Promoting health literacy during Covid-19 pandemic–valuable partnership with Portuguese pharmacists

Abstract Issue/Problem COVID-19 pandemic has amplified the amount of health information available; however, hard-to-reach populations remain and much of the information available is not accurate. Therefore, the use of new proximity approaches in the promotion of health literacy is essential because people face challenges and barriers when trying to find information relevant to them. Description of the problem From the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the Division of Literacy, Health and Wellbeing of the Directorate-General of Health in Portugal developed Social Mobilization and Community Engagement training sessions-which included a presentation and a toolkit of flyers/posters/videos. These sessions had the goal of disseminating public health measures through good practices in health literacy and communication methods/skills to promote efficient communication among people who play an active role (as microinfluencers) in prevention and mitigation of risks associated with COVID-19, as is the case of pharmacists. Results A total of 200 Portuguese pharmacists enrolled on the Social mobilization training session in November 2021. More than 150 initiatives were implemented thereafter by those microinfluencers (pharmacists) in the local communities-31% directed to children or young people, 31% to older adults, and 13.8% to migrants or tourists. 70% of the participants considered the materials of the toolkit as adequate and sufficient, and 62.1% answered that people in the community showed interest for those materials available in the pharmacies. Lessons This Social mobilization project was important because it assembled and preserved trust- basing the information of the training on reliable sources about COVID-19 virus. It also trained the microinfluencers (pharmacists) in communication strategies. All these approaches were important to prevent and mitigate the impact of COVID-19 via adoption of non-pharmacological measures and promotion of vaccination. Key messages • Portugal was pioneer in promoting Social mobilization and community engagement training sessions, maintaining a proximity communication, tailoring the information, and maximizing its impact. • Within the group of health professionals, pharmacists are a privileged group to promote these communication strategies and social mobilization due to their proximity with the local community.

Issue/Problem: COVID-19 pandemic has amplified the amount of health information available; however, hard-to-reach populations remain and much of the information available is not accurate. Therefore, the use of new proximity approaches in the promotion of health literacy is essential because people face challenges and barriers when trying to find information relevant to them. Description of the problem: From the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the Division of Literacy, Health and Wellbeing of the Directorate-General of Health in Portugal developed Social Mobilization and Community Engagement training sessions-which included a presentation and a toolkit of flyers/posters/videos. These sessions had the goal of disseminating public health measures through good practices in health literacy and communication methods/skills to promote efficient communication among people who play an active role (as microinfluencers) in prevention and mitigation of risks associated with COVID-19, as is the case of pharmacists.

Results:
A total of 200 Portuguese pharmacists enrolled on the Social mobilization training session in November 2021. More than 150 initiatives were implemented thereafter by those microinfluencers (pharmacists) in the local communities-31% directed to children or young people, 31% to older adults, and 13.8% to migrants or tourists. 70% of the participants considered the materials of the toolkit as adequate and sufficient, and 62.1% answered that people in the community showed interest for those materials available in the pharmacies. Lessons: This Social mobilization project was important because it assembled and preserved trust-basing the information of the training on reliable sources about COVID-19 virus. It also trained the microinfluencers (pharmacists) in communication strategies. All these approaches were important to prevent and mitigate the impact of COVID-19 via adoption of nonpharmacological measures and promotion of vaccination.

Key messages:
Portugal was pioneer in promoting Social mobilization and community engagement training sessions, maintaining a proximity communication, tailoring the information, and maximizing its impact. Within the group of health professionals, pharmacists are a privileged group to promote these communication strategies and social mobilization due to their proximity with the local community.
Abstract citation ID: ckac131.326 Measuring the burden of infodemics on health outcomes through harmonized global metrics Issue/problem: Infodemics happen when an excess of information makes it difficult for people to discern what they see and hear to make good health decisions. Several challenges limit the usefulness of applying infodemiology research to the practice of managing infodemics including inconsistency in how information exposure is measured and a lack of focus on assessing associations with health behaviors. Description of the problem: In 2021, WHO partnered with the University of Sydney to develop a study toolkit. We sought to create novel tools for measuring information exposure that can be easily deployed, linked to surveys measuring health behaviors, and implements a standardized study protocol so that data can be directly synthesized into a global analysis of information risk factors associated with health behaviors.

Results:
A web-based study platform was developed, comprising tools for capturing information exposures within studies that link to health behavior surveys. The first tool is a smartphone application that asks users to actively record relevant information they see or hear in diary. The second application is a web browser plugin that passively tracks webpages with relevant keywords. Because localized studies follow a standardized protocol and de-identified participant data are recorded in a common format, local study investigators can opt-in to contributing study data to support global surveillance efforts.

Lessons:
Through standardization of measurement tools and relevant study protocols, the toolkit can be used to quickly collect and synthesize data for global or regional analysis of infodemics, including in Europe. Validation of the toolkit in the field is needed to inform its open-source release.

Key messages:
A toolkit for measuring information risk factors associated with behavioral outcomes was developed. Global collaboration using the toolkit can improve synthesisability of studies investigating infodemic burden of disease.
Abstract citation ID: ckac131.327 The effect of alcohol marketing on people with, or at risk of, an alcohol problem: A rapid review

Background:
Little is known about the impact of alcohol marketing on people with, or at risk of, an alcohol problem. A rapid review of primary studies was conducted with the aim of exploring the effect of alcohol marketing in this population.

Methods:
People with, or at risk of an alcohol problem were defined as people with an alcohol use disorder, in recovery from an alcohol use disorder, and hazardous and harmful drinkers. Searches for relevant literature were conducted through Medline, EMBASE and PsychINFO; reference list scanning and citation tracking of included studies; and grey literature searching of relevant websites. A narrative synthesis of included studies was undertaken.

Results:
The review included 11 studies, which focused on participants recovering from an alcohol use disorder (AUD, 6 studies) and those with hazardous or harmful consumption levels of alcohol (5 studies). 7 studies were quantitative and 4 were qualitative.
The effect of alcohol advertising on alcohol use was only assessed in one small experimental study of young adult heavy