COVID-19 case studies can inspire new recommendations aimed at combating medical rumors and false or misleading information that is available online.
Highlights:
In this fast-moving world where traditional hierarchies of knowledge generation and sharing have been permanently disrupted. No longer proper scientific knowledge is incorporated into clinical practice guidelines.
Instead, medical information is widely shared online, sometimes chaotically, by many people before it can be vetted. This makes it challenging for people to know the validity of the information they are consuming.- Analysing COVID-19 cases demonstrated the role of social media in spreading dangerous medical rumors
- It also highlighted the increasing challenges in medical rumors as artificial intelligence tools take over content creation
- The lessons learnt from COVID-19 will help policymakers to mitigate the harms caused by misinformation
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‘COVID-19 pandemic situation demonstrated the role of social media in spreading dangerous medical rumors, misinformation, and disinformation.#SocialMedia #COVID-19 #Misinformation #Infodemics’
In case of the emergence of a new disease, rumors abound. Rumors spread quickly during periods of high anxiety creating uncertainties in the world. Rumors are distinct from “misinformation,” which is false or misleading information that is spread inadvertently, and “disinformation,” which is false or misleading information that is spread with the deliberate intent to deceive (1✔ ✔Trusted Source Defining and Measuring Scientific Misinformation
Go to source).
During the COVID-19 pandemic, many rumors turned out to be false. Nearly 2 years into the pandemic, 78% of adults either still believed or were unsure of whether to believe at least 1 of 8 false statements about COVID-19 or COVID-19 vaccines.
Although medical professionals were one of the most trusted sources of information about COVID-19 vaccines, many of them lacked the tools to have effective vaccine conversations and did not engage on social media as part of their professional mission.
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Combating COVID-19 Disinformation on Online Platforms
These organizations support trusted medical professionals (physicians, nurses, pharmacists, and medical trainees) to share accurate health information on social media and combat misinformation to build healthier communities.In December 2020, they catalyzed the viral vaccine-selfie movement #ThisIsOurShot, where more than 25 000 healthcare professionals shared their vaccine stories on social media with a selfie or short video, transforming the private act of vaccination into a public good.
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Smartphone Gets Handy for Health Information
A recent survey on Mobile Health from the Pew Internet & American Life Project has found that 19% of Smartphone users have atleast one health app downloaded onto their device.
A recent survey on Mobile Health from the Pew Internet & American Life Project has found that 19% of Smartphone users have atleast one health app downloaded onto their device.
Their approach included 5 key synchronous elements such as building a diverse team of medical professionals, effective COVID-19 vaccine conversations, monitoring viral rumors and false information, designing public health messaging, and activating trusted messengers.
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Teen Drinkers Unsure of Health Information on Alcohol Labeling
Only half of the 11-19 year old children, with their formative drinking experiences, are informed about health messages or warnings on alcohol packaging.
Only half of the 11-19 year old children, with their formative drinking experiences, are informed about health messages or warnings on alcohol packaging.
Second, coordinating and sharing information among stakeholders can help leverage additional human resource capacity from one sector to assist other under-resourced sectors, including in the event of coordinated online harassment against members (2✔ ✔Trusted Source
Popularization of Medical Information
Go to source).
Third, because even well-intentioned government “surveillance” raises legitimate concerns about what could ultimately be done with such data, the public–private partnerships model provides independent flexibility in detecting medical rumors or classifying what constitutes false or misleading information while prioritizing civil liberties and contributing to legitimacy.
Finally, an organized network of public and private institutions focused on public health would be able to work more effectively with social media companies than siloed government agencies.
Durable investments in media monitoring and information sharing, using a PHEOC- or ISAC-like infrastructure, could help to rapidly assess and coordinate responses to harmful medical information. This could positively impact the health of the nation.
References:
- Defining and Measuring Scientific Misinformation - (https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/00027162221084709)
- Popularization of Medical Information - (https://e-hir.org/journal/view.php?doi=10.4258/hir.2021.27.2.110)
Source-Medindia
