In order to rein enforced its fight against health misinformation in Nigeria, the Nigeria Health Watch( NHW) has graduated another set of health misinformation management fellows in Niger and Lagos States
The graduation ceremony which was conducted visually on Tuesday, was anchored by Miss Sonia, with all the fellows and other stakeholders from both states and beyond in attendant.
It will be recalled that the NHW fellowship in collaboration with their various partners has successfully incorporated three interconnected tracks, which are, the health misinformation management fellowship, health workers Misinformation fellowship and Lagos state health educators’ fellowship.
Responding, the Managing Director of NHW, Vivianne Ihekweazu observed that health misinformation was not new, but has been given more focus of recent, appreciating the COVID-19 era which exposed the dangers of health misinformation to the world.
She disclosed that the spread of health misinformation has undermined the efforts of government and other stakeholders in providing effective and efficient service delivery in the health sector, emphasizing the collective responsibility of all to combat health misinformation and amplify credible information.
The NHW Managing Director added that the inclusion of health workers at the community level was very effective in curbing misinformation at the grassroots where we have more vulnerable groups, and that they were proud of what the fellows have done during the period of the programme.
“Today, we celebrate the graduation ceremony of all three tracks. These fellows are now equipped to play a vital role in addressing health misinformation and fostering trust, both online and within their communities,” she said.
The keynote speaker, Dr. Fatou Wurie who joined the ceremony from Freetown, Sierra Leone, emphasised the importance of building trust in an era dominated by misinformation, noting that trust remains the most powerful tool in changing behaviours and shaping public health outcomes.
She observed that public health is the concern of everyone, and that it was a good thing to see collaboration between media influencers and health workers in promoting public, noting that no single voice can be able to combat health misinformation, but by leveraging on collaboration with other stakeholders’ misinformation can be brought to its barest level.
Dr. Wurie informed the fellows that their voice is their powerful weapon and they should use it to spread the right information, urging them to strive and ensure that every Nigerian is sensitize to know right health information.
“Trust, once it is built, is stronger than fear. When communities trust the information they receive, they are better equipped to make informed decisions about their health, and that is how we create lasting change. This fellowship has shown that fostering trust through credible messengers can turn the tide against misinformation,” she said.
In his goodwill message, the Lagos state health education officer, Dr. Badejo Olusegun Isiah who represented the commissioner of health, Lagos state, said the event was a celebration of success and achievements in community engagement in the health sector.
He disclosed that the concept of the programme has helped them during the last HPV vaccine immunization exercise as they got wider acceptance from the public, appreciating NHW for ensuring that people are sensitize with the rudiments of healthy living and making informed decision about their health.
In her vote of thanks, the Director of Programmes, Nigeria Health Watch, Dr Kemisola Agbaoye expressed happiness that the health misinformation management project is growing rapidly and appreciated all the partners and facilitators from both Niger and Lagos states.
She also announced that NHW is planning for another programme named, Health Information Disorder Management Network, which is a collaborative initiative aimed at sustaining the efforts of the health misinformation management project.
The network according to her will serve as a platform to collaborate, innovate, and amplify correct information, fostering ongoing partnerships, capacity building, and knowledge sharing among members.
The initiative seeks to ensure a harmonised response to misinformation challenges and to promote accurate health communication at scale.
Some of the graduands speaks on their experience during the programme and appreciated NHW for the opportunity given to them and building their capacity to discharge their respective duties diligently.