How Can Community Engagement Help the Health System in controlling the COVID-19 Pandemic in Rural Areas?

Community engagement, as a key factor in changing the behavior can affect the prevention and management of communicable diseases in rural areas. This study aimed to determine the role of community engagement innovations in controlling Coronavirus pandemic in rural areas.

this qualitative study was carried out using observation, reviewing documents and semi structured interviews, for data gathering. Interviews were done by Key informant persons that selected purposefully. All interviews recorded ,transcribed verbatim and analyzed manually by using thematic analysis method.

45 codes and three themes  were obtained by open, axial, and selective coding method. Main themes were Management and leadership, public confidence and trust, and accountability and transparency that could have many important role in engaging people in controlling COVID.

 the findings show that using the community engagement in rural areas can be play a critical role in controlling the spread of COVID-19, but it depends on the cultural, social, and economic status of the community. In addition, promoting the health literacy and a sense of responsibility individuals for their health and the health of others can increase the success of these innovations