INTRODUCTION
The
wave of Covid-19 pandemic has brought a major change in human life. We had
witnessed several changes in governments, global economy, and healthcare
systems due to the attack of this pandemic. Various efforts continue to be made
by health experts and the public to end the increase in the Covid-19 virus. In
several countries, including Indonesia, people were required to implement
health protocols as a new habit (Aisyah et al., 2021; Christian, 2021). The World Health
Organization (WHO) and other international public health authorities recommend
implementing health protocols to prevent the transmission of Covid-19 between
individuals by implementing physical distancing, wearing masks, and washing
hands with soap (Ernawaty et al., 2022).
To
achieve the goals of the government’s communication strategy, good
communication planning in dealing with disasters or pandemics cannot be
separated from the communication patterns of internal leaders. Speaking of
communication planning, there are two different basic concepts that need to be
discussed further. The two concepts are “Planning” and “Communication”.
Planning refers to the management aspect, while communication is seen as a
process of disseminating and exchanging information. Although these two
concepts are different, they can be combined into a special study in
communication studies which in recent times has been increasingly implemented
in the fields of information dissemination, public awareness and marketing (Cangara, 2013).
Leaders are required to be able to use their communication
skills so that the message conveyed is received and communication is effective.
The leadership style of each leader is different, depending on the background,
education, culture, and so on. The higher the level of education of a person,
the higher the performance (Abid, 2022).
Through well-planned
communication, the wider community can be given an understanding of the
government's readiness, alertness and ability to deal with the current health
crisis (Prayoga, 2020). This will
certainly have a good impact on the community, business actors, and others in
carrying out community life. Health campaigns promoted by the government also
contributed to tackling and preventing the spread of Covid-19 in Indonesia.
Covid-19 has
spread to all regions in Indonesia, including Bima
Town, West Nusa Tenggara (Najamuddin & Suparto, 2021). The Town of Bima, which is the east gate to enter the West Nusa Tenggara
region, will certainly be very vulnerable to the spread of the Covid-19 virus
amidst the hustle and bustle of people's activities in and out. However, there
is something interesting and deserves our appreciation, namely the Bima Town government is able to handle this pandemic well,
which is proven by being the only area in NTB that is included in the Green
Zone.
From the
data on the distribution of Covid-19 transmission, Bima
Town is one of the areas that can suppress the rate of the spread of Covid-19
by implementing strict social restrictions in Bima
Town. The transmission rate is also considered very low. Data as of June 30,
2020 shows that in Bima Town there are 156 People
Under Monitoring (ODP), only 9 Patients Under Supervision (PDP), and only 4 people
who have tested positive for Covid-19. The 4 people have been declared cured,
quoted from (Kumparan.com accessed on July 7, 2020). However, after the
stipulation of the Green Zone, several months later Bima
Town entered the Orange Zone and even the Red Zone and was perched as the only
area in NTB that was still in the Red Zone. Data compiled from the same site
recorded that 354 were positive, 188 recovered and 10 people died from
Covid-19.
Prevention
efforts continue to be carried out by the Bima Town
government as a form of government responsibility for the impacts and dangers
of this pandemic on people's lives. Government policies in dealing with
Covid-19 greatly affect the situation (Roziqin et al., 2021). Based on the
description above, the researchers are interested in conducting a study
entitled Communication Planning in Supporting and Inhibiting Covid-19 Response
in Bima Town which aims to determine the factors that
hinder and support the government's efforts in preventing and overcoming the
dangers of Covid-19 in Bima Town.
METHOD
This
study uses a qualitative approach where the method used is a case study that
departs from the handling of the Covid-19 pandemic carried out by the
government. This is included in the qualitative research (paradigm) that can
describe, explain, and explore the phenomena that occur (Creswell, 2017). This is in
accordance with the aim of the researcher to describe, analyze
and explain the communication planning of a local government in the Town of Bima, West Nusa Tenggara. The role of the researcher in
this qualitative research is the planner, data collector, analyzer,
and finally as the originator of the research. Researchers do not only act as
data takers, data processors, and inventors of research data. The sampling
technique used is a purposive sampling which is a technique to find and
determine informants by selecting certain people who are considered to be able
to provide the necessary data.
