This course is designed to enhance your ability to collaborate with rural communities to develop effective public health communication strategies. Through practical examples and strategies, you’ll learn how to:
- Build authentic relationships with rural communities
- Plan, develop, and share tailored public health messages
- Collaborate with community partners throughout the communications process
The course is especially valuable for individuals who may not work directly in rural areas but whose programs, policies, or communications have an impact on rural populations.
Receiving Continuing Education Credits Through CDC TRAIN
View these instructions for receiving continuing education (CE) units, contact hours, or credits for this course through CDC Train. To receive CEs for this course, you must log in to CDC TRAIN and launch the course and complete these steps:
- Register for and complete the course.
- Pass the post-assessment at 75%.
- Complete the evaluation.
- Visit Your Learning to access your certificates and transcript.
No fees are charged for CDC’s CE activities.
Table of Contents
The course is divided the following four lessons:
Lesson 1: Building Relationships
Receive continuing education for this training by registering on CDC TRAIN. Search for course number ‘WD4995’ and complete the posttest and evaluation. Review the course Accreditation Statement.
This lesson is designed to address gaps in knowledge and skill/strategy by providing learners with instruction, resources, and activities supporting their ability to effectively build relationships with rural communities to support public health communications. Presented by: Esmeralda Salas, BS, Research Associate, Population Health Innovation Lab.
Learning Objectives
- Identify strategies to support building relationships with rural partners to improve public health communication.
- Recognize reasons why collaborating with rural communities is important for effective public health communications
- Identify strategies for active listening to strengthen collaboration with rural communities
Related Public Health Core Competencies (click to expand)
3.2. Communicates with internal and external audiences
- 3.2.2. Engages in active listening.
- 3.2.7. Communicates the roles and responsibilities of governmental public health, health care, and other partners in improving the health of a community
5.2 Establishes relationships to improve community health and resilience
- 5.2.2. Identifies relationships that may be needed to improve community health and resilience
- 5.2.3. Builds relationships to improve community health and resilience
5.4. Collaborates with community members and organizations
5.4.1. Explains the importance of collaborating with community members and organizations to identify and address community health and resilience needs.
Chapters (click to expand)
- 00:00 Section 1: Introduction to the Course
- 04:52 Section 2: Introduction to Lesson 1
- 07:20 Section 3: Introduction to Rural Public Health
- 13:16 Section 4: Identifying Community Partners
- 16:56 Section 5: Example from the Field – Collaborating Across Sectors in Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) Community Education and Training
- 23:02 Section 6: Example from the Field – Collaborating Across Sectors for Recreational Lead Exposure Communications
- 27:15 Section 7: Diving Deeper – Strategies and Resources for Building Relationships with Rural Community Partners
- 37:55 Section 8: Workbook Activity
- 40:32 Section 9: Summary and Key Takeaways
Lesson 2: Building an Initial Communications Strategy
Receive continuing education for this training by registering on CDC TRAIN. Search for course number ‘WD4996’ and complete the posttest and evaluation. Review the course Accreditation Statement.
This enduring activity is designed to address the gap in knowledge and skill/strategy by providing learners with instruction, resources, and activities supporting their ability to effectively partner with rural communities to develop a public health communications strategy. Presented by: Cassandra Mohan, MSPH, Education and Training Specialist, Population Health Innovation Lab.
Learning Objectives
- List the essential steps of strategic communications.
- Identify resources to develop a rural public health communications strategy.
- Identify strategies for collaborating with rural partners to gather information for effective public health communications.
- Recognize two reasons why using collaborative input from rural partners is important when developing a communications strategy.
Related Public Health Core Competencies (click to expand)
3.1. Determines communication strategies
- 3.1.6. Develops messaging for disseminating public health data and information
- 3.2. Communicates with internal and external audiences
- 3.2.1. Communicates with linguistic and cultural proficiency
- 3.2.3. Seeks input from internal and external audiences
5.4. Collaborates with community members and organizations
- 5.4.4 Collaborates with community members and organizations to address community health and resilience needs
Chapters (click to expand)
- 00:00 Section 1: Introduction to the Course
- 06:13 Section 2: Introduction to Lesson 2
- 08:55 Section 3: Essential Steps of Strategic Communication
- 10:18 Section 4 : Example from the Field – Pennsylvania Rural Health Farm Worker Protection Safety Program
- 15:08 Section 5: Example from the Field – Community Collaboration Adaptation of COPEWELL
- with Rural Texas Libraries
- 18:54 Section 6: Diving Deeper – Strategies and Resources for Goal Setting, Understanding the Audience, and Building a Communications Strategy
- 39:27 Section 7: Workbook Activity
- 42:28 Section 9: Summary and Key Takeaways
Lesson 3: Developing Messaging
Receive continuing education for this training by registering on CDC TRAIN. Search for course number ‘WD4997’ and complete the posttest and evaluation. Review the course Accreditation Statement.
