Building trust within and across communities for health emergency preparedness

Overview

To better understand the role of trust in health emergency preparedness and develop strategies for its enhancement, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) convened a consultation in April 2020 with experts from a wide range of fields.2 Participants included experts in data, the media, public health, program implementation, human behavior, and research from the private sector, academia, and non-governmental organizations (see appendix 2 for full list). Over the course of three video sessions, participants discussed the nature of the trust gap, its causes and impacts, and strategies for improving trust in institutions and organizations tasked with helping societies prepare and respond to health emergencies. Turning to the current crisis, participants also reflected on the role of trust and mistrust in the response to COVID-19. Except where noted through specific references, this paper is based on the consultation process and author analysis.