The Evaluation of a Social Media Campaign to Increase COVID-19 Testing in Migrant Groups: Cluster Randomized Trial

Abstract

Background A low test positivity rate is key to keeping the COVID-19 pandemic under control. Throughout the pandemic, several migrant groups in Norway have seen higher rates of confirmed COVID-19 and related hospitalizations, while test positivity has remained high in the same groups. The Norwegian government has used several platforms for communication, and targeted social media advertisements have in particular been an important part of the communication strategy to reach these groups. Objective In this study, we aimed to investigate whether such a targeted Facebook campaign increased the rate of COVID-19 tests performed in certain migrant groups. Methods We randomly assigned 386 Norwegian municipalities and city districts to intervention or control groups. Individuals born in Eritrea, Iraq, Pakistan, Poland, Russia, Somalia, Syria, and Turkey residing in intervention areas were targeted with a social media campaign aiming at increasing the COVID-19 test rate. The campaign message was in a simple language and conveyed in the users’ main language or in English. Results During the 2-week follow-up period, the predicted probability of having a COVID-19 test taken was 4.82% (95% CI 4.47%-5.18%) in the control group, and 5.58% (95% CI 5.20%-5.99%) in the intervention group (P=.004). Conclusions Our targeted social media intervention led to a modest increase in test rates among certain migrant groups in Norway. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04866589; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04866589

A web-based cross-sectional observational study on the analysis of information on diabetes on a social media platform (Instagram)

“…12 This requires a better thought process and innovation to put these messages forward so that they resonate with the values and ideals of the target audience. Apart from this, disease education through the language, especially the mother tongue, of the target audience will result in a wider audience participation as rightly put by Elgersma et al 7 Thus, our analysis of Instagram posts about diabetes provides valuable insights into how individuals discuss and manage the disease on social media. Further research could include analysing a larger sample of posts and exploring other social media platforms to better understand the diabetes conversation on social media.…”

“…6 Multiple meta-analyses about the usage of social media, as intervention channels for non-communicable diseases, to improve patient behaviour and disease outcomes have reported beneficial results. 7,8 Healthcare professionals and health and wellness institutions can use social media as a channel to improve patient knowledge about diabetes. 8 Various authorities such as the Norwegian government have used social media as platforms for communication and advertisements in times of COVID-19 to increase the rate of testing.…”

“…8 Various authorities such as the Norwegian government have used social media as platforms for communication and advertisements in times of COVID-19 to increase the rate of testing. 7 Studies have found that social media can increase knowledge and information about diabetes and it is a preferred means of communication used by patients with their healthcare professionals. 9 However, detrimental information and erroneous interventions may adversely affect patient outcomes.…”

Public health agencies’ use of social media for communication during pandemics: a scoping review of the literature

“…Nimble tactics also influenced PHAs’ effectiveness. To increase their reach within their jurisdiction, PHAs adopted multilingual health messages [ 14 , 15 , 66 ]. They also utilized appropriate terminology in their messages [ 67 ] and offered advice using culturally fitting strategies [ 54 , 68 ].…”

“…This educational approach successfully captured public attention. Topics addressed included the use of personal protective equipment [ 24 , 52 , 63 ], vaccination and vaccine hesitancy [ 55 , 72 ], lockdowns, isolation, and physical distancing [ 45 , 51 , 73 ], personal sanitation [ 68 , 77 ], routine immunological testing [ 41 , 66 ], and contact tracing [ 29 , 73 ].…”