Shoutout to the comms pro running Philly Public Health’s pandemic-time Twitter

Here at Technical.ly, we love a good snarky-yet-informative government Twitter account. (Hey, @NJGov and @PATreasury!)

Billy Penn called out this trend in its roundup of 15 folks leading Philly’s coronavirus response:

“Behind every great institution’s trendy Twitter feed is a person hoping to actually connect with their target audience. At the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, that job belongs to 27-year-old Desarae Bradham.”

Through the @PHLPublicHealth account with 20.8K followers, Bradham shares important info about testing sites, free food and the latest health guidance. It’s where Philly citizens can watch the mayor’s daily public briefings and get the latest infection rates.

That’s not the say it’s all serious, though. And occasionally, her work goes viral:

I know I can’t see you in person b/c of social distancing, but this distance has me wanting to be more social. I’m sure you’ve probably washed your hands of me & want me to stay 6 feet away even when this is over. Tell your grandmom I left some groceries on her step. Stay safe. pic.twitter.com/ihn74IAxsq

— Philadelphia Public Health (@PHLPublicHealth) April 15, 2020

That Future tweet “was my biggest accomplishment,” she told Billy Penn. “I’m not even lying, because they kept saying how the African American population [was] becoming the most affected, but I feel like the messages weren’t really getting across. And me being young, me being Black, I was like, ‘Alright, there’s a certain way you have to word things.’”

The account also includes other pop culture references …

To find a free testing site near you use our testing site map: https://t.co/bs7cSsnzEc pic.twitter.com/X7RqUftlSZ

— Philadelphia Public Health (@PHLPublicHealth) May 20, 2020

Hey, all you cool cats and kittens!

WEAR A MASK!!!!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/2LhsJbCvEE

— Philadelphia Public Health (@PHLPublicHealth) May 7, 2020

A generous use of emojis …

The key to this crisis is:

🗣️Don't 🗣️Be 🗣️A 🗣️Jerk

— Philadelphia Public Health (@PHLPublicHealth) May 19, 2020

#MaskUpPHL:

😷If you need to go to buy food or medicines
😷If you have to go to work (essential workers)
😷If you live or work in a group setting (shelter, group home)
😷If you ride public transportation or use a ride share service

— Philadelphia Public Health (@PHLPublicHealth) May 18, 2020

👟 Please 👟 Keep 👟 Six 👟 Feet 👟 Apart 👟

— Philadelphia Public Health (@PHLPublicHealth) May 18, 2020

Some general tips …

⚠️ ⚠️ This is the City of Brotherly Love, not the City of Brotherly Trash. Respect our streets, waterways, wildlife, and fellow Philadelphians – throw away your used gloves and masks in the garbage – not the street!! ⚠️ ⚠️ pic.twitter.com/BE4LOZRSuD

— Philadelphia Public Health (@PHLPublicHealth) May 15, 2020

And messages in multiple languages:

https://twitter.com/PHLPublicHealth/status/1258124885781557251

Thanks for keeping us informed, and our existential dread at bay, Desarae.