborne illness

August 2011-present October:

2011 National Food Policy Conference November:

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, The Pew Charitable Trusts Food Safety Modernization Act Surveillance Working Group

December: President Food Safety Working Group Progress Report

January: Foodborne Illness Source Attribution Public Meeting

February: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, The Pew Charitable Trusts Interagency Risk Assessment Consortium (IRAC) and Interagency Food Safety

Analytics Collaboration (IFSAC) meeting

Beyond….

Lessons LearnedLessons Learned

Learn by listening Examine data in different ways Good science and good

communication go hand-in-hand It takes time and a strong team to

pull this together Communicating data is an ongoing

activity Be strategic Work with partners in releasing data Can’t afford not to communicate well

The PotentialThe Potential

Thank You

For more information please contact Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

1600 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30333Telephone: 1-800-CDC-INFO (232-4636)/TTY: 1-888-232-6348E-mail: cdcinfo@cdc.gov Web: http://www.cdc.gov

The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases

Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Environmental Diseases