Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book shows that the implementation of risk communication guidelines remains challenging in several respects. It discusses more central leadership and clear lines of command and control that are contradicted by the flat and dispersed organizational state of the global health field. The book introduces readers to the socio-history of epidemic responses. It takes stock of the important material developed to guide communication between institutions and the public in outbreak contexts while revealing persistent difficulties in the application of such guidelines. The book brings to the foreground the extreme difficulties that first-line responders were encountering and how they managed to make use of a formal/informal professional network to support their adaptive strategies. It offers a different angle on the understanding and functioning of crucial parts of the system.