At OUCRU, we believe that science can excite and inspire children, contribute to their understanding of the world, and present opportunities for life skill development. The better children understand and appreciate science, the better-informed decisions they can make throughout their lives.
To make science more approachable and engaging, OUCRU’s Public and Community Engagement group conducts a range of activities using several appealing, up-to-date formats to transform national programme’s science books, simplify complex concepts such as AMR, vaccinations, and climate change via comics, cartoon, plays, and other rich-media formats. Those media outputs can be also served as educational materials for schools as our contribution to address the shortcomings of scientific educational materials in Vietnam.
The Public and Community Engagement group at OUCRU has a strong commitment to community engagement, particularly in the field of vaccine research. Let’s look at some featured projects in all OUCRU’s local offices, spreading out from typhoid in Nepal to TB in Vietnam. Â
Nepal: Tackling Typhoid
Typhoid is a public health problem in Nepal(1). With its high incidence, Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal, has been labelled the enteric fever capital of the world.(2) To reduce the morbidity and mortality, the Typhoid Vaccine Acceleration Consortium (TyVAC) supported the introduction of typhoid conjugate vaccine (TCV) for Gavi eligible countries with a typhoid disease burden(3) using a World Health Organization (WHO) prequalified vaccine.
However, in Nepal, clinical research is often met with distrust and negative opinions. Therefore, when the TyVAC-Nepal study was conducted, a continuous public engagement strategy had been used to gain and maintain community trust.
The strategy involved three tiers of engagement with various stakeholders, including parents/guardians of vaccinated children, before, during, and after vaccination.
Before vaccination, initial engagement involved Lalitpur Metropolitan City’s elected representatives. The second engagement level was carried out in all 17 municipal wards, attended by various local stakeholders, including ward chairpersons and elected members. The third level involved engaging with mothers’ groups and schools before vaccination, and subsequently with parents of vaccinated children and non-vaccinated community members. School engagement with students and teachers was also part of this third level.Â
Access full paper about public engagement to support typhoid vaccine in Nepal here.Â
Despite challenges such as misinformation, skepticism, and logistical issues, the study achieved its target of vaccinating 20,019 children. The study found that using community-friendly language, involving locals in the consent process, and adapting to community needs and expectations were crucial in overcoming hurdles and building trust.
Indonesia: Battling Malaria
Over 150 million Indonesians are at risk of malaria from five Plasmodium species. Malaria is particularly severe in rural and impoverished areas.
The Indonesian Army deployment of malaria-naïve (or minimally malaria-exposed) infantry soldiers to Papua are highly exposed and vulnerable to severe forms of clinical malaria. Therefore, they view the development of a vaccine as an ideal solution. They believe it could serve as a powerful tool for both the prevention of new cases and the eventual elimination of the disease within their ranks.
The Indonesia trial is being performed as a collaboration between the Indonesian Army, the Eijkman Institute, the University of Indonesia School of Medicine, and OUCRU Indonesia (formerly EOCRU).
This is the first time a malaria vaccine has been tested in a real-world setting outside Africa in many years. It’s also the first time the vaccines have been tested against natural strains of P. falciparum and P. vivax outside of Africa.
Vietnam: Working towards #EndTB Goal
Tuberculosis (TB) is a leading cause of death from infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance, affecting about a quarter of the world’s population. The Global tuberculosis report 2018 estimated Viet Nam had 124.000 new TB cases and 12.000 TB-related deaths in 2017. Despite advances in diagnosis and treatment, TB still causes significant human suffering and economic burden. The current BCG vaccine, developed over 100 years ago, only offers partial protection and does not protect adults and adolescents, who are the majority of TB transmitters. Achieving the WHO’s End TB Strategy targets by 2035 will require a new vaccine effective across all age groups, and vaccines are the best chance to contain the spread of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis.(4)
One of OUCRU’s initial steps towards new TB vaccine and other TB prevention approaches is consulting with the community through the Public and Community Engagement Group’s initiative, the Health Research Advisory Board. Through several meetings and discussions, researchers expect to have opportunities to understand the awareness, concerns, perspectives, and TB vaccine readiness of several communities represented in the board.
Read more about Health Research Advisory Board here. Â
Watch the interview with the TB vaccine project’s two OUCRU researchers
Interview with Associate Professor Timothy Walker on World TB Day
Interview with Dr Phan Triệu Phú on World Health Worker Day
The work of the PCE group at OUCRU highlights the importance of public and community engagement in vaccine research, from encouraging two-way dialogues, dispelling misconceptions, and promoting the benefits of vaccination.
