Misinformation is a critical threat to both health care delivery and health research. We have been confronted with that threat in very real and brutal terms over the past three years of navigating a global health pandemic. This has perhaps been most visible as unvaccinated patients—many relying on false information to make a decision that puts their lives and the lives of others at risk—have accounted for the majority of COVID-19-related hospitalizations and deaths. While misinformation has long existed, COVID-19 misinformation has had far more effect on the public, with a recent Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation report finding that 78 percent of the public believes or is unsure about at least one false statement about the pandemic.
Accelerating the dissemination of new research findings in response to the pandemic has had many benefits, but it has also contributed to misinformation being spread through “science by press release” (when underreviewed or unvalidated studies garner widespread media attention based on announcements by communications departments). The extent to which this trend is undermining trust in expertise and undermining public support for science is not clear. Universities and faculty/researchers are not blameless here: In an increasingly competitive higher education environment, media attention is actively sought.
We believe mistrust is a key driver of susceptibility to accepting and acting on misinformation. Through an initiative focused on trust issues within health care, we are learning important lessons that can help us combat misinformation by building trust. From this work, it is apparent that most research on trust building has been done at the level of the clinician and patient, with far less at the institutional (trust between individuals and health care organizations) and community levels (trust between communities and health care organizations). (author introduction)
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