Herd Immunity and Other Civics Lessons
While urging the public to do so is a perenniel pursuit, Carroll focuses on the role of herd immunity.
Photo & captions from NYT article |
Carroll makes his point further by citing statistics of childhood deaths from chickenpox between 2004 – 2007. No children died of chickenpox during these years (US), even though young children are not given the vaccine.
Carroll explains –
For many years I’ve thought about health and science concepts such as herd immunity and tracked if and how they are embedded into health messages for patients and the public. In short, I don’t see this important concept foregrounded enough.
In part, “Civic literacy includes understanding how to act with the collective good in mind (Gaventa, 1993; Kawachi & Berkman, 1998).”
“When a person has both a sense of individual and collective identity they are better prepared to consider and coordinate personal and collective interests. Civic literacy comprises a range of understandings including:
• Judging the sources of information
• Judging the quality of information
• Knowing where and how to access information
• Knowing how to advocate for yourself and others
• Understanding the relationship between your actions and the larger social group
Real world example – take the stair signs. They’re fairly ubiquitous in NYC building now. When they first started to be displayed about 5 years ago, in my best non-intrusive ethnography fashion, I’d simply ask people about the signs as we stood at the elevator. I can’t tell you how many people grumbled, “I don’t think taking the stairs is gonna save me any energy.”
Advice: You have to make sure you explain the dual benefits effectively.
Messages implicating the consumer’s responsibility to consider and protect the health of others can strengthen campaigns ranging from second-hand smoke, and handwashing in hospitals, to disaster evacuation directives and, of course, flu vaccination. Creating patient/consumer messaging that taps into and advances a person’s civic health literacy would be a very good thing.
Carroll’s phrase – It’s Not All About You – would be a perfect start.