Community education on travel health
In order to encourage immigrant VFR travellers to seek health advice from a doctor at least six weeks before travelling back to their country of origin, H&K Health Australia worked with sanofi pasteur to deliver a comprehensive community education campaign for three major ethnic minority groups in Australia - the Chinese, Vietnamese and Indian communities.
When formulating the campaign strategy and tactics, special consideration was given to what sources were most respected within each community, and the most effective medium for reaching large audiences. Such an approach ensured key messages were delivered in a culturally appropriate manner that ensured an impact and a subsequent action: to visit a doctor at least six weeks before travel back to one's country of origin.
The project spread the pre-travel health consultation message to an audience in excess of 1 million - nearly 20% of the entire Australian VFR community - via articles in print, interviews on radio and TV, and CSAs across all media forms. Many more people have learnt about the importance of visiting their doctor pre-travel via information stalls and z-cards distributed at community events, and from in-language easy-to-read posters in local supermarkets and mixed businesses.
Leading doctors within the travel medicine space have commended the campaign for both its purpose and the results it has yielded, and feedback from the three focus communities has been overwhelmingly positive.