I received two messages about my post yesterday (08/27).
One was by Chris Zielinski [ https://www.hifa.org/dgroups-rss/introduction-andre-neto-brazil-developi... ], the other by Neil Pakenham-Walsh [ https://www.hifa.org/dgroups-rss/lancet-series-primary-health-care-south... ].
Chris, In our study we assessed the quality of information about visceral leishmaniasis available on the websites of the Ministries of Health of Brazil and India and of two internationally respected Non-Governmental Organizations: Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) e the Doctors Without Borders (MSF). We conclude by stating that: “(…) most of the information made available is incomplete, erroneous, or absent, although the websites are linked to reputable institutions”. And you ask us: “what one does after detecting poor quality information on a website. What is the best approach to take to get people to remove errors and update wrong facts?” Our answer is simple: We should forward this assessment to the managers of these virtual environments, trying to get them to commit to changing the information provided. HIFA could then certify these sites. Thus health information becomes reliable!
Neil Pakenham-Walsh also shared his concerns. [*see note below]
Our coordinator seems surprised that he did not find any contributions on the problem of access to relevant and reliable information in the Lancet issue dedicated to Global Health in Southeast Asia. I share this surprise. I would like to point out, however, that I have experienced similar situations. To our surprise, many researchers, policy makers and managers have not yet realized the harmful consequences that disinformation has on the health and well-being of populations around the world, especially low-income populations who live in unhealthy conditions but often have access to digital media. This seems to be a challenge that we face in HIFA: convincing different audiences about the centrality that combating disinformation occupies in the current global scenario!
Let's continue our exchange of ideas.
Andre Neto
HIFA profile: Andre Pereira Neto is a researcher at the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Brazil). He completed his PhD in Public Health (1997) and has dedicated himself to the area of health communication during the last15 years. andrepereiraneto AT gmail.com
[*Note from HIFA moderator (NPW): Thanks Andre, To clarify, my post about the Lancet Global Health paper 'Primary health care in South Asia' was independent of your message. As moderator, I scan the major journals for content such as this that may help us understand the role of reliable healthcare information in health care, and how it may be better recognised and addressed.]
