Federal interagency communication strategies for addressing radiation emergencies and other public health crises.

Federal agencies have a variety of roles and responsibilities related to communicating with the public before, during, and after a radiological emergency. To better understand the various efforts currently underway, the Radiation Studies Branch of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention convened a roundtable of representatives from federal agencies with responsibility for communicating with the public about radiation emergencies. Roundtable participants shared valuable information about efforts underway to develop information and messages for a variety of audiences and agreed that continued interagency coordination and dialogue about communication before, during, and after an event are needed. The group suggested several strategies for future collaborative efforts and indicated a desire to continue working together to develop and assess messages for radiological emergency preparedness and response. The group also recommended that more work be done to determine whether messages need to be packaged or tailored for specific special populations and suggested that more research be conducted to answer questions about specific audience/cultural needs around communicating radiation risks. Since this roundtable, attendees have continued to work together to develop and test messages for the public.