The rapid spread of unverified information in the media triggers harm by building confusion and drowning out accurate health information. It can also cause a change in behavior, amplification of panic, and the use of unproven and harmful treatments. Furthermore, it can also lead to negative attitudes to vaccination, and consequently, an increase the level of vaccine hesitancy among vulnerable populations.

To discuss these issues further, EMPHNET held its thirteenth webinar within the EMPHNET WEBi Series on Tuesday March 30, 2021. Titled “Increasing Vaccine Demand and Uptake During the COVID-19 Vaccine Infodemic.”, the webinar tackled the causes and effects of the infodemic witnessed during the COVID-19 pandemic. The session shed light on the application of effective and actionable approaches that communities, health institutions, and authorities can take to promote the flow of accurate health information and that can, in turn, mitigate the harm that rumors and misinformation can cause.

The session was led by three public health experts, namely: Crisis Communication Officer from the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Africa, Mr. AbdelHalim AbdAllah; Director of the Yale Institute for Global Health, and Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology at Yale University, Schools of Medicine and Public Health, Dr. Saad Omer; and Director of the General Health Services, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, Dr. Niaz Muhammad. Furthermore, the session was facilitated by both Professor of Epidemiology and Community Health at Al Sham Private University and Public Health Expert, Prof. Hyam Nicola Bashour and Research Fellow at US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Mr. Atsuyoshi Ishizumi.

In her opening remarks, Prof. Bachour welcomed the participants. She also introduced the speakers, the second moderator Mr. Ishizumi, and the webinar’s objectives. Prof. Bachour then handed the floor over to the first speaker Mr. AbdelHalim AbdAllah who shed light on the effects and challenges that the current infodemic has placed on vaccine demand and uptake in the Africa Region. Mr. AbdAllah gave an overview of the work of WHO Africa and its collaboration with partner organizations within the Africa region. He also spoke about the work done by UNICEF, Africa CDC, Gavi, Global Pulse, and others to combat infodemics.

Moreover, Dr. AbdAllah stressed the importance of forming alliances to boost infodemic response efforts, and to strengthen citizens’ resilience to mis/disinformation on health issues. He spoke about the importance of empowering media partners to share lifesaving information and debunk disinformation on health issues, in addition to encouraging proactive disclosure by data holders and preparing a timely and strategic response at a national and regional level. He then introduced the WHO response pillars which are: identify misinformation, simplify technical knowledge, amplify knowledge through different media channels, and quantify the impact of these interventions.

Finally, Dr. AbdAllah introduced the Viral Facts Africa initiative. This initiative aims to disrupt health misinformation and close health information gaps on social media.

From his end, Dr. Omer highlighted actionable strategies that countries could utilize to minimize the effects of COVID-19 infodemics in their own setting. During his presentation, he introduced the Vaccine Misinformation Management Field Guide, the Vaccine Messaging Guide that was developed in collaboration with UNICEF, and The Public Good Projects (PGP). He stated that such guidelines can be used by all communications and advocacy colleagues to help develop messaging and content that can build confidence and trust in vaccines. Moreover, they can help organizations address global infodemics through the development of strategic and well-coordinated action plans that rapidly counter vaccine misinformation and build demand for vaccination informed by social listening.

The last presenters, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Director of Public Health, Dr. Ikramullah Khan followed by Dr. Niaz, talked about the abundance of information that is circulated on the internet and social media channels and said that during the pandemic, a lot of information passed through TVs and social media in Pakistan. Through the exchange of information, healthcare workers were able to convince people to seek proper treatment. However, the abundance of information had a drawback and misleading effect as well, as it resulted in confusion and risk-taking behaviors. Additionally, it led to mistrust in health authorities, while undermining the public health response. He added that many people using social media and the internet did not believe that COVID-19 is a disease.

He then gave a brief about the vaccination plan mechanism, criteria, and strategy adopted in Pakistan. He mentioned that 80,000 people have been vaccinated and took the first dose and that 40,000 of them are healthcare workers. He also stated that vaccination priority was given to the frontline workers in hospitals, ICUs, isolation facilities, emergency departments, and Rapid Response Teams.

The presentations were followed by a Q&A session facilitated by Prof. Bashour. Then, concluding the webinar, Mr. Ishuzumi thanked all the participants for their valuable contribution. He then wrapped up the webinar by giving key takeaways such as illustrating the multi-faceted nature of infodemics and the importance of having infodemic management as a society approach.

The webinar was attended by a total of 139 people deeming it another success in the EMPHNET WEBi Series.