Subject: News about PubliCo

Description:
Howdy!
This newsletter is meant to provide news about PubliCo, a risk and crisis communication platform developed by IBME and SwissTPH. Subscribe to receive updates on the development and deployment of the project, on new functions becoming available, and on research outcomes. It is intended for both citizens and experts.

With PubliCo, researchers can measure in real-time how the population is coping with the COVID-19 crisis.

How long are people in Switzerland willing to restrict their lives in order to contain COVID-19? And how is the population really doing during the pandemic?
So far, nobody can answer these questions with certainty. But politicians need to know the population's emotional state as precisely as possible in order to develop good crisis communication.
Researchers at the Institute of Biomedical Ethics and History of Medicine, University of Zurich, in collaboration with the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute in Basel, have now developed the online platform PubliCo, which they use to measure public perception in real-time.

The gamified and attractively designed survey function is the core element of PubliCo. Users answer questions about their state of mind, their behavior or their attitudes towards government decisions. After participation, they receive information about Covid-19, tailored to their needs.

In the diary function, registered users regularly write down how they experience their everyday life. As Citizen Scientists, participants can suggest research items and perform their own analyses.

PubliCo touches on sensitive issues, such as citizen’s emotional reactions, values, and priorities. To prevent misuse, data are collected anonymously, and no IP addresses are stored. PubliCo adheres to all relevant national and international regulations. It is accompanied by an interdisciplinary Expert Council.

A platform with a future
PubliCo stands for Public and Corona. However, the platform can easily be adapted and used in the future, whenever good crisis communication is required.

Contact: biller-andorno@ibme.uzh.ch or giovanni.spitale@uzh.ch
Further information: https://t.uzh.ch/16v