Target Audience: Local Civil Society Organizations, government and media working on Covid-19.
What is social stigma?
Social stigma in the context of health is the negative association between a person or group of people who share certain characteristics and a specific disease. In the face of the outbreak, people are discriminated against, stereotyped or labelled and there is a perceived link with the disease.
Why is there stigma associated with Covid-19?
Stigma can:
- Prevent people from seeking healthcare immediately;
- Drive people to hide the illness to avoid discrimination;
- Discourage them from adopting healthy behaviors;
How to address stigma associated with Covid-19?
- There should be openness and honesty in discussing Covid-19.
- Always show empathy with those affected and understand the disease by seeking and consuming information from reliable sources.
- Adopt effective measures to keep yourself and your loved ones safe.
Don’t
- Attach locations or ethnicity to the disease. For instance do not say “Chinse Virus” or “Wuhan Virus”;
- Don’t refer to people with the disease as “Covid-19 cases” or “victims” instead say “people who have Covid-19”;
Do – Talk about “people who may have COVID-19”
Don’t: talk about “Covid-19 suspects” or “suspected cases”
Do – talk about people “acquiring” or “contracting” COVID-19
Don’t talk about people “transmitting COVID-19” “spreading the virus” as it implies intentional transmission and assigns blame;
Do – speak accurately about the risk from Covid-19, based on scientific data and latest official health advice.
Don’t – repeat or share unconfirmed rumors, and avoid using hyperbolic language designed to generate fear like “plague” or “apocalypse” etc;
Don’t – emphasize or dwell on the negative;
Do – emphasize about early screening, testing and treatment;
Do your part:
All of us, governments, citizens, media, key influencers and communities have an important role to play in preventing and stopping stigma surrounding people from China and Asia in general.
Let us be thoughtful when communicating on social media as well as other communication platforms.
What else can we do:
- Spread the facts; – let us collect, consolidate and disseminate accurate information only;
- Engage social influencers: – engage religious leaders, celebrities and even politicians to support those who have been stigmatized and amplify these messages;
- Amplify the voices: – let us cover more stories of those who experienced Covid-19 and recovered or have supported a loved one through the recovery process;
- Let us portray different ethnic communities: – all materials should show diverse communities being impacted and working together to prevent the spread of Covid-19;
Facts, not fear will stop Covid-19
- Share facts and accurate information about the disease;
- Challenge stereotypes and myths;
- Choose words carefully;
Sources: UNICEF, IFRC; WHO publication Accessed on: https://uni.cf/33UwsKA
