Digital advocacy in context of COVID-19

Rashmi Acharya
BPH 5th semester Student
LA GRANDEE International College,Pokhara-08

Advocacy an organized process of influencing people in order to achieve a stated positive change and Digital advocacy is the use of technology to galvanize the people.

In this present time, there are literally hundreds of social media applications and almost every juvenile population is with it. Health advocacy encompass direct service to the individual or family as well as activities that promote health care in communities and the larger group.

Social media is accessible to anyone access to internet/mobile and can potentially reach many people. It is the mean of interactions among people in which they create, share and exchange information and ideas in virtual communities and networks. Using just a smartphone, an advocate can engage with thousands of strangers over live video. Social media presents a variety of opportunities to amplify the influence of digital advocacy campaign. These online efforts can
support the advocacy campaign by raising awareness and extending the impact of message.

Using social media in marketing can help people to choose the
best and improve the health status as well.

There are a lot of digital technologies like websites, blogs, Facebook, twitter, email, texts, YouTube etc. which are obviously not new for us. They can be advantageous in marketing also. Using social media in marketing can help people to choose the
best and improve the health status as well. Social marketing aims to influence the behaviors that benefit the individual and communities for the better social good.

For example,

1. Nutrients related information needed during pregnancy can be provided through social media.
2. Publishing videos about raising voice against violence, discrimination.
3. Promoting posts, videos related to traffic rules and road traffic accident.
4. Advertising on care needed during menstruation and the use of sanitary pads.
5. Advertising on harmful effects of drinking alcohol, smoking, chewing tobacco etc.
6. Notifying about healthy behaviors which can reduce the risk of disease and helps to spend the quality of life.

Before we publish news, information on media a specific media is needed to choose in order to include more people. For this,

• We can select such media which have more followers. Suppose in today’s context most of the people are following online news to get updates about COVID-19.
• We have to determine, whether we can really aware and exchange the realistic and reliable information to the people through that media.
• And the most important thing to consider is time. We have to decide when the information should be published.

If we focus on today’s situation then there are some people who are still not aware about rapidly escalating corona virus through which the entire world is suffering.

And also there are some people who follow social media but also they believe on false news, myths about it which are published. Let’s write, let’s exchange our views and ideas and let’s utilize this time.

Use social media for progress and development but please don’t use it for deterioration.

References

1. www.naesp.org
2. www.who.int
3. https://www.wordstream.com/social-media-marketing
4. https://medium.com/pollicy/digital-advocacy-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly-f861791030c9
5. https://www.voicesofyouth.org/act/how-do-digital-advocacy

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Related readings

• Interim Pocket Book of Clinical Management of COVID-19 in Healthcare Setting
• World Malaria Day 2020: “Zero malaria starts with me”
• World Immunization Week 2020 #VaccinesWork for All
• Tips for staying healthy in lockdown | Anushree Acharya
• Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) Resources: Guidelines, Recording and Reporting Formats