References:
(1) Shakya M, Colin-Jones R, Theiss-Nyland K, Voysey M, Pant D, Smith N, Liu X, Tonks S, Mazur O, Farooq YG, et al. Phase 3 efficacy analysis of a typhoid conjugate vaccine trial in Nepal. N Engl J Med. 2019;381(123):2209–18. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa1905047. – DOI – PMC – PubMed
(2) Karkey A, Aryjal A, Basnyat B, Baker S.. Kathmandu, Nepal: still an enteric fever capital of the world. J Infect Dev Ctries. 2005;2(6):461–65. doi:10.3855/jidc.162. – DOI – PubMed
(3) Karkey A, Aryjal A, Basnyat B, Baker S.. Kathmandu, Nepal: still an enteric fever capital of the world. J Infect Dev Ctries. 2005;2(6):461–65. doi: 10.3855/jidc.162. [PubMed] [CrossRef] [Google Scholar]
(1) In 2016 Thomson et al proposed a taxonomy of ‘5-As’ to describe the dimensions of vaccine uptake: access, affordability, awareness, acceptance and activation.
Awareness is a critical factor affecting vaccine uptake(1), especially in rural communities with limited access to vaccine information , such as ethnic minority communities in rural areas (Binh Phuoc, our research province for example), or due to several different challenges like health crises like COVID-19.
After assessing vaccine uptake, and exploring attitudes and perceptions of selected communities related to vaccination ,with the support of local health authorities, we initiated several interactive activities. These included creating leaflets, posters about neonatal and childhood vaccinations, which used the images of local people to get more attraction from the local community . Then, they were distributed through local health workers and community leaders to the most visited locations in the villages to be able to reach most of the people living there. We also created and performed a community play to make vaccine information as accessible and easy to understand as possible.
Dr Nguyen Thanh Ha‘s research shows that working with hard-to-reach communities in rural areas in Vietnam, local healthcare workers and village health workers play a crucial role in promoting and maintaining the community’s vaccination behaviours. However, they need to explain complex issues to community members from different ethnic groups speaking different languages while having limited training in vaccine knowledge or communication skills(2).Â
In response to these findings, PCE group collaborated with Dak Lak CDC to develop a training curriculum aimed at building the capacity of those local healthcare workers and village health workers . This curriculum also serves as a Train-the-Trainer (TOT) course and guideline to equip district-level and commune-level health staff with sustainable and accessible training materials.
Watch the positive result of the pilot training curriculum here.
In 2021, recognising the significant danger of the spread of COVID-19 infordemic, OUCRU launched a campaign to combat misinformation. We used social media to disseminate trustworthy, evidence-based, scientifically-backed information about COVID-19 vaccines and encouraged people to get vaccinated when possible.
Look at some social media materials we developed.
Through those interactive methods which were carefully chosen through research and need assessments, we aim to build different models to improve vaccine uptake at communities, especially rural areas and enhance vaccine information awareness among wider public
As important as clinical research, at OUCRU, we are also committed to promoting environmental activities and encouraging a culture of sustainability. Our initiatives include a dedicated Green Team and several activities, one of which is the Green Day event.
The OUCRU Green Team is a group of passionate volunteers who work tirelessly to equip our office with eco-friendly systems and inspire staff to adopt environmentally sustainable lifestyles.
On the most recent Green Day, held on 28th March 2024, over 250 environmentally conscious OUCRU staff members gathered. The event, led by the OUCRU Green Team, featured engaging activities, presentations from local green businesses about sustainable reusable alternatives, and informative talks about glass recycling.
An OUCRU staff member explored terrariums, sustainable mini ecosystems that can serve as cute little decorations at workstations.A local eco-friendly shop featured refillable household solutions and handmade items crafted from reusable fabric.
To make the event more engaging and enjoyable, the Green Team organised a quiz game about plastic pollution. The game aimed to disseminate important information and raise awareness about environmental issues in Vietnam.
A key highlight of the event was an informative presentation by I-O BJC, a Vietnamese recycle glass manufacturer. Their representative discussed the glass production process, featured old glass bottles they collected, and its influence on waste management. This session led to the collection of 50kg of glass and the potential establishment of a long-term glass recycling system, a joint venture between OUCRU and I-O BJC.
There was much enjoyment during the talk, with surprise gifts from the speaker.The OUCRU staff showed interest in the talk.
Another impressive accomplishment from the event was the collection of 500kg of used clothing and goods for donation. Our objective is not only to prevent waste from ending up in landfills, but also to emphasise the importance of recycling and reducing consumption.
Received positive feedback from participants, both OUCRU and OUCRU Green Team are confident to continue the commitment to lead sustainable practices and initiatives to promote a green lifestyle within our community and beyond.
Several published research studies have shown that healthcare workers (HCWs) were significantly affected during the COVID-19 pandemic. Being on the front line of the pandemic response, they faced increased risks including pathogen exposure, a shortage of protective equipment, heavy workloads, long working hours, and significant mental distress.
