CASE STUDY Trust and Engagement in Pandemic/Epidemic Responses: Lessons from Ebola in Sierra Leone
Lawrence Sao Babawo, School of Community Health Sciences in the Department of Nursing, Njala University, described the experience from Ebola where the initial response was heavily led by the top tiers of government but later found success when local leaders were brought in as partners to work on a solution.
According to Babawo, there was a lack of trust in the Ebola response due to several factors:
- Ebola virus disease was new to the area
- People's limited understanding of the disease
- Mixed messaging with too many different definitions being issued
CASE STUDYThe Role of Community Engagement During the Pandemic: Lessons from Paraguay
Guillermo Sequera, Ministry of Public Health and Social Welfare, Paraguay, described examples of community self-organization, the issue of equity and its different aspects, and grassroot efforts to address engagement.
“In this country, and the same applies to other Latin American countries, health policies are highly centralized. They’re in the hands of the government…. Communities really do not get involved in a critical sense. Civil society really isn’t involved in defining priorities or establishing policy, financial control, or provision of service either.”
However, Sequera described the positive outcome of Paraguayan community-led efforts that included “polladas”—which raised money and gathered resources—to support individuals in need during the pandemic. Community organizations, such as the Protestant and Catholic church, were also influential in increasing community trust.
“Here, it’s not only that we all see the population as a beneficiary of our measures. No, it is important that we realize that the community controls what we do. Without that perspective, I don’t see possibilities for reform. And the pandemic has been a time of reform of the health care system here in Paraguay and that would have been unthinkable without participation of our citizenry.”