Communities at the center of mpox and Ebola emergency responses: Driving local level impact through social and behavioural science
Project overview
This series of projects convened a multidisciplinary community around community evidence for mpox, developed standardised rapid assessment protocols, and deployed them for mpox and Ebola.
Project solution
This project offers [specific solution or intervention] to tackle [challenge]. By implementing [strategies, tools, or innovations], the project aims to achieve [desired outcomes]. The approach is designed to [specific actions or methods] to bring about meaningful change in [community, region, or issue area].
Expected outcomes
This project aims to achieve [specific outcomes], such as [measurable results, improvements, or changes]. The expected impact includes [benefits to the target community, advancements in research or innovation, or long-term effects]. By the end of the project, we anticipate [specific changes or milestones] that will contribute to [broader goals or objectives].
Principal Investigator: Dr. Nina Gobat
Purpose
This series of projects aimed to strengthen community-centred public health response to health emergencies by improving how community evidence is generated and used.
Following the declaration of mpox as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, Phase 1 aimed to take stock of available and planned social and behavioural evidence and identify gaps critical to community-centred, equitable response.
Phase 2 had three aims:
- To deliver rapid operational social and behavioural studies for community protection using best practice guidance
- To identify transferrable learning through development of a standardised protocol and implementation tools
- To sustain a network of mpox researchers by convening a community of practice to share experience and expertise.
In response to the 16th Ebola outbreak in Kasai province, DRC, Phase 3 aimed to adapt and implement the standardised rapid community assessment protocol for community protection.
Across all phases, emphasis was placed on strengthening local capacity, ensuring equity-centred evidence reached decision-makers, and on sustainability and learning for future emergency events.
Outcomes
The project produced immediate and longer-term outcomes that strengthen the generation and use of evidence for community centred responses to public health emergencies.
It convened a multidisciplinary community of country representatives, researchers, operational responders, and civil society groups around the value of, and shared standards for, community evidence in response decision-making.
For both mpox and Ebola public health emergencies, locally led community evidence was produced in affected provinces in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and in Liberia. Findings informed response decision-making and led to co-developed, context-specific recommendations.
Building on WHO guidance, international ethics standards, and implementation experience, an interagency technical package was produced. This included an adaptable, generic protocol on rapid assessments for community protection, a practitioner handbook with practical tools, and a 15-module training package with facilitator guide.
Collectively, these outcomes drive norms and standards, strengthen capacity, and demonstrate proof of concept for rapid, high-quality, ethical community evidence to be generated and used during health emergencies.
Project delivery & updates
Stay up to date with the latest developments from this project. Here, you will find details on what has been delivered, resources created, and regular updates as the project progresses. Access key documents, reports, and other materials to see how the project is making an impact.
