Abstract
Public health authorities around the world are planning to manage infodemics as part of their next public health emergency. But the experience of managing communications for Ontario’s COVID-19 Science Advisory Table suggests that emerging infodemic management (IM) strategies should include three key principles, which appear to be missing from much of the existing literature: (1) emerging IM strategies should incorporate leadership from epidemiologists who can align infodemic response with underlying disease; (2) they should embrace journalists who mediate trust in crises; and (3) they should acknowledge the unique opportunity for public health leaders to build public trust rapidly in the first days of a crisis—a foundation for all subsequent IM. Standardizing infodemic response may help accelerate interventions during a public health emergency, especially when paired with technology. But over-standardizing the human work of building trust risks losing the infodemic fight before it starts.
Résumé
Les autorités de santé publique du monde entier se préparent à gérer des infodémies dans le cadre de leurs prochaines urgences sanitaires. Mais d’après l’expérience de gestion des communications du groupe consultatif scientifique ontarien de lutte contre la COVID-19, les stratégies émergentes de gestion des infodémies (GI) devraient inclure trois grands principes, lesquels semblent manquer en grande partie dans la littérature scientifique existante : 1) les stratégies de GI émergentes devraient intégrer un encadrement par des épidémiologistes capables d’aligner la riposte à l’infodémie sur la maladie sous-jacente; 2) elles devraient s’ouvrir aux journalistes qui accentuent la confiance en situation de crise; et 3) elles devraient reconnaître que les responsables de la santé publique doivent gagner rapidement la confiance du public dans les premiers jours d’une crise – ce sont là les bases de la gestion ultérieure de l’infodémie. La normalisation de la riposte aux infodémies peut contribuer à accélérer les interventions lors des urgences sanitaires, surtout si elle est jumelée à la technologie. Mais la normalisation à outrance du travail humain de renforcement de la confiance risque de faire perdre la bataille contre les infodémies avant même qu’elle n’ait commencé.
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The author was Communications Director for the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table from December 2020 to April 2022.
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Steiner, R. Emerging infodemic management strategies focus on technology: They can’t forget trust. Can J Public Health (2024). https://doi.org/10.17269/s41997-024-00879-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.17269/s41997-024-00879-5