The progress—and PR—surrounding Zika

Clinical trials for a Zika vaccine got the green light on Monday.

The news of the Food and Drug Administration’s go-ahead was tempered, however, by a new poll that suggests Americans have only limited awareness of the mosquito-borne virus.

The HealthDay/Harris Poll asked more than 2,000 adults last month about Zika, which can cause severe birth defects and brain abnormalities.

“There’s still more work to be done in educating the public, especially about transmission,” said Meghan Ross, senior associate editor of Pharmacy Times.

Striking results from the survey include these figures:

• About 45 percent of respondents knew that Zika could be contracted through sexual transmission.

• Some 55 percent of those surveyed knew the virus could cause brain damage in babies born to infected women.

• Fewer than 50 percent of participants knew that a fetus could contract Zika from his or her mother.

Although public health leaders say a vaccine could be years away, pharmacists, doctors and clinicians are being urged to kick-start patient outreach and public awareness campaigns.

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The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has spent much of the past year offering resources, press materials, online chats and bilingual public service announcements to health care communicators.

A reality check from the CDC

News broke Friday that Puerto Rico is experiencing a rapid increase in the number of Zika infections. CDC chief Dr. Tom Frieden said there may be hundreds of babies born with microcephaly within the next several months. Health officials in the U.S. commonwealth reported nearly 1,730 people have been infected with the virus, including 191 pregnant women. Reuters said that’s up from a total of 1,501 total infections and 182 infections in expectant mothers a week ago.

A post on HealthDay.com said:

Zika has been tied to thousands of cases of microcephaly, mainly in Brazil. It is typically transmitted via the bite of the Aedes aegypti mosquito. “Controlling this mosquito is very difficult,” Frieden said. “It takes an entire community working together to protect a pregnant woman.”

How can communities band together to educate people, especially pregnant women and their partners, about prevention and screenings?

Social media isn’t much help, says Ronn Torossian on Everything PR. After all, snippets of information and scary stories tend to flourish online. Torossian wrote:

In New York, Mayor [Bill] de Blasio recently said regarding their plans for dealing with the Zika virus “We are … building the capacity to respond to every possible scenario, no matter how unlikely.” It’s a good soundbite, but that kind of vigilance is expensive and may be far beyond what is needed. New York’s plan has a budget of $21 million for three years covering the five boroughs. Some of it is great – others parts are not only expensive but could cause alarm well beyond the danger.

Not all communicators and medical practitioners will agree with Torossian’s next opinion about intentions and motivation around PR and Zika:

At this point, the people most likely making money off this virus are those spreading the stories in the most extreme ways, and those who offer a “quick fix” to the problem. Of course, money is not the only way to “profit” from a situation. Scandal rags and sites breaking big news may have more sales, increased advertising, and more notoriety. Zika is serious business with serious outcomes for some … but like many health issues that are very serious, like Hepatitis, HIV, even Malaria, the best way forward is learning how to keep the risk under control and not allowing fear mongering to control our lives.

A post on MSN.com said misinformation and social media are hindering outreach and education:

The rumors, conspiracy theories and myths about the virus being shared on social media and by word of mouth are seemingly as contagious as the disease. Researchers worry that such misinformation could undermine efforts to control Zika’s spread and even the public’s willingness to accept any vaccine. Public health officials are working to share accurate information about the virus and its risks with the public.

The post continues:

“Once people have made up their minds about something, it’s hard for them to change their opinions,” said Mark Dredze, an assistant research professor in the Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering’s Department of Computer Science who recently reviewed 140,000 Twitter posts regarding the mosquito-borne virus… Misinformation, and outright conspiracy theories, have abounded since the beginning of time, those who study the phenomenon say. They are the “lifeblood of epidemics,” said Dr. Howard Markel, a medical historian at the University of Michigan.

Markel said myths and conspiracies, such as the ones that occurred with AIDS and Ebola, are now amplified by the internet and a keyboard connection.

“[There’s] a growing distrust of medical studies and therapies funded by government and big corporations, and even more people are doubting and filling the web with alternative theories,” reported MSN.com.

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