Public health literacy is critical to promoting healthy lifestyles and informed health promoting decision-making among adolescents. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Healthy Schools program outlines key facets of effective health curriculum as building essential knowledge, student-centered, and experiential. While didactic instruction is effective, traditional methods may not fully engage tech-savvy youth. We examined whether supplementing a didactic, experiential curriculum with an extended reality, gamified, problem solving experience would increase public health literacy among high school students (10^th- 11^th graders). We used a mixed-method approach, embedded in the Theory of Planned Behavior, using pre-post surveys and focus groups. Participants enrolled in a 2-week summer intensive (-SAPHIRE) in Summers 2023 and 2024 were exposed to a didactic curriculum which was an interactive, immersive, place-based, problem solving curriculum focused on promote healthy neighborhoods. In Summer 2024, an XR gamified learning experience was added to the curriculum focused on creating virtual experiences for content engagement and collaborative problem solving. We evaluated participants public health literacy, as defined by Freedman, 2009, measuring conceptual foundations, critical skills, and civic orientation. We anticipate the M-SAPHIRE XR program participants will reflect that XR gamified learning experiences can effectively supplement traditional education, potentially leading to greater public health engagement and literacy, reflect heightened interest in addressing public health challenges and public health as a career option compared to the didactic M-SAPHIRE program. This enhanced engagement and retention may facilitate long-term healthy behaviors and informed health-related decision-making.

Background: Spanish-speaking communities in the U.S. face significant barriers to accessing reliable, relevant health information. Without information that is culturally or linguistically concordant, contextually relevant, delivered by a source they trust or through channels they rely on, Spanish-speaking communities lack essential health information, making them disproportionately vulnerable to misinformation and disinformation.

Objective/Purpose: To address the information needs of Spanish-speaking communities and build resilience to mis- and disinformation by using digital tools they trust and rely on.

Methods: The Information Futures Lab partnered with a local organization, We Are Más, to pilot a rapid response program in South Florida to identify community members’ questions and concerns and respond with accessible, culturally competent answers on a weekly basis. 25 'Information Navigators' who are trusted leaders in communities relayed community questions each week. Our team responded with bespoke communications via WhatsApp, a preferred messaging app among Spanish-speaking communities in the U.S.

Results: The use of WhatsApp allowed the project to (1) quickly provide trusted leaders with evidence-based information on the issues their community cares about and (2) make it easy for them to share this information with their communities on a commonly used and trusted communication platform. Information navigators reported increased confidence in their ability to discuss complex topics and appreciation for culturally-appropriate materials that can be shared via WhatsApp.

Discussion: This pilot shows how WhatsApp, as a trusted space for communication and connection, is an important tool to ensure marginalized groups get health information that is timely, reliable, and accessible.

Background

Media campaigns have used a mix of channels, modalities, and creative strategies to reach and engage with audiences. As media campaigns have grown increasingly complex, novel approaches to campaign evaluation are becoming necessary. This presentation describes the innovations used to evaluate the We Can Do This COVID-19 public education campaign.

Methods

We will demonstrate how we accounted for temporal and geographic dynamics in campaign delivery, used granular data to provide a more comprehensive understanding of campaign impact, and linked media and survey data to construct a panel data set. We will also show how we test associations between channel-specific campaign exposure and COVID-19 vaccination. We developed lagged media dose measures to test the short- and long-term pathways through which media dose influenced vaccination, and assessed whether the media dose–vaccination association was moderated by respondent race/ethnicity.

Results

Our comprehensive campaign evaluation demonstrated positive associations between short-term increases in digital dose and greater levels of long-term accumulation of TV dose and subsequent increases in first-dose COVID-19 vaccination; positive interactions between campaign dose and non-Hispanic Black race/ethnic identity and Hispanic/Latino ethnicity on first-dose COVID-19 vaccination; and positive associations between campaign dose and monovalent COVID-19 booster uptake.

Implications

These studies used novel methods to evaluate the effects of a campaign on COVID-19 vaccination. Campaign evaluations can benefit from analyses that link media and survey data to establish evidence of effects, accounting for temporal and geographic dynamics in campaign delivery across media channels.

Misinformation surrounding COVID-19 can impact how individuals receive health information and may contribute to vaccine hesitancy, particularly among the American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) population who may have higher levels of mistrust due to historical injustices and traumas. Low COVID-19 vaccination uptake is seen among AI/ANs in North Dakota (ND), as less than 10% of the population at United Tribes Technical College (UTTC), a tribal college in ND, have received a COVID-19 booster (North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services, 2023). The disparities in COVID-19 morbidity and mortality, as well as lower COVID-19 vaccination rates, support the need for programs aimed at improving vaccination confidence among AI/ANs.

