Welcome to Misinformation Mondays: a 5-part series where we delve into strategies that researchers can use to combat misinformation. Across the series we’ll be sharing resources to help you fight mis- and disinformation online and in your communities.
This week's topic: compassion
We’ve made it to the end! The last topic in this year’s Misinformation Monday series is compassion – something that should be at the core of every effort to dispel and debunk mis- and disinformation.
What is it?
Ultimately, compassion is about remembering the human behind the information.
Not everyone who shares misinformation is doing so out of malice. While there certainly are cases of people creating misinformation to deliberately to sow mistrust or push a certain narrative, most of the misinformation that we encounter online and in person is well-intentioned, if misguided.
We’ve seen how health misinformation can often be driven by a core desire to help others and to protect our communities. Distrust of healthcare systems and providers is in some cases driven by very real harms, both historic and ongoing, against certain groups of people. As researchers, it’s important to acknowledge that in some cases, suspicion toward healthcare is driven by trauma, both on a personal and a collective level.
When we approach misinformation from a place of empathy and humility, we’re often better equipped to address the core beliefs, attitudes, and experiences that influence’s someone’s susceptibility to misinformation.
How do you do it?
It’s of course difficult to provide step-by-step instructions on how to empathize with other human beings. You (hopefully) understand this innately, as a human yourself. There are some things that you can remind yourself of, when participating in discourse around misinformation, or attempting to debunk misinformation. All the previous tips we’ve shared for addressing misinformation work much better when you approach them from a place of empathy, open-mindedness, and compassion.
Assume good intent; unless shown otherwise
Unless a post is clearly abusive or hateful, assume that it was shared by someone who thinks they’re doing what’s best. Someone sharing misinformation about a vaccine’s effects on pregnancy and fertility, for example, may genuinely believe what they are sharing, and may believe they are helping people. In this case, look for ways to lead with support. This is a situation where bypassing may be helpful. You could say something like “I care a lot about my loved ones, which is why I’m getting my vaccines. Vaccination is scientifically proven to reduce the severity of illness, especially for vulnerable people.”
Unfortunately, these dialogues don’t always go the way we hope. If you receive hate or threats in response, it’s time to step away. There is no shame in restricting comments or disengaging from an interaction to protect your safety.
Lead with curiosity
Instead of immediately telling someone they’re wrong or dismissing an “alternative treatment” as baseless – see if there’s an opportunity to open a dialogue. This goes back to what we shared in our third tip, Availability. People tend to be more receptive to correction and debunking when they feel that they’re part of the conversation. Asking questions about their beliefs around health and wellness, and how they arrived at these beliefs, can often be as informative for you as it can be for the person you’re trying to persuade.
Also – recognize the difference between baseless snake-oil and traditional medicine which can often provide very real benefits for cultural and spiritual aspects of wellbeing.
Set limits and boundaries for yourself
Though compassion can help open a dialogue, it’s important to remain selective about which battles you have the capacity to fight. When you see misinformation, consider whether it’s going to be productive to try to address it. Consider the potential impact of the misinformation, your own influence and expertise in the area, and whether you actually have the bandwidth to engage. If you have expertise in a given field, it’s best to focus on combatting misinformation within that narrow field, and leave other misinformation to other experts. And don’t forget to have compassion for yourself – make sure to log off and touch grass once in a while.
Recapping PHSA’s 2nd Annual Together Against Misinformation Event
On Thursday, December 4, 2025, the Provincial Health Services Authority hosted its second annual Together Against Misinformation event, a collaboration between PHSA, the WHRI, the BC Centre for Disease Control, BC Cancer, and the BC Children’s Hospital Research Institute. The event was attended by roughly 140 staff, clinicians, and researchers from across the provincial healthcare landscape.
We kicked things off with a heartfelt welcome from Elder Glida Morgan, and opening remarks by Greg Martyn, Chief Administrative Officer of PHSA Research & Academic Services.
Tim Caulfield, Professor in the Faculty of Law and the School of Public Health, and Research Director of the Health Law Institute at the University of Alberta, delivered a captivating keynote speech exploring how political identity and ideology can shape our susceptibility to misinformation.
Tim’s speech was followed by talks from Dr. Alastair McAlpine, Researcher at the Vaccine Evaluation Center at BC Children’s Hospital Research Institute, Physician at the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Department at BC Children’s Hospital, and Clinical assistant professor at the Department of Pediatrics at the University of British Columbia, who spoke about the experience of frontline healthcare providers dealing with patients who have been influenced by misinformation.
Aishwarya Nagar, Senior Analyst at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security and a Research Associate in the Department of Environmental Health and Engineering at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, then rounded out the talks by presenting research and actionable advice on addressing public health rumors and misinformation.
The talks were followed by a lively panel discussion, which brought in Lucas Wilson, provincial lead for partnerships and networks at Trans Care BC, to offer an expert perspective on gender-affirming healthcare and 2SLGBTQIA+ allyship.