Effectiveness of recorded messages to communicate the risk of acquiring hantavirus pulmonary syndrome.

To determine the effectiveness of a recorded information line in communicating health risk during the emergence of a new disease, hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS), in the Edmonton area and to study the accuracy of recall of information about hantavirus among the general public.A random telephone survey of residents five months after a death from HPS had occurred.The number of residents who received their information from the recorded line was quite low (approximately 2%), and more people remembered receiving their information through the news media, particularly television (74%) and newspaper (57%).An information line by itself will not communicate risk effectively during an outbreak or other emergent health situation. However, an information line used in conjunction with news media proved effective in providing ongoing, accurate information and allaying public fears in a low-risk situation.