On Thursday, I sort of told Lorenzo (one of my supervisors) that I tend to stray a lot while in cyberspace. To my defence, the internet is such a huge huge place and it is pretty difficult even with best intentions not to stray. Anyway, whilst I was straying I came across an interesting article on Behavior Change Communication (BCC) for HIV/AIDS from the Family Health International (FHI) site.

First things first, what is BCC? Quoting verbatim, BCC is:

” a multi-level tool for promoting and sustaining risk-reducing behavior change in individuals and communities by distributing tailored health messages in a variety of communication channels.”

So in the context of HIV/AIDS, BCC is about tailoring messages that will help in the prevention of this disease. In tailoring messages, BCC advocates development of a strategy that will create a demand for information and associated services. The essential steps in creating such a strategy is quoted below:

“The following steps incorporate careful analysis, feedback and redesign throughout the entire process. Step 1: Identify the problem based on the overall program goals. Step 2: Segment target populations. Step 3: Engage in formative research. Step 4: Identify behavior change goals. Step 5: Seek consensus from stakeholders.

Step 6: Design communication plan, including objectives, overall theme, specific messages and outlets for dissemination. Step 7: Pre-test and revise. Step 8: Target communication to specific groups. Step 9: Implement the plan. Step 10: Monitor and evaluate it. Step 11: Seek feedback and make appropriate revisions.”