Overcoming vaccine hesitancy is essential to improving COVID-19 vaccination rates. Effective vaccination campaigns have been identified among AI/ANs as those that emphasize the importance of COVID-19 vaccination to protect culture, family, and elders (African American Research Collaborative [AARC], 2021). Therefore, a vaccination campaign was developed at UTTC using messaging guided by evidence on the importance of protection of culture and incorporation of individuals from numerous AI/AN cultures.

Applied Neuromarketing Content Testing was completed on the developed vaccination campaign materials to gain practical insight into how to design the content to be as effective as possible. Applied Neuromarketing Content Testing is a scientific approach that uses specialized physiological measures to monitor attention and emotion during exposure to tested content. Approximately 35 AI/AN students completed this testing at UTTC, and results will be shared to further describe effective vaccine messaging to enhance trust in vaccines, which has the potential to improve uptake and health outcomes.

Background. The Active Living for Pain (ALP) research team engages in knowledge translation initiatives on improved chronic pain management through physical activity (PA) in Saskatchewan, Canada. In 2023, the team launched a social media campaign to raise awareness of the benefits of PA for adults with chronic pain. Applying the RE-AIM framework, the study purpose was to examine the reach and effectiveness of the campaign.

Methods. The 8-week campaign included Instagram and Facebook posts with themes of Motivational Mondays, Team Tuesdays, and Knowledge Nuggets on chronic pain and PA on Wednesdays-Fridays. Reach was assessed through Meta Business metrics of number of unique views of content, age, and gender. Effectiveness metrics included number of followers, overall top performing posts, and week-to-week thematic top performing posts.

Results. Campaign content had 3484 unique views on Instagram and 3941 unique views on Facebook. Most Instagram followers were 25-34 years (n=29) and female (n=87). Most Facebook followers were 25-34 years (n=31) and female (n=132). The newly launched ALP Instagram account gained 138 followers. The pre-existing ALP Facebook account gained 25 followers (N=163). The most viewed posts, overall, were the Instagram week 1 Motivational Monday reel on living with chronic pain (n=575 views) and the Facebook week 5 Motivational Monday reel on moving while living with chronic pain (n=446 views). Instagram Motivational Mondays and Facebook Team Tuesdays were the most viewed thematic posts for 5 of 8 weeks.

Conclusion. The social media awareness campaign demonstrated reach and effectiveness in translating knowledge on chronic pain and PA.

Background and objective. Health misinformation is a public health threat. Our objective was to assess change in beliefs in health misinformation using data from a natural experiment conducted through the iHeard health knowledge monitoring system.

Methods. A total of 306 panel members from CO, MD, MO, and NE answered weekly surveys about their exposure to and belief in 70 inaccurate claims from August 2021 to March 2024. When they had heard a claim, we asked whether they believed it and provided a short counter message providing accurate information. In analyses, predictor variables were age, sex, race, their belief of a claim the first time they heard it (True, Not sure, and Not true), and the number of weeks they received the counter message to a particular claim. Multilevel logistic regression models examined associations with the outcome: whether panel members changed their belief in the inaccurate claim between their first and last responses.

Results. Panel members aged 50 and older (OR=1.49, p<0.001), and Black or African Americans (OR=1.56, p<0.001), were more likely to change their beliefs on health misinformation claims after being exposed to counter message. Those who were initially “not sure” were also more likely to change than those who initially reported “True” (OR=16.01, p<0.001) or “Not true” (OR=9.06, p<0.001).

Conclusions. People who are not sure whether a health misinformation claim is true or not, the elderly, and Black Americans have higher odds of changing their beliefs following counter-messaging. This provides the education opportunity to correct health misinformation.

Background: A 2-year native content development program was funded by the federal Office of Minority Health to leverage existing influence of local journalists, artists and influencers to create health messages that speak authentically about local health challenges during the COVID pandemic and to diversify channels of message distribution. Applications were available online and in-person, in English and Spanish. This end of program review examines efforts to make the awards more inclusive and equitable.

Method: We reviewed team structure, critical decisions made in the grant making process, promotional strategy, and post award process, focusing on improving accessibility of the application and fair selection. Adjustments made between award iterations 1 and 2 were examined.

Result: The team adopted a round-table style structure where community organizations, public health and academics worked collectively. All critical decisions were made by consensus. Although the public health department provided project management and supported marketing work, project ownership and leadership was based in local community organizations. The team leading the project is predominantly people of color. The application used simple language and limited length to reduce burdens for applicants. The evaluation process utilized a transparent and independent scoring system. Conflict of interest between reviewers and applicants were acknowledged and avoided. Post award consultation further provided context for inexperienced awardees to receive guidance on public health context.