The
stages that researchers use in data collection techniques in this study are
in-depth interviews, library methods, and documentation methods. The data
analysis technique is carried out in the crisis communication management
process which runs concurrently with data collection (Sugiyono, 2017). The data analysis
stage is an attempt to change an unorganized collection of data into a
collection of short sentences that can be understood by others. This stage
consists of efforts to summarize the data, select the data, translate, and
organize the data. The research was conducted from June 2021 to November 2021
and took place in Bima Town, West Nusa Tenggara. The
selected informants are key informants, namely policymakers, policy
implementers, and the general public. Informants are people who are selected to
be asked for information related to research.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
This research was conducted to determine the efforts of
the Bima Town government in preventing and overcoming
the dangers of Covid-19 in Bima Town from the
perspective of Communication Planning, knowing the Covid-19 prevention and
mitigation model used by the Government in Bima Town
from the perspective of Communication Planning. Researchers gathered
information from the Bima Town Covid-19 Task Force,
namely the Mayor of Bima, Regional Secretary of Bima Town, Secretary of the Bima
Town Health Service, Head of the Health Promotion Section of the Bima Town Health Service, Head of the Surveillance Section
of the Bima Town Health Service, the Head of BPBD of Bima Town and Secretary of the Department of Communications
and Information Technology Bima Town. Furthermore,
the informants were taken from journalists, general practitioners from the
Healthcare Task Force Team and the community consisting of dentists, leaders of
state-owned banks, nurses, teachers and traders. The technique of collecting
data from informants was carried out by the interview method (in-depth
interview) which is the process of obtaining information by means of question
and answer while face to face between the interviewer and the respondent or the
person being interviewed. In the interview process, the interviewees will ask
questions about the core of the problem to be researched as well as things that
are not yet known about the Bima Town government's
integrated communication plan regarding Covid-19. These informants were chosen
because they have the capability and authority to provide information in
accordance with the research objectives.
The
Covid-19 pandemic has had an
impact on various sectors of life, including
the government, economy, business, education, tourism, health, and other
sectors. The central government and regional governments are making various efforts to deal
with the Covid-19 pandemic situation (Donthu & Gustafsson, 2020).
In addition, the community also made various efforts
to support the government's efforts, including conducting social campaigns, research with Covid-19 as the main issue, as well as raising funds for
certain groups affected by Covid-19. The handling of Covid-19 can be carried
out based on systematic and
planned steps. Quoted from (fisip.ui.ac.id accessed on September 13). Improper handling causes overlapping and even the
results obtained are not
optimal. Communication in a disaster
is not only needed in a disaster emergency but is
also important during a pre-disaster. One of the mitigation
efforts that can be carried
out in the presence of the
Regional Disaster Management
Agency (BPBD) both regarding disaster management and prevention to reduce
disaster risk, because BPBD is a non-ministerial
institution whose main function is disaster
management. This institution is also a field coordinator
who is responsible
for carrying out state duties
in disaster prevention and management efforts (Qalbi, 2020).
Obstacles in handling Covid-19 in Bima Town are the culture
of the people who are difficult to accept, the government's work programs are
sometimes effective or not and the role of each sector must be large. This is
caused by many factors, one of which is the low level of education in the
community and the employment rate. Based on data from the Central Bureau of
Statistics of Bima Town, the number of Bima Town's workforce in 2021 is
103,498, of which 99,881 are working and 3,687 are unemployed. It can be seen
in the following data:
Figure 1. Workforce Data In 2021
In handling
Covid-19 in Bima Town, there are 7 Community Health Centers and 1 Hospital which are used as references in
handling Covid-19. In the beginning, in 2020, the Health Service signed a
contract with the Mataram Health Sciences College
Hospital.
Private institutions
and community leaders play a very important role in socializing and changing
public stigma related to Covid-19. So, people can follow health protocols which
can ultimately reduce the number of Covid-19 cases. The government provides a
manual report to the Province and then the Province will recap the Covid-19
data nationally according to the application. At the beginning of the emergence
of Covid-19, namely on July 1-7, Bima Town was
included in the green zone. After the easing of Covid-19 cases immediately
rose. This is due to the lack of public awareness. The steps taken in handling
Covid-19 are vaccination which is preceded by health workers, social
distancing, and the construction of guard posts at Town entrances. Even though
the government has been optimal in handling Covid-19, religious leaders and
community leaders must set a good example and conduct coordination meetings
about maximizing the main tasks of human resources and the efforts made. For
example, a community health center that functions as
a service can provide direct education through integrated service post
activities that contain outreach to the community. The Health Office will
provide daily reports to the Town and Provincial Task Forces every day. All
reports are centered on the Department of
Communications and Information Technology. The health office through the health
promotion sector provides health information related to Covid-19 through
several online and print media. Information conveyed through print media is
such as banners, billboards, banners as well as individual and group counselling.
