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Curated by Shiron Rajendran, Healthcare Consultant, Freelance Writer, Social Media Manager & Medical Student on 2nd August 2021.
Every week the global OHT Twitter account is curated by a wonderful member of the OHT community. They share with us how they do what they do, what they're interested in, their top tips and general learnings. We like to turn these Tweets into blogs as there is so much goodness in them!
Go on... Sign up to curate our account on a Monday soon... You know you want to!
I am Shiron Rajendran, Healthcare Consultant, Freelance Writer, Social Media Manager & Medical Student.
I am very passionate about using the power of technology to enable better quality, more equitable care for all patients. After graduating with BSc Medical Sciences, I have worked at several healthtech startups. My scientific background combined with my excitement for digital health technologies has led me to pursue further education and I'm currently studying to become a doctor. Using my diverse skill set and experiences, I am supporting several healthtech startups with business development, marketing and content creation.
Today I will be discussing health information and how healthcare professionals can help to fight misinformation.
Good morning everyone! My name is Shiron (@ShironR_Health), I'm your host for today. I've been working in healthtech for few years in various roles at @MediShout @somXhealthtech & other orgs. Health is a priority. Technology can enable greater quality, more equitable care.
Today I wanted to talk about health information. As the founder of
@C19Infographics, this is a topic that is close to my heart. At the touch of a button, we have access to more information than we could ever need. But more isn't always a good thing.
Why am I talking about information? That's not sexy technology. As a future doctor & science grad, I'm worried. I'm worried about the vast amounts of #misinformation on the Internet, which is then propagated on
@Facebook, @WhatsApp, @YouTube & more recently @tiktok_uk. At first, rumours such as 5G causing coronavirus are comical. Then you read that there have been arson attacks on cell phone towers in the UK, engineers have been attacked.
Fake news can be detrimental to public health, impacting how people interact with healthcare services, compromising our ability to handle the pandemic.
Fake news is omnipresent, & continues to be produced, circulated at alarming speeds. We can't escape it. However, we can take steps to minimise the impact of fake news.
Steps to minimise fake news:
1. Social media companies have started to tag & remove fake news, which is a much-needed, long overdue, step in the right direction.
2. We also need to equip people with the skills needed to analyse & critically evaluate information. In an inter-connected world, distinguishing what is true from what is not is a survival skill.
How can we help in the fight against fake news as healthcare professionals? With the internet, people are armed with info. But we can stop the spread of fake news by...
Refuting misleading health info & engaging in open, NON-JUDGEMENTAL conversations with patients The public places immense trust in us. We can support them to critically evaluate their information sources & signpost to appropriate, reliable & verified sources.
We have to work harder to ensure that health info is truly accessible, considering the needs of ALL users. We are used to prescribing medications, but what about prescribing information? @Cognitant is trying to transform patient care with their health information prescriptions. Very interesting!
Medicine has changed dramatically over the past 50 years. Healthcare has gone from a paternalistic approach where 'doctor knows best' to one of shared decision making, where patient and healthcare professionals work together.
Teamwork makes the dream work. Working together patients & healthcare professionals can figure out what is best and right for the patient (i.e. patient-centred care)
Final tweet of the day, breathe. What do you think? Am I making a big deal over nothing? Should I just let it be? Fake news 1, Shiron 0? Thanks to
@OneHealthTech for letting me take over. Connect with me at @ShironR_Health and let's keep the conversation going. Good night!