{"title":"Communicating and complying with COVID-19 actions in northernmost Finland.","authors":"Ulla Timlin, Arja Rautio","doi":"10.1080/22423982.2024.2313822","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In Finland, national and local restrictions were implemented to control the COVID-19 pandemic after the increase of cases, and it changed the everyday life of people. The purpose of our study was to explore public health communication and compliance related to the COVID-19 public health instructions, recommendations, and restrictions in two municipalities in Northernmost Finland, Inari and Utsjoki. We interviewed the representatives and operators working in the municipalities to understand and learn about their experiences. Results suggested that residents complied with different COVID-19 actions, and overall, communication was found to be good. Altogether, guidelines were easy to follow but required the individual's own activity. Guidelines were also published in Sámi language. National border restrictions were a challenging part of communication and information, and guidelines were found to be contradictory at times. National border actions required resources from the municipalities, e.g. testing, which caused more demands on municipalities operating with already low resources. In the future, it is essential to consider the local situation of the pandemic and harmonise actions and put effort on local cooperation. It is important to invest in clear communication, which reaches people of all ages, and in three Sámi languages.</p>","PeriodicalId":13930,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Circumpolar Health","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.3000,"publicationDate":"2024-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10868415/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"International Journal of Circumpolar Health","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1080/22423982.2024.2313822","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2024/2/13 0:00:00","PubModel":"Epub","JCR":"Q4","JCRName":"PUBLIC, ENVIRONMENTAL & OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
In Finland, national and local restrictions were implemented to control the COVID-19 pandemic after the increase of cases, and it changed the everyday life of people. The purpose of our study was to explore public health communication and compliance related to the COVID-19 public health instructions, recommendations, and restrictions in two municipalities in Northernmost Finland, Inari and Utsjoki. We interviewed the representatives and operators working in the municipalities to understand and learn about their experiences. Results suggested that residents complied with different COVID-19 actions, and overall, communication was found to be good. Altogether, guidelines were easy to follow but required the individual's own activity. Guidelines were also published in Sámi language. National border restrictions were a challenging part of communication and information, and guidelines were found to be contradictory at times. National border actions required resources from the municipalities, e.g. testing, which caused more demands on municipalities operating with already low resources. In the future, it is essential to consider the local situation of the pandemic and harmonise actions and put effort on local cooperation. It is important to invest in clear communication, which reaches people of all ages, and in three Sámi languages.
期刊介绍:
The International Journal of Circumpolar Health is published by Taylor & Francis on behalf of the Circumpolar Health Research Network [CircHNet]. The journal follows the tradition initiated by its predecessor, Arctic Medical Research. The journal specializes in circumpolar health. It provides a forum for many disciplines, including the biomedical sciences, social sciences, and humanities as they relate to human health in high latitude environments. The journal has a particular interest in the health of indigenous peoples. It is a vehicle for dissemination and exchange of knowledge among researchers, policy makers, practitioners, and those they serve.
International Journal of Circumpolar Health welcomes Original Research Articles, Review Articles, Short Communications, Book Reviews, Dissertation Summaries, History and Biography, Clinical Case Reports, Public Health Practice, Conference and Workshop Reports, and Letters to the Editor.