25 Association of Research Libraries Research Library Issues 303 2022 institutions and resistance to health interventions and public health precautions. Misinformation and disinformation have been significant setbacks to the COVID-19 pandemic response, having contributed to an increased risk of illness, mortality, disruption, and disorganization.20 Given this negative impact, the Surgeon General characterizes health misinformation as a significant problem that affects all of society, and the WHO has named the situation an “infodemic.”21 3. Strategies to Counteract Health Misinformation Public Recommendations In the United States, the Office of the Surgeon General and the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security have proposed national strategies for counteracting health misinformation. Table 1 summarizes the key action areas of their recommendations. Table 1. Strategies and recommendations for counteracting health misinformation Office of the Surgeon General: Confronting Health Misinformation: The US Surgeon General’s Advisory on Building a Healthy Information Environment22 Equip Americans with the tools to identify misinformation Expand research that deepens our understanding of health misinformation Implement product design and policy changes on technology platforms Invest in longer-term efforts to build resilience against health misinformation Convene federal, state, local, territorial, tribal, private, nonprofit, and research partners [to explore the issue of health misinformation and its mitigation]
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