How do you know what COVID-19 information to believe?
With the current excitement and interest surrounding the new COVID-19 vaccine, there is a lot of information out there. It can be overwhelming and it also makes it easy to hear or read information that may not be accurate.
Understandably, people have many questions and opinions about the vaccines and their development, and often these are shared through social media, videos, and articles. However not everything that is being shared is accurate. There are a lot of false or misleading claims already circulating about the COVID-19 vaccines.
This sort of information isn’t just wrong, it can be dangerous.
Not everyone on the Internet is qualified to speak on every field. Would you feel confident going into heart surgery with someone who didn’t have a medical degree? Or driving on a bridge that hadn’t been built by an engineer?
So how do you know what COVID-19 information to believe? How do you know what is accurate and reliable?
TIP: An easy way of ensuring you are receiving reliable information about the COVID-19 vaccine is by visiting trusted sources such as our website, or any of the following:
- The Australian Government Department of Health
- National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance
- Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA)
- Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI)
- Australian Academy of Science
- World Health Organisation (WHO)
The following eight steps are a good way to check if information you are reading or hearing is helpful and trustworthy, and not harmful.
- Check their sources
- Read beyond headlines
- Identify the author
- Check the original date of the information
- Examine the supporting evidence
- Check your biases
- Turn to fact checkers
- Report
By using these eight tips as a guide, you are better equipped to navigate through the noise and find trustworthy information that is right for you.
Taking these precautionary steps could potentially be lifesaving in the fight against COVID-19.
In a nutshell, for medical advice, use information provided by medical professionals – not the Internet.
Source
Queensland Health
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