Many of us in 🇨🇦 are seeing something in healthcare we've never seen before and it's scary. While we need to communicate to the public and make them a stakeholder in this, it's important to realize that fear and shame are no longer effective strategies.
1/
It's been 15 months into the pandemic. People are either making risky decisions because they choose to (people know how to physically distance, mask, etc by now) or they're put into situations where that isn't possible. There isn't a knowledge gap for the former.
2/
Asking a few friends and neighbours today outside of medicine what worried them the most, the answers were
a) When is this going to end
b) When can I get a vaccine
c) When can I see my family and friends

Many had empathy for what was happening in ICU - but it wasn't the focus
3/
So how do we reach folks
a) Understand anecdotes, shame, and fear won't reach a lot of people
b) Normalize things will get better and there is a path to normal
c) Protect those who need to be protected
d) Give people hope - these vaccines are amazing
e) Be human
4/
I think a lot of folks are willing to bear and grin, with the hope that things will get to normal, and the amazing examples ongoing in the UK and Israel really do show that. Yes things aren't great now - but there's definitely a runway for a smooth landing upcoming.
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