Tips to localize news about national infectious disease outbreaks

One of the challenges of covering infectious diseases is people are often burned out hearing about COVID-19 or flu - or the biggest news is an outbreak that's not geographically relevant to most of them. But even when a disease feels, or literally is, distant from the region you cover, you can localize the news and inform readers, viewers and listeners about what they need to know.

Several current outbreaks in the U.S. provide helpful case studies in making national news relevant locally. Two are food-borne illness outbreaks - an evergreen issue that always offers an opportunity to remind people of how to protect themselves from food poisoning. Another is a more obscure vector-borne tropical disease that's most relevant for travelers to the Caribbean or Central or South America. Here are some ideas for making these stories meaningful to your audience.

Salmonella and Listeria outbreaks

Food-borne illness collectively makes up one of the most common forms of infectious disease in the U.S., affecting an estimated 48 million people - about one in seven American residents - every year. Fortunately, the mortality from these illnesses, at about 3,000 deaths a year, remains low compared to other major infectious diseases, but the health care costs of 128,000 annual hospitalizations add up, not to mention the costs of lost productivity and caregiving.

These top-level stats make it clear that food-borne illness is a year-round threat. While it's impractical to report on every single food-borne illness outbreak that occurs each year, the larger or multi-state ones, especially those that lead to major brand recalls, are an opportunity to remind your audience of food safety and handling and storage guidelines and ways to reduce their risk of food poisoning.

One of the larger outbreaks at the moment is a Listeria outbreak linked to deli meats, particularly Boar's Head liverwurst and possibly other Boar's Head products that have now been recalled. Listeria can withstand temperature extremes and is remarkably challenging to get rid of. It's also one of the most serious and potentially fatal types of food-borne illness. Since this is a nationwide outbreak, there's not a strong need to localize the story, but there are still several options for local angles:

• Has anyone in your market region fallen ill from this outbreak? Or, has someone in the past been sick from Listeria who can speak to why it's concerning?
• Listeria is one of the few food-borne illnesses that's particularly dangerous during pregnancy. How are local OBGYNs educating their patients? Is this an opportunity for a general article about pregnancy diet and safety?
• Have local butchers or delis seen a change in customers as a result of the outbreak?

Another recent food-related outbreak is due to salmonella in chicken eggs from Milo's Poultry Farms and Tony's Fresh Market. Though salmonella is typically less serious than Listeria, it's far more common and more likely to occur from poor food handling practices at home or interactions with infected animals. Using the news peg of the most recent outbreak, you can review prevention guidelines, both in food preparation and in animal interactions, whether it's petting zoos, reptile shows or other common sources.

Oropouche virus in travelers

Most people have heard of common mosquito-borne illnesses, such as West Nile virus, dengue fever, Zika and malaria. But fewer are likely familiar with Oropouche virus, transmitted from some mosquitoes but mostly from biting midges. Until recently, Oropouche fever, sometimes called "sloth fever," was limited to South and Central America, but it's made more inroads in the Caribbean lately and was first reported in Cuba in June.

In the Sept. 5 Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report , the CDC reported 21 cases of Oropouche disease in U.S. travelers returning from Cuba. Helen Branswell has a great FAQ about the illness at STAT, but with so few cases and such a limited geographic range, how is it relevant to local audiences elsewhere?

• Use the news peg to address basic protection from any kind of vector-borne illness, especially mosquitoes. Mosquitoes are still very active during the fall months throughout most of the country, and several mosquito-borne illnesses remain a threat, particularly West Nile fever - as Anthony Fauci recently experienced firsthand.
• If you've already covered mosquitoes recently, pivot toward addressing diseases carried by ticks, the most common arthropods that sicken people in the U.S.
• Or, consider a story on travel medicine and safety for those starting to think about winter vacations. Using the news peg about Oropouche, address other vector-borne illnesses and necessary vaccinations for popular destinations among your audience.
• Another option is to address how your region is faring, or what the future may look like, with changes to vector-borne disease epidemiology from climate change. AHCJ Health Beat leader Paul Gordon recently wrote about how climate is affecting malaria and Lyme disease, but plenty of other vector-borne diseases could pose a growing threat to Americans in the coming years. Florida and Texas may become particularly vulnerable to dengue, chikungunya, and Zika, for example. What diseases are projected to become more common in your region and what should people know about the threat?

It's easy for people to become complacent about the threats of infectious disease, but viruses, bacteria and fungi are frequently lurking in everyday life in ways people may not be thinking about until you remind them of precautions they can take to protect themselves.