Public health information for minority linguistic communities

Understanding the impacts of the COVID-19 response measures on Deaf adults in Cape Town

Background

International literature has evidenced that Deaf people have been disadvantaged during the COVID-19 pandemic; however, there is currently little research published within the South African context.

Objectives

This study investigated the ways in which the COVID-19 pandemic and its consequent response measures impacted Deaf adults in Cape Town.

Method

Using a descriptive approach, semi-structured, qualitative interviews were held with 15 Deaf adults in Cape Town, South Africa. Participants were purposively selected through a local Deaf organisation. Data were analysed using thematic analysis.

Results

Data revealed the challenges experienced when accessing information, the impact of communication barriers on daily life, and how the response measures impacted access to healthcare.

Conclusion

The findings of this study demonstrate how the needs of the Deaf community were overlooked and their voices disregarded during the planning of the national pandemic response, ultimately having detrimental consequences. Therefore, the authors argue for greater inclusion of Deaf representatives to ensure equal access to information and resources, especially during a crisis.

Contribution

This study contributes to the growing body of knowledge on the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic in the field of disability and insights can inform both future research and interventions to promote equity and inclusion for Deaf people.

Effects of message delivery on cross-cultural biosecurity compliance: Insights from experimental simulations

BACKGROUND

Effective biosecurity communication of transmission risks and associated protective behaviors can reduce the impacts of infectious diseases in US animal agriculture. Yet, more than 1/5 of animal production workers speak a language other than English at home, and more than 40 percent are less than fluent in English. Communicating with these workers often involves translating into their primary languages. However, communication strategies targeting different cultural groups are not well-understood.

AIMS

To identify cross-linguistic risk communication strategies to facilitate compliance, we hypothesized that uncertainty avoidance cultures associated with the languages might affect biosecurity compliance contingent upon two additional covariates: (1) the risk of acquiring an infection and (2) the delivery method of the infection risk.

METHODS

We designed an experimental game simulating a line of separation (LOS) biosecurity tactic in a swine production facility, where participants were tasked with completing tasks inside and outside of the facility. Data were collected using games in the two most spoken languages in the US: English (EN) and Spanish (SP). Participants made binary decisions about whether to use the LOS biosecurity tactic based on the risk information provided. Mixed-effect logistic models were used to test the effects of covariates on using the LOS tactic by different language groups.

RESULTS

We found that biosecurity compliance rates of participants who took the experiments in the language associated with high and low uncertainty cultures showed no significant differences. However, there are substantial differences in how risk information is perceived between the two language groups under different infection risks. Specifically, and counterintuitively, SP participants were more risk-averse in gain scenarios but more risk-taking in loss scenarios. These differences are most pronounced in numeric risk messaging, indicating that numbers may not be the best way to communicate risk information regarding biosecurity cross-culturally.

CONCLUSIONS

When confronted with situational biosecurity decisions, risk perception and preferences vary by language group. Effective biosecurity communication needs to account for these differences and not assume that direct translation of risk messages will result in comparable compliance.