Conclusion: Twenty-nine applicants applied in round 1 and 36 in round two. Compared to the first iteration, year 2 application reviewers reported improved of clarity of application and efficiency of evaluation.

Background: In 2020, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) launched the Partnering for Vaccine Equity (P4VE) program to advance equity in adult vaccination and access among racial and ethnic minority groups. The funding supported national, state, local, and community-based organizations to study and address vaccination related mistrust.

Methods: Forty local health departments (LHDs) were funded to conduct CDC’s rapid community assessment to understand low vaccination uptake and use the findings to develop vaccination outreach and education strategies. LHDs also received technical support for outreach, analysis, and message dissemination. The program evaluation measured changes in outreach, communications, and data analysis capacities through pre-post surveys; while focus groups and interviews highlighted new processes or cultural shifts within health departments related to health promotion and marketing and addressing health inequities.

Results: LHDs reported an increased recognition for the value of direct community feedback to inform marketing and promotion activities. They also encountered unexpected benefits by adopting a more qualitative approach in their data collection, which led to impromptu trust building opportunities within the community.

Conclusions: Grant funding often prioritizes a single distal outcome, neglecting the necessary steps, capacities, and conditions for sustainable health outcomes. In this context, reducing vaccine inequities was the primary goal, with increasing community trust, building marketing and research capacity, and strengthening partnerships seen as indirect yet essential elements in achieving this goal. This presentation will address program successes in vaccination, funding considerations for health equity initiatives, and the use of pathway models to analyze public health activities.

Minnesota’s public health system relies on partnerships among the Minnesota Department of Health, local public health, tribal health, and community partners. Needs, capacities, and priorities related to communications vary among these partners. Most of Greater Minnesota, which consists of 80 counties and 11 tribal nations sharing this geography, is considered rural. An aging population, areas with increasing racial diversity, and workforce shortages across sectors make these communities unique. Along with other characteristics, this creates a distinct Greater Minnesota culture. Communicating with rural communities requires understanding, relationships, and a variety of tactics.

The Minnesota Department of Health created new permanent staff positions, currently supported by CDC’s Public Health Infrastructure Grant, for two Rural Communications Specialists in 2023 to focus specifically on supporting communications in Greater Minnesota. These positions provide education and trainings, add capacity, increase cultural awareness and sensitivity, and strengthen relationships internally and with community partners across the state. A needs assessment in progress through 2024 is also uncovering additional lessons and recommendations to advance the rural communication team’s work.

This rural communications model has resulted in increased understanding of rural communication strategies and a greater sense of partnership between local public health and the state agency. It has supported strategic communications development with local public health teams, advised program teams and leadership, and enhanced collaboration across the Minnesota Department of Health. It can serve as a template for building trust; effectively communicating public health priorities; and supporting public health at a systems, program, and community level.

Background:

Overuse of the Emergency Department (ED) for non-urgent care needs leads to increased medical expenses, ED overcrowding, and poorer quality of care. We investigate why patients opt for care from the ED versus their primary care provider (PCP). Our study aims to characterize associations between race, PCP trust and relationship, and barriers to primary care.

Methods:

A 29-item questionnaire assessed the healthcare-seeking behavior of adult patients presenting to the ED at a level I trauma center in Southern California. An Emergency Severity Score (ESI) >3 was considered a non-urgent ED visit (NU-EDV). Chi-square tests were used to identify statistically significant associations. Type I error level was set to 5%. Effect size is presented by Odds Ratio (OR) and 95% Confidence Interval (CI).

Results:

Of 1553 patients, 106 (6.80%) Black, 630 (40.10%) White, 218 (14.00%) Asian, and 589 (37.90%) Latinx. 1063 patients (68.30%) have a PCP and 636 (59.8%) encounter barriers to accessing their PCP. 39 patients (6.13%) cited a poor relationship with their PCP as a barrier. Patients who distrust their PCP are more likely to cite poor PCP relationship as a barrier (OR: 13.8, CI: 6.93, 27.37). Neither race nor previous negative ED experience was significantly associated with PCP trust (p=0.2526, p=0.361 respectively).

Conclusion:

PCP trust did not vary by race and was not influenced by a previous negative ED experience. PCP mistrust was highly indicative of a poor PCP relationship. Our findings suggest the importance of building patient-clinician relationships to improve primary care utilization and reduce NU-EDV.