Socialization is done directly and indirectly. Direct socialization is carried
out by going to the field for socialization such as markets and schools until
now. The information conveyed is a health campaign. The information target is
all people in Bima Town who refer to the Mayor's
Regulation on handling Covid-19 and other instructions. The direct approach to
the community is seen from the cultural structure and by using the local
language. Each region has different styles and characteristics but the essence
is the same, namely working together in handling Covid-19. In addition, the
government also carries out a vaccination program that aims to increase the
body's immune system. The Task Force encountered obstacles that could hinder
the handling of Covid-19, namely economic factors and a lack of public
awareness.
The above statement is a step taken by the government
in handling Covid-19. The government must work together with the community so
that the spread of Covid-19 is quickly resolved. In handling disease outbreaks
in the world, Anthony de Mello (1997) once warned that the
number of victims could be five times if there was fear during a disease
outbreak. One thousand people became victims because of illness, while four
thousand people became victims because of panic (Anthony De Mello, 1997). Communication is
the most important part in dealing with the threat of a pandemic. Public trust
needs to be built and maintained so that there is no panic in the community and
so that the handling can run smoothly. One of the instructions given by
President Joko Widodo is that the Government must show that the Government is
serious, ready, and able to handle the Covid-19 pandemic (Quoted from ksp.go.id
and accessed on September 13, 2021).
According to the Ministry of National Development
Planning/ Bappenas (2021) in a book entitled Learning
Study for Handling Covid-19 in Indonesia, there are four problems in handling
Covid-19 faced by the government in Indonesia, namely the lack of accurate data
and information, the lack of information dissemination related to several
issues, low public trust, and less effective communication of government
organizations.
The mayor as the highest leader in the Bima
Town government took action and formed a task force unit team that had roles
and functions in accordance with their respective institutions that would
coordinate with each other in handling Covid-19. The community's response was
initially less effective but so far it has started to have a good impact,
judging by the declining number of Covid-19 incidents. However, there are also
those that are not effective, such as many people who are afraid of vaccines
even though the goals are good. There are still some community groups who
convey wrong information, such as those who think that the impact of Covid-19
is not that heavy and is just a government game.
Communication
planning under review. Determining the audience from the community's point of
view is of course very much needed in the form of awareness and a role in
breaking the chain of spread of Covid-19 by implementing the health protocols
that have been set. The health protocols are always wearing masks, maintaining
distance (social distancing and physical distancing), self-isolation,
diligently washing hands with soap and running water, always carrying hand
sanitizer and staying at home. As emphasized by Onong Uchyana Effendy (2007)
that a communicator is required to have the ability and means to get feedback
from the communicant so that the purpose of the message can be fulfilled
properly and run effectively. The system that runs is also standard, where
communication always goes both ways: From the sender to the recipient and the
recipient to the sender (West, & Tuner, 2010). The involvement
above refers to the type of audience exposed to the Covid-19 virus. People who
are not disciplined in following the health protocol rules require special
policies from the government to find innovative solutions to reduce the spread
of the Covid-19 virus in Bima Town (Qalbi, 2020).
CONCLUSION
The factor that hinders the
performance of the task force in preventing Covid-19 in Bima
Town is the existence of social media that discusses issues about the untruth
of Covid-19 so that people become paranoid. However, in reality the community
is able to accept when the government tries to educate and socialize so that it
can minimize stigma. The supporting factor in handling this pandemic is that
the government has prepared vaccines, supporting infrastructure, and the
existing budget so that public spaces can be well maintained. Basically, it is
necessary to educate the public that being vaccinated does not mean that they
will not be re-exposed to Covid-19, but rather that they are able to increase
immunity along with a clean and healthy lifestyle. This kind of education is
carried out by the government through social media and other media.
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