This enduring activity is designed to address the gap in knowledge and skill/strategy by providing learners with instruction, resources, and activities supporting their ability to effectively partner with rural communities to develop public health messaging. Presented by: Cassandra Mohan, MSPH, Education and Training Specialist, Population Health Innovation Lab.
Learning Objectives
- Identify strategies for developing public health messaging for a variety of rural public health audiences.
- Identify strategies to communicate rural public health concepts with context aware proficiency.
- Identify strategies for seeking input from rural partners when developing public health messaging.
- Recognize reasons why partnering with rural community members and organizations is important when developing public health messaging to address needs.
Related Public Health Core Competencies (click to expand)
3.1. Determines communication strategies
- 3.1.6. Develops messaging for disseminating public health data and information
- 3.2. Communicates with internal and external audiences
- 3.2.1. Communicates with linguistic and cultural proficiency
- 3.2.3. Seeks input from internal and external audiences
5.4. Collaborates with community members and organizations
- 5.4.4 Collaborates with community members and organizations to address community health and resilience needs
Chapters (click to expand)
- 00:00 Section 1: Introduction to the Course
- 06:13 Section 2: Introduction to Lesson 3
- 08:55 Section 3: Review of Essential Steps of Strategic Communication
- 10:18 Section 4 : Example from the Field – Substance Use Prevention Program Customized for Rural Middle School Students
- 15:08 Section 5: Example from the Field – COVID-19 Vaccine Materials in Alaska Native Languages
- 18:54 Section 6: Diving Deeper – Strategies and Resources for Developing Rural Public Health Messaging
- 36:47 Section 7: Diving Deeper – Strategies and Resources for Testing Messaging Content and Seeking Input from Community Partners
- 39:27 Section 8: Workbook Activity
- 42:28 Section 9: Summary and Key Takeaways
Lesson 4: Disseminating Messaging
Receive continuing education for this training by registering on CDC TRAIN. Search for course number ‘WD4998’ and complete the posttest and evaluation. Review the course Accreditation Statement.
This enduring activity is designed to address the gap in knowledge and skill/strategy by providing learners with instruction, resources, and activities supporting their ability to effectively build relationships with rural communities to support public health communications. Presented by: Esmeralda Salas, BS, Research Associate, Population Health Innovation Lab
Learning Objectives
- Identify communication dissemination strategies that can support engaging rural communities.
- Identify strategies for collaboratively disseminating public health messages with rural communities, building trust between all partners.
- Recognize ways public health communication can support informed decision-making to improve health outcomes in rural communities.
Related Public Health Core Competencies (click to expand)
3.1. Determines communication strategies
- 3.1.7. Suggests approaches for disseminating public health data and information
- 3.1.8. Suggests messengers for disseminating public health data and information
3.2. Communicates with internal and external audiences
- 3.2.4 Communicates the impact of environmental factors, social factors, and individual actions on health
- 3.2.6. Communicates information to influence behavior and improve health
5.5. Shares power and ownership with community members and others
- 5.5.3. Ensures power and ownership are shared with community members and others
Chapters (click to expand)
- 00:00 Section 1: Introduction to the Course
- 04:52 Section 2: Introduction to Lesson 4
- 07:50 Section 3: Review of the Essential Steps of Strategic Communications
- 11:20 Section 4: Lessons in Delivering Public Health Messages
- 21:14 Section 5: Examples from the Field
- 28:50 Section 6: Diving Deeper – Strategies for Collaboratively Disseminating Public Messages with Rural Communities
- 36:48 Section 7: Beyond Sharing: Empowering Rural Communities Through Effective Public Health Communication
- 44:27 Section 8: Workbook Activity
- 47:29 Section 9: Summary and Key Takeaways
