Monday, February 04, 2008

Gays Release UCSF Meeting Agenda,
List of Attendees


To help bring increased transparency to important gay health issues in San Francisco, I'm sharing the agenda and list of persons who will be at a meeting between UCSF and community advocates tomorrow. We'll report back to the community after the meeting, and maybe UCSF will follow our example and web-post their own report on our meeting.

Clinton

I am confirming our meeting tomorrow from 1pm to 2pm. You did an excellent job on the agenda and I agree that will be a good guide. The meeting location is UCSF’s Laurel Heights campus, 3333 California St. (see directions below.) Kieran Flaherty will meet your group in the lobby and guide you to the meeting room.

Representing UCSF, in addition to me, will be: Kieran Flaherty, Director of State Government Relations; Shane Showdon, Director of LGBT Resources; Aimee Levine, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs, and Dr. Chip Chambers. My assistant, Beth Mooney, will also join us.

I look forward to meeting you.

Regards

Barbara


PROPOSED AGENDA. UCSF/COMMUNITY MEETING

TUESDAY FEBRUARY 4, 2007 1:00 PM


Participants: Barbara French (UCSF); Beth Mooney (UCSF); Clinton Fein; Michael Petrelis; Hank Wilson. (Other UCSF representatives?)


A. Brief Introduction/Interested parties


B. Outline Concerns Related to MRSA Study

1. Press Release and Related Coverage

a. What Went Wrong?

§ Language/semantics

§ Misapplication of epidemiological terminology

§ Failure to heed cautions/provide warnings

§ Failure to achieve prevention message stipulated

§ Failure to consider implications of all communities impacted by the findings of the study

§ Failure to effectively or rapidly remedy the issue/offer apology/clarify misinterpretations

b. Impact Local/National/Global

§ “Gay = Disease” panic/hysteria in coverage

§ Release citied by organizations such as Concerned Women for America to fuel homophobia

§ Hysteria widespread, from Australia to Germany

§ Stigma attached to MRSA unnecessary and dangerous

2. Broader Implications of UCSF Press Release Fall Out

a. Breach of trust between UCSF and varied communities

b. Failure to achieve usefulness from study to stem MRSA, by creating confusion related to findings

c. Stigmatizing communities offering unique social and demographic opportunities, imperiling future cooperation

d. Failure to recognize and accordingly accommodate diversity within communities affected. (MRSA not limited to just gay community/not AIDS related)

e. Widespread discredit to UCSF (e.g. Dallas Morning News)

C. QUESTIONS/SOLUTIONS

  1. What, if any, internal mechanisms exist to ensure that communications issued publicly take into account protect communities likely to be impacted, and provide value from studies/research/findings?

  1. What, if any, community partnerships exist to allow communities that may be impacted by public communications an opportunity to prepare themselves from attack or offer counterpoints to extrapolations?

  1. What steps can be taken to better present cautions and warnings to mitigate or eliminate sensational media coverage?

  1. Why are researchers/authors etc. extrapolating data that is not supported by studies/findings?

  1. What was the prevention goal stipulated by the author of the study in the press release, and to what extent did UCSF meet this goal?

  1. Is the role of researchers or authors to present information specifically related to the studies at hand, or are they also serving as prevention message specialists or educational outreach advocates?

  1. To the extent that prevention messages based on findings are useful, are researchers/authors adequately equipped to navigate the tricky waters of prevention messaging and the multitude of sub-groups within a particular community? What structures, if any, exist to ensure that prevention messaging or educational outreach is delivered appropriately and effectively?

  1. What studies are in the pipeline that could yield similar unintended effects?

What action items can be taken to help restore community relations?

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