However, many of these studies focused on individual experiences of HCWs rather than their group responses. Examining these collective experiences can highlight the influence of local culture and social factors, as well as analyse system limitations during public health crises such as the pandemic. This understanding can then be used to develop recommended guidelines for future similar crisis situations.
As a part of SPEAR project studying the pandemic impacts on HCWs in Vietnam, Indonesia, and Nepal from 2020 to 2021, we found five main themes that explain how HCWs started coming together, uniting and building communities, as well as supporting each other during tough times using a sociological framework [by Baehr](1).
The first three themes show how HCWs formed a ‘community of fate’ during the pandemic:
They recognised the extreme work-related danger.
They isolated themselves from the outside world to limit transmission risks.
They faced constant challenges with heavy workloads and mental health issues.
In response to these difficulties, two following themes showed how they bonded and became resilient:
They felt a shared duty to protect their communities
They worked together across different levels and departments
Based on these findings, we came to the conclusion that to prepare for future health crises, we need more investment in public health and collaboration across government sectors for smoother operations and responses. This potential model is particularly important in low- and middle-income countries, where most of the responsibility in public health emergencies falls on HCWs in primary care settings, where systematic challenges (long working hours, lacking equipment and infrastructure, etc..) are more common.
(1) Baehr, P. (2005). Social extremity, communities of fate, and the sociology of SARS.
*Archives Europ* Ì*eennes de Sociologie, 46*(2), 179–211. https://doi.org/10.1017/
S000397560500007X
Read more about SPEAR (Social Science and Public Engagement Action Research): Understanding the Socio-Cultural Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Three Countries in Asia
Lá»±c lượng y tế là trụ cá»™t của hệ thống y tế chất lượng cao và kiên cÆ°á»ng, vì thế mà đầu tÆ° và o lá»±c lượng nà y sẽ giúp chúng ta đạt được các mục tiêu y tế và phát triển toà n cầu.
In the 1st week of April each year, the global community comes together to celebrate health workers, the backbone of the health industry and society.
This year, the theme is #SafeSupportedHealthWorkers. The Frontline Health Workers Coalition and its partners are leading the effort. The goal is to unite advocates, health workers, leaders, and communities worldwide to call for investment, protection, and support for the health workforce. This is especially important in low—and middle-income countries.
Let’s look at this year’s key messages:Â
Investing in #SafeSupportedHealthWorkers has the potential to save millions of lives.
Expanding primary care has the potential to save 60 million lives, increase life expectancy by 3.7 years, and promote health equity(1). However, a more robust health workforce is needed to provide services to communities around the world.
2. We need increased and more targeted advocacy to ensure every community has access to #SafeSupportedHealthWorkers to provide access to primary health care and to prevent the spread of emerging health threats.Â
Increased investment in #SafeSupportedHealthWorkers is crucial for achieving SDG3 (Sustainable Development Goal – Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all ages).
With at least half of people around the world still lacking access to essential health services—including maternal care, HIV treatment, family planning, and vaccines, the rising tide of non-communicable diseases and the ongoing threats of emerging diseases and climate change, building a robust health workforce must be a priority from the global to community level(2).
#SafeSupportedHealthWorkers are the backbone of high-performing and resilient health systems, making them an essential investment for achieving global health and development goals.
Health workers are crucial for expanding services, preventing diseases, and supporting economies. Therefore, they should be well-trained, supervised, and compensated.
Many health professionals feel unsafe and do not receive support, respect, and the appropriate working environments they need, leading to a lack of skills development and demotivation.
Despite a surplus of unemployed health workers in several low- and middle-income countries, many countries need help to meet the international minimum target of health workers per population. The WHO projects a global shortage of 10 million employed health workers by 2030(3).
At OUCRU, healthcare workers have been a cornerstone of our public and community engagement approach. To amplifying World Healthcare Workers Week’s messages this year, we initiated a series of activities to celebrate their dedication and resilience while raising awareness and appreciation from the wider public.
We ran a small campaign to spotlight healthcare workers’ personal stories and experiences around OUCRU and our partnered network. These short videos served to give the public a view into the daily lives and challenges these frontline heroes face. [videos are available soon]
Besides raising awareness, one of OUCRU’s Public and Community Engagement core programmes is building capacity for healthcare workers, improving their work experience and professional opportunities, and ultimately aiming for a better comprehensive care system around and beyond the hospital. We have developed a series of online workshops and essential resources aimed at trainers and healthcare workers, as well as implement pilot initiatives around hospitals to prioritise their health and well-being.
Capacity Strengthening for frontline vaccine workers to improve the local vaccine uptake Read more
CONNECT, the resources and training hub for HCWs on The Global Health Network
Engage with healthcare workers and in hospitals Read more
By focusing on the professional development and safety of healthcare workers, OUCRU emphasises our commitment to our vision of local research and global impact and empowering healthcare workers to continue and flourish their life-saving work with confidence and resilience.
