Using a multidisciplinary, multi-method and collaborative research design to investigate the health communication power of the early childhood sector

This paper details the research design of a multidisciplinary, multi-method, collaborative research project investigating health communication from the experiences of the early childhood education (ECE) sector during the COVID-19 pandemic. With the rapidly evolving pandemic, the ECE sector was instantly tasked with expanding their required health practices to prevent the spread of infection. It was evident that the sector needed a system to communicate health advice in a timely, consistent and effective manner. Founded on a partnership model based on 'knowledge brokering' theory, this project demonstrates the value of a multidisciplinary research team collaborating with stakeholder organisations to investigate how COVID-19 health information traversed through complexities of organisational layers and diverse communities of families and staff. Detailing our data collection and analysis protocols, we conclude by outlining how our innovative research design is generating actionable and impactful recommendations for both the ECE and health sectors. [Author abstract]