THE HUMAN SPIRIT PROJECT AN ADVOCACY INITIATIVE FROM THE GDI - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

THE HUMAN SPIRIT PROJECT

AN ADVOCACY INITIATIVE FROM THE GDI

Jonathan Smith, MPH, PhD (candidate) On behalf of GDI advocacy task force April 30, 2015 Geneva, Switzerland

Presentation Overview

• Overview of GDI Advocacy Messages
• Human Spirit Project Background
• Human Spirit Project Approach
• Monitoring and Evaluation

GDI ADVOCACY MESSAGING

Framework and Approach

Key GDI Advocacy Messages

• Three primary pillars:

– Integrated, Patient Centered Care and Prevention – Bold Policies and Supportive Systems – Intensified research and innovation

• Each one of these pillars has specific sub-goals

Pillar 1 Sub-Goals

• Pillar 1: Integrated, Patient Centered Care and

Prevention

• Sub Goals:

– Early diagnosis – Patient Centred Tx of all people with TB/MDRTB – Management of co morbidities – Focus on preventing high risk populations

Pillar 2 Sub-Goals

• Pillar 2: Bold Policies and Supportive Systems
• Sub Goals:

– Political commitment with adequate resources – Engagement with communities, CSOs, and both public and private care providers – Universal health coverage policy; regulatory frameworks for sentinel data – Social protection, poverty alleviation

Pillar 3 Sub-Goals

• Pillar 3: Intensified research and innovation
• Sub Goals:

– Discovery, development and rapid uptake of new tools, interventions and strategies – Research to optimize implementation and impact, and promote innovations

Approaching these Goals

• To approach these three pillar framework

– The “S10” model was developed

• S10 model

– Focuses advocacy messages on 10 different aspects

• f improving TB/MDR-TB in addition to prevention

The S10 Model

Stronger therapy Safer therapy Simpler treatment Shorter treatment Socio-economically supported treatment Swifter case finding, screening, and time to treatment Scalable to reach all people with TB Systematic integration with universal health coverage policies Sustainable political commitment Stigma Free messages to address discrimination

Who do we want to engage with advocacy?

• TB community

– Patients, doctors, NGOs, Unions, Drug Companies, academia

• Donors

– Global Fund, Gates, USAID

• Governments

– Including leader in other areas (MCH, etc)

• Wider community

– Those unfamiliar with TB

THE HUMAN SPIRIT

Background and Concept

What is the Human Spirit Project?

• A collaboration of researchers, patients,

policymakers, and innovators seeking to change the way we perceive the TB epidemic

• Central Ideology:

The TB epidemic is not one large epidemic, but a collection of individual battles fought every day

• The purpose of the Human Spirit Project is

to meaningfully change the conversation about TB

Human Spirit Project

• Based on the central ideology, the project

consists of:

– A collection of story-based films aimed at showing various aspects of the epidemic – A website housing such stories as well as information and data on TB/MDR-TB

Approach

• Uses the same three-pillar framework and seeks

to address each of the S10 goals

• However, including all three pillars, sub-goals,

and S10 goals into one film was illogical

– Too much information for any one product or output

Approach

• We decided to break up this complex messaging

into bite-sized pieces

– Each story would address a subset of S10 goals – Combined together, they would incorporate the entire framework

HSP to date

• Three films to date:

– Strength of a Woman: Thembi Jakiwe – Hear No Evil: Phumeza Tisili – A Bird in the Wind: Dr. Lucica Ditiu

• Hopefully the project will grow into many stories

– Create a community of discussion

S10 Messages by HSP Film

S10 Message Thembi Jakiwe Phumeza Tisili Lucica Ditiu

Stronger

✔

Safer

✔ ✔

Simpler

✔ ✔

Shorter

✔

Socio-economical

✔

Swifter

✔ ✔

Scalable

✔ ✔

Systematic

✔

Sustainable

✔

Stigma-Free

✔ ✔ ✔

A Novel Approach

• For this to work, however, we had to make

people want to watch

– Watching a handful of educational films would not be sufficient in audience retention

• Used story based narratives that show what

each of these messages mean

– Aesthetic, emotional, and creative

A Novel Approach

• We couldn’t take the traditional route

– We were bold, and broke the traditional advocacy paradigm – We used narrative and purposeful emotion

• Viewer’s weren’t ‘taught’ – they nonlinearly drew own

conclusions

Emotion and Creativity Matters

Just last week!

Publicity

What does this mean?

• Both traditional GH outlets and non-traditional

internet outlets are picking up the project

• Using words like ‘experience,’ ‘emotion,’

‘journey,’ battle,’ ‘brings this epidemic beyond the data,’ etc.

But are we shifting the narrative?

Always have to keep success within the central goal of the project

MONITORING AND EVALUATION

Methodology and Outcomes

Central Question

• Can the Human Spirit Project change public

conversation about TB/MDRTB to foster a more positive, patient centered understanding of the S10 issues?

– Can it change the conversation from numbers to people?

Evaluation

• Used qualitative and quantitative research and

message testing

• Aimed to develop a set of insights about how to

change the narrative and create a broader base

• f public support for global TB

Methodology Overview

• Three Step Process

1. Establishing “Control Group”

• Exhaustive review of existing research on public attitudes to

build upon prior knowledge and the work of others in TB/MDRTB

2. Survey design

• Team of social scientists, linguistics, political advisors and

public-opinion experts designed focus group surveys

3. Testing and Analysis

• Tested ‘traditional’ approach (more educational) vs HSP

approach (more emotional)

Methods

• 1000 people were randomized into either arm

– ‘Traditional’ TB advocacy approach

• Focused on educating audience of issues, progress made

– HSP advocacy approach

• Focused on having the audience associate with the issue,

shared values

Participants

• From US, Germany, UK and France
• Audience was ‘engaged’ lay public

– Meaning people that weren’t incredibly involved with global TB, but aware of it as a broader issue – Were not ‘Nay-Sayers’ or skeptics either

Results

• This analysis is still ongoing, but some key

indications of what themes work are being drawn out

Messages that Work

• Independence

“TB programs help people in the world’s poorest places become independent and stand on their own two feet.”

• Shared Values

“Every human life is valuable and although cultures may vary greatly, the love for family and community is universal

• Partnership

“Everyone has their own fight in the TB epidemic, and only by everyone working together in concert can we overcome TB.”

• Progress (i.e. “we are making headway,” or comparing TB to the

success of HIV/ART drug development)

– Regarded as ‘supportive,’ but not a major theme

Conclusion

• The Human Spirit Project Approach has gained

traction and proving to galvanize audiences

• therwise turned off by traditional advocacy
• It does this through themes of shared values and

connections, not traditional didactic approaches

– This seems to prevail in when compared to traditional approaches

Thank you

• Stop TB Partnership
• GDI Advocacy Team
• TB PROOF
• Visual Epidemiology

Research Team

• Interviewees Thembi Jakiwe, Phumesa Tisili,

and Dr. Lucica Ditiu

Questions? Contact me! Jonathan Smith: jonathan.p.smith@yale.edu