{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,2]],"date-time":"2026-10-02T07:38:29Z","timestamp":1790926709033,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":21,"publisher":"SAGE Publications","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,2,1]],"date-time":"2021-02-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1612137600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,2,1]],"date-time":"2021-02-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1612137600000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/page\/policies\/text-and-data-mining-license"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["journals.sagepub.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Health Security"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2021,2,1]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>Risk communication and community engagement are critical elements of epidemic response. Despite progress made in this area, few examples of regional feedback mechanisms in Africa provide information on community concerns and perceptions in real time. To enable humanitarian responders to move beyond disseminating messages, work in partnership with communities, listen to their ideas, identify community-led solutions, and support implementation of solutions systems need to be in place for documenting, analyzing, and acting on community feedback. This article describes how the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and its national societies in sub-Saharan Africa have worked to establish and strengthen systems to ensure local intelligence and community insights inform operational decision making. As part of the COVID-19 response, a system was set up to collect, compile, and analyze unstructured community feedback from across the region. We describe how this system was set up based on a system piloted in the response to Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which tools were adapted and shared across the region, and how the information gathered was used to shape and adapt the response of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the broader humanitarian response.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1089\/hs.2020.0195","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,1,26]],"date-time":"2021-01-26T16:42:41Z","timestamp":1611679361000},"page":"13-20","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/sage-journals-update-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":18,"title":["Using Community Feedback to Guide the COVID-19 Response in Sub-Saharan Africa: Red Cross and Red Crescent Approach and Lessons Learned from Ebola"],"prefix":"10.1177","volume":"19","author":[{"given":"Eva","family":"Erlach","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Eva Erlach, Mag.a iur, is Community Engagement and Accountability (CEA) Delegate and Bronwyn Nichol, MPH, is Community Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness Delegate, Health and Care Unit; both at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Africa Regional Office, Nairobi, Kenya. Sharon Reader, MA, is a Norwegian Capacity (Norwegian Refugee Council) CEA Global Advisor and freelance consultant (previously IFRC Africa CEA Senior Advisor), Glasgow, Scotland. Ombretta Baggio, MA, is Senior Advisor, Community Engagement and Accountability, IFRC, Geneva, Switzerland."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Bronwyn","family":"Nichol","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Eva Erlach, Mag.a iur, is Community Engagement and Accountability (CEA) Delegate and Bronwyn Nichol, MPH, is Community Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness Delegate, Health and Care Unit; both at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Africa Regional Office, Nairobi, Kenya. Sharon Reader, MA, is a Norwegian Capacity (Norwegian Refugee Council) CEA Global Advisor and freelance consultant (previously IFRC Africa CEA Senior Advisor), Glasgow, Scotland. Ombretta Baggio, MA, is Senior Advisor, Community Engagement and Accountability, IFRC, Geneva, Switzerland."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Sharon","family":"Reader","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Eva Erlach, Mag.a iur, is Community Engagement and Accountability (CEA) Delegate and Bronwyn Nichol, MPH, is Community Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness Delegate, Health and Care Unit; both at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Africa Regional Office, Nairobi, Kenya. Sharon Reader, MA, is a Norwegian Capacity (Norwegian Refugee Council) CEA Global Advisor and freelance consultant (previously IFRC Africa CEA Senior Advisor), Glasgow, Scotland. Ombretta Baggio, MA, is Senior Advisor, Community Engagement and Accountability, IFRC, Geneva, Switzerland."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ombretta","family":"Baggio","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Eva Erlach, Mag.a iur, is Community Engagement and Accountability (CEA) Delegate and Bronwyn Nichol, MPH, is Community Epidemic and Pandemic Preparedness Delegate, Health and Care Unit; both at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Africa Regional Office, Nairobi, Kenya. Sharon Reader, MA, is a Norwegian Capacity (Norwegian Refugee Council) CEA Global Advisor and freelance consultant (previously IFRC Africa CEA Senior Advisor), Glasgow, Scotland. Ombretta Baggio, MA, is Senior Advisor, Community Engagement and Accountability, IFRC, Geneva, Switzerland."}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"179","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,2,18]]},"reference":[{"key":"e_1_3_2_2_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.15585\/mmwr.su6503a10"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_3_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1353\/cpr.2014.0065"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_4_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.9745\/GHSP-D-16-00226"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_5_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1136\/bmjgh-2019-002145"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_6_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1098\/rstb.2016.0302"},{"issue":"9","key":"e_1_3_2_7_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e0223104","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0223104","article-title":"Social resistance drives persistent transmission of Ebola virus disease in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo: a mixed-methods study","volume":"14","author":"Masumbuko CK","year":"2019","unstructured":"Masumbuko CK, , Underschultz J, , Hawkes MT. Social resistance drives persistent transmission of Ebola virus disease in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo: a mixed-methods study. PLoS One. 2019; 14(9):e0223104.","journal-title":"PLoS One"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_8_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/inthealth\/ihw018"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_9_2","author":"Cohn S","year":"2016","unstructured":"Cohn S, , Kutalek R. Historical parallels, Ebola virus disease and cholera: understanding community distrust and social violence with epidemics. PLoS Curr. 2016;8:ecurrents.outbreaks.aa1f2b60e8d43939b43fbd93e1a63a94.","journal-title":"PLoS Curr"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_10_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1056\/NEJMp1508413"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_11_2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/S1473-3099(18)30658-3"},{"key":"e_1_3_2_12_2","unstructured":"International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). From Words to Action: Towards a Community-Centred Approach to Preparedness and Response in Health Emergencies. 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