ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: To develop a digital communication tool to improve the implementation of up-to-date COVID-19 recommendations. Specifically, to improve patient, caregiver and public understanding of healthcare recommendations on prevention, diagnoses and treatment. METHODS: Multi-stakeholder engagement design. In conjunction with the COVID-19 Recommendations and Gateway to Contextualization RecMap, we co-developed a stakeholder prioritization, drafting and editing process to enhance guideline communication and understanding. RESULTS: This paper presents the multi-stakeholder development process with three distinct plain language recommendation formats: formal recommendation, good practice statement, and additional guidance. Our case study of COVID-19 plain language recommendations PLRs addresses both public health interventions (e.g., vaccination, face masks) and clinical interventions (e.g., home pulse oximetry). CONCLUSION: This paper presents a novel approach to engaging stakeholders in improving the communication and understanding of published guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Humans , COVID-19/epidemiology , COVID-19/prevention & control , Pandemics/prevention & control , Caregivers , Masks , Public HealthABSTRACT
2020 will forever be marked as a year that brought with it an unprecedented number of challenges for the healthcare community. COVID-19 had monumental effects on all fields, including ophthalmology. Considering this we are truly thankful for all of the support we have received, despite the pressures brought about by the pandemic. We are very grateful to our Editorial and Advisory boards who have continued to offer their advice, to our authors for working with us to help publish their work, and to our readers for engaging with our content. The Editorial below has been authored by Ophthalmology and Therapy's EU Editor-in-Chief Professor Tariq Aslam. Professor Aslam writes about his aspirations for the healthcare and ophthalmology community in 2021, and how the journal hopes to play its part in facing these challenges.