Fact vs. fiction: Countering the spread of misinformation on the COVID-19 vaccines

April 23, 2021

Scientist wearing a face mask and working in a lab

After more than a year of collective and focused science and research, the arrival of COVID-19 vaccines has brought hope to billions globally that brighter days are ahead. However, their arrival has been accompanied by widespread misinformation, amplifying decades of vaccine myths that remain prevalent today, and pose a risk to vaccine confidence and the end of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

As information has become increasingly accessible through new channels like social media, it accelerates the speed at which both fact and fiction can be spread and presents new challenges. What are common vaccine myths, and what is the science behind the truth? How can the public discern fact from fiction? What new tools are governments, public health, scientists, and physicians using to combat misinformation?

Hear from UBC experts from the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the School of Biomedical Engineering as they dispel common vaccine myths with science and facts, explore how social media can be utilized to share accurate, evidence-based data, and learn how to navigate through the misinformation to make your own decisions regarding health and wellness.

Presented in partnership with the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the Faculty of Medicine.

 


  
  

      
    
  
  

                  

            
                                  

  
                                  



            
                                  

  
                                  



          






      
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Moderator

Peter Klein – Professor, UBC School of Journalism, Writing and Media, Journalist and Executive Director and Founder, the Global Reporting Centre

Speakers

Dr. Anna Blakney – Assistant Professor, Michael Smith Laboratories, School of Biomedical Engineering, UBC Faculty of Science, UBC Faculty of Applied Science and UBC Faculty of Medicine
Dr. Fawziah Lalji, BSc(Pharm)’90, PharmD’94 – Professor, UBC Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tong Louie Chair in Pharmaceutical Sciences

Recorded April 20, 2021.

Resources from the Centre for Effective Practice