Case studies
Social Movement Action Framework
Increasing visibility to advance the rights of Deaf children
A community coalition in Los Angeles, California took collective action to advocate for the rights of Deaf children in accessing child abuse prevention and treatment services. he coalition took multiple steps to increase visibility, spread awareness and gain support. Read more in this case study.
A community coalition in Los Angeles, California took collective action to advocate for the rights of Deaf children in accessing child abuse prevention and treatment services. The coalition took multiple steps to increase visibility, spread awareness and gain support. Some examples:
- one of the member organizations wrote an article published in a magazine for the Deaf community advocating for the protection of Deaf children.
- A presentation by coalition members was made at a local synagogue that included members of the Deaf community.
- A local social event included a focus on the collective actions of the coalition and how attendees could financially support their efforts.
These activities drew further attention to the collective action being taken and the urgency for change (Embry and Grossman, 2006).
Using communication platforms to mobilize change for persons with diabetic foot ulcers
The collective actions of RNAO, Wound Care Canada and other supporters used public visibility strategies to advocate for diabetes-related foot ulcers care. Read more in this case study.
In 2014, RNAO, Wound Care Canada, and other supporters organized a coalition and advocated for diabetes-related foot ulcers care from the provincial government in Ontario, Canada. The coalition used evidence, political pressure to demand an integrated system of care with universal access to improve health outcomes, including reduced ulcers and amputations and reduced costs for pressure-alleviating devices. Members of the coalition participated in many activities, including:
- attending and participating in stakeholder meetings
- writing a media release and lead article in RNJ
- meeting with members of provincial parliament (MPPs) at RNAO’s annual Queen’s Park Day (Grinspun et al., 2018a)
The result of these advocacy efforts and changes in health outcomes are also described in an RNAO Evidence Booster measuring the impact of offloading devices for people living with diabetes and foot ulcers (https://rnao.ca/bpg/resources/evidence-booster-assessment-and-management-foot-ulcers-people-diabetes).
Using social media to increase public visibility and raise awareness
Social media is used by RNAO regularly to advocate for advancing the rights of Ontarians, including residents of long-term care homes. Read this case study that includes examples of effective social media campaigns advocating for the Nursing home Basic Care Guarantee.
RNAO uses social media campaigns to increase public visibility and raise awareness of issues. One example: RNAO’s call on the Ontario government to mandate recommendations set out in its Nursing Home Basic Care Guarantee. The campaign incorporated the hashtags #LTC #BasicCareGuarantee and #4Hours4Seniors to raise awareness of the staffing crisis in long-term care (LTC) and to encourage the public, health professionals, the government, LTC residents and their families to mobilize change.
As the campaign evolved, so did the visuals and the messaging. The three examples below show the stages of the campaign as it gained attention and momentum – from “good” through “better” to “best.”
RNAO developed an Action Alert (AA) to mobilize collective action to advocate for nursing home residents. The link to the AA, the graphic, the messaging and the hashtag #4Hours4Seniors were all shared on social media to urge others to sign and share the AA. People were also encouraged to use the hashtag to contribute to the dialogue about the LTC crisis.
The social media campaign aimed to support the goal set out in the AA – encourage as many people as possible to add their signatures to urge action from key political leaders.
This is a good example of a social media campaign, incorporating a graphic, supportive messaging, a call-to-action (the link to the AA) and a specific hashtag.
In this example, RNAO staff members are holding signs identifying why #4Hours4Seniors matters to them. The hashtag is used consistently and individual reasons for supporting the cause are illustrated.
This is a better example of a social media campaign – it brings a personal touch to the campaign and allows supporters to share why they want to join the conversation. It also brought life to the hashtag and to the purpose of the campaign.
Image
In this example, RNAO collaborated with F.J. Davey Home in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada to encourage residents to share their “why” for wanting #4Hours4Seniors. Building on the same idea as the “better” example given above, this example truly brought a face to the reason for the campaign in the first place. RNAO shared the photos and quotes from residents on its social media feeds (Instagram, Facebook and Twitter) alongside the hashtag #4Hours4Seniors.
For example, M. Doan, a senior living at the F.J. Davey Home, shared: “I am a very independent person, but my wife on the other hand isn’t and she means the world to me. With four hours of care, it doesn’t need to be rushed. And who wouldn’t want to see her beautiful smile for four hours!" (https://twitter.com/RNAO/status/1336781022780928000).
The photos are powerful as they show a real-life married couple living in a LTC home – two of the many residents RNAO advocated for through its AA and its ongoing call for a Nursing Home Basic Care Guarantee. The posters held by the couple express their personal values of dignity and comfort.
