Supporting global health initiatives to communicate vital Ebola information

Twitter has joined forces with the World Health Organisation (@WHO) and the U.S. Center for Disease Control Foundation (@CDCFound) to support their efforts in communicating vital information to the public about the Ebola virus.

In August, Twitter embarked on an emergency communication campaign with the World Health Organisation (WHO), the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations system. WHO is also responsible for providing leadership on global health matters.

Twitter partnered with the extraordinary @WHO team to develop an Ads for Good campaign to disseminate critical information about the public health emergency, dispel many of the myths surrounding the disease and reach thousands of people in Africa. Every day, citizens across the globe seek WHO’s guidance on a range of public health issues, so amplifying its reach on Twitter as widely as possible was of extreme importance.

The team used a variety of methods to extend the campaigns reach such as targeting the @username of airlines that fly to affected regions.

They also targeted a series of keywords (#ebola, #quarantine) with Tweets highlighting vital public health information and including links to @WHO’s detailed FAQs.

Community outreach was a vital part of this campaign as well. @WHO tweeted to ask those who had recovered from Ebola to help care for others who had contracted the virus.

Twitter will continue to work with @WHO in the coming months to support their emergency communication campaign on the platform.

Twitter and the U.S. Center for Disease Control Foundation (@CDCFound) launched a global Ads for Good campaign in early November with the objective of educating citizens about the disease and dispelling many of the myths surrounding it.

@CDCFound is a non-profit that works in conjunction with the private sector to extend CDC’s critical life-saving mission. It is highly active in supporting the CDC’s response to Ebola, not only in the US but also in West Africa.

The team used a variety of methods to maximise the effectiveness of the campaign, such as targeting keywords like #Ebola and providing links to the CDC Foundation website which contains detailed information about the disease.

The CDC Foundation provides critical assistance and supplies through donations to the Foundation’s Global Disaster Response Fund, which enables CDC staff to respond quickly to changing circumstances and needs. The campaign also sought to raise awareness about their services and the need for in-kind donations to ensure that the CDC Foundation can continue to provide vital services.

Twitter will continue to work with the CDC Foundation to support their efforts particularly in the regions of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone.