Welcome - Ebola (Mesh)

A rapid review of community engagement and informed consent processes for adaptive platform trials and alternative design trials for public health emergencies

Guide: WHO guidelines on Good Participatory Practice for Trials of Emerging Pathogens (GPP-EP)

GPP-EP were prepared in 2016 by the WHO to support prevention and treatment trials of emerging (and re-emerging) pathogens that were likely to cause severe outbreaks. The guidelines address how to engage community stakeholders and promote ethical standards throughout the research process. 

Published Literature: Ebola-related stigma in Ghana: Individual and community level determinants

Although Ebola-related stigmatization continues to undermine efforts to re-integrate survivors, few studies have examined what influences such stigmatizing attitudes. This paper explores the effects of both individual- and community-level factors on Ebola-related stigma in Ghana.

Published Literature: How can community engagement in health research be strengthened for infectious disease outbreaks in Sub-Saharan Africa? A scoping review of the literature

This literature review, published in 2021 and funded by ALERRT, looks at the body of knowledge that has been developed for community engagement specifically as it applies to emerging infectious disease outbreaks in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Event: EBODAC Colloquium 2020

This series of pre-recorded panel discussions form part of EBODAC's virtual event exploring acceptance and uptake of new Ebola vaccines. They include sessions on 'Trust & Community Engagement' as well as 'Rumour Management'. 

Academic Literature: Lessons from the West Africa Ebola Epidemic: A Systematic Review of Epidemiological and Social and Behavioural Science Research Priorities

This literature review compared epidemiological research (EPI) with qualitative social and behavioural science research (SBS) published during the West African Ebola epidemic.

Report: Ebola Strategic Framework

Project Report: An Exploration of the Lived Experience of African Journalists during the 2014 Ebola Crisis

Project Report: Epidalert Case Files

Academic Literature: Conventional Wisdom versus Actual Outcomes: Challenges in the Conduct of an Ebola Vaccine Trial in Liberia during the International Public Health Emergency

This paper is an assessment of a phase II, randomized controlled trial of an Ebola vaccine undertaken in Liberia during the 2014-15 West African outbreak.

Academic Literature: Development of a set of Community-informed Ebola Messages for Sierra Leone

This paper summarises a project based in Sierra Leone during the 2014-15 Ebola outbreak that produced a set of culturally contextualised Ebola messages. The messages are based on findings from interviews and focus group discussions with community members from two Ebola ‘hot-spots’.

LITERATURE: Engaging 'Communities': Anthropological Insights from the West African Ebola Epidemic

This article, by Wilkinson et al. 2017, deconstructs notions of 'community', and the ways it is conceptualised and understood, in order to critically reflect upon methods of engaging 'communities' during the west African Ebola epidemic in 2014. 

Literature: Research Report - An Exploration of the Lived Experience of African Journalists During the 2014 Ebola Crisis

This research report from the World Federation of Science Journalists explores the lived experience of African journalists during the 2014 Ebola crisis in West Africa with the aim of highlighting key professional, technological and social aspects required for effective journalism during emergency and post-outbreak periods.

Red Cross's Jemilah Mahmood Offers 5 Principles for Improved Community Engagement During Humanitarian Action

Dr. Jemilah Mahmood, undersecretary general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies gave the keynote at the Medicine Sans Frontiere annual Scientific Day 2017.  Her message was that humanitarian work needs to work far closer with local populations before, during and after humanitarian action. She emphasises five key principles to achieving this all of which would be relevant to those working in engagement with research in low income settings as well as humanitarian aid workers.

Article: Evaluating public communication of science and technology: The case of the Ebola virus

This article analyses media coverage and public communications over the time of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa 2013-2016 with a focus on the interations between scientifically grounded information and messages from cultural and religious actors.