Exploring Canadian perceptions and experiences of stigma during the COVID-19 pandemic

Fahim, Christine; Cooper, Jeanette; Theivendrampillai, Suvabna; Pham, Ba’; Straus, Sharon E.

doi:10.3389/fpubh.2023.1068268

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…First, East-Asian participants called on the Canadian government to champion messaging to reduce stigmatizing and racist rhetoric. Our study did not directly explore the link between exposure to misinformation and perceptions or experiences of stigmatization, yet we posit that the rise of stigmatizing information directly impacted the experiences of East Asian individuals living in Canada during the pandemic [29]. COVID-19 related information was often laden with stigmatizing messages, which were shared widely on mainstream and social media channels.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Canadian public perceptions and experiences with information during the COVID-19 pandemic: strategies to optimize future risk communications

Theivendrampillai¹,

Cooper²,

Lee³

et al. 2023

BMC Public Health

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Background The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the spread of misinformation worldwide. The purpose of this study was to explore perceptions of misinformation and preferred sources of obtaining COVID-19 information from those living in Canada. In particular, we sought to explore the perceptions of East Asian individuals in Canada, who experienced stigma related to COVID-19 messaging. Methods We conducted a qualitative thematic analysis study. Interviews were offered in English, Mandarin and Cantonese. Interviewers probed for domains related to knowledge about COVID-19, preferred sources of information, perceived barriers and facilitators of misinformation, and preferences for communication during a health emergency. Interviews were recorded, translated, transcribed verbatim and analyzed using a framework approach. Transcripts were independently double-coded until > 60% agreement was reached. This study received research ethics approval. Results Fifty-five interviews were conducted. The majority of participants were women (67%); median age was 52 years. 55% of participants were of East-Asian descent. Participants obtained information about COVID-19 from diverse English and non-English sources including news media, government agencies or representatives, social media, and personal networks. Challenges to seeking and understanding information included: encountering misinformation, making sense of evolving or conflicting public health guidance, and limited information on topics of interest. 65% of participants reported encountering COVID-19 misinformation. East Asian participants called on government officials to champion messaging to reduce stigmatizing and racist rhetoric and highlighted the importance of having accessible, non-English language information sources. Participants provided recommendations for future public health communications guidance during health emergencies, including preferences for message content, information messengers, dissemination platforms and format of messages. Almost all participants preferred receiving information from the Canadian government and found it helpful to utilize various mediums and platforms such as social media and news media for future risk communication, urging for consistency across all platforms. Conclusions We provide insights on Canadian experiences navigating COVID-19 information, where more than half perceived encountering misinformation on platforms when seeking COVID-19 information . We provide recommendations to inform public health communications during future health emergencies.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Canadian public perceptions and experiences with information during the COVID-19 pandemic: strategies to optimize future risk communications

Theivendrampillai¹,

Cooper²,

Lee³

et al. 2023

BMC Public Health

Self Cite

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“…Multiple studies have demonstrated the link between inconsistent, unclear vaccination policies and a rise of vaccine hesitancy (Vernon-Wilson et al, 2023). These policies reinforced doubts about the vaccines and fueled mistrust of health organizations, especially among historically marginalized communities (Fahim et al, 2023b;Fahim et al, 2023a;Theivendrampillai et al, 2023). These sentiments extended to LTCH/RH and other healthcare staff, with high levels of vaccine hesitancy reported as the vaccines were first rolled out (Murmann et al, 2023).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Challenges facing Canadian Long-Term Care Homes and Retirement Homes during the COVID-19 pandemic

Fahim,

Hassan,

Quinn de Launay

et al. 2024

Preprint

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COVID-19 presented a crisis for long-term care homes (LTCHs) and retirement homes (RHs). This study explored the pandemic-related challenges LTCHs and RHs faced and the strategies they used to mitigate them. Ninety-one key informant interviews were conducted with LTCH and RH leadership across 47 homes (33 LTCHs, 14 RHs) in Ontario, Canada from February 2021 to July 2022. Findings confirmed evidence for three main challenges. First, leaders were challenged to implement infection prevention and control protocols and measures. Second, they needed supports to facilitate COVID-19 vaccine access and to promote vaccine confidence. Third, LTCH/RH staff experienced significant well-being challenges in the face of COVID-19 pressures. Findings also reveal a plethora of strategies implemented by homes, with ranging reports of perceived success. Homes’ needs evolved rapidly as the COVID-19 pandemic progressed. The use of a co-creation, responsive and tailored approach to address evolving barriers and meaningfully support homes during emergencies is recommended.Key pointsCOVID-19 challenges in homes persisted over one year into the pandemicWe describe the IPAC, vaccine and wellness challenges faced by LTCH and RHWe used these data to design a congregate care home support program to navigate COVID-19 challenges

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“…Our survey was composed of 2 sections. The first section explored perceptions of stigma during the COVID-19 pandemic; these results are reported elsewhere [ 8 ]. The second section explored preferred sources of acquiring COVID-19 information during the first and second waves of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, perceptions of encountering misinformation during the pandemic, trust in information sources, and suggestions on how to optimize public health messaging.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ontarians’ Perceptions of Public Health Communications and Misinformation During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Survey Study

Fahim¹,

Cooper²,

Theivendrampillai³

et al. 2023

JMIR Form Res

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Background Clear, accurate, and transparent risk communication is critical to providing policy makers and the public with directions to effectively implement public health strategies during a health emergency. Objective We aimed to explore the public’s preferred sources of obtaining COVID-19 information, perceptions on the prevalence and drivers of misinformation during the pandemic, and suggestions to optimize health communications during future public health emergencies. Methods We administered a web-based survey that included Likert scale, multiple choice and open-ended response questions to residents of Ontario, Canada. We aimed to recruit a sample that reflected population diversity with respect to age and gender. Data were collected between June 10, 2020, and December 31, 2020, and were analyzed using descriptive statistics; open-ended data were analyzed using content analysis. Subgroup analyses to explore perceptions by age and gender were conducted using ordinal regression. Results A total of 1823 individuals participated in the survey (n=990, 54% women; n=703, 39% men; n=982, 54% aged 18-40 years; n=518, 28% aged 41-60 years; and n=215, 12% aged ≥61 years). Participants most commonly obtained COVID-19 information from local television news (n=1118, 61%) followed by social media (n=938, 51%), national or international television news (n=888, 49%), and friends and family (n=835, 46%). Approximately 55% (n=1010) of the participants believed they had encountered COVID-19–related misinformation; 70% (n=1284) of the participants reported high levels of trust in health authority websites and health care providers; 66% (n=1211) reported high levels of trust in health ministers or public health organizations. Sources perceived to be less trustworthy included friends and family, talk radio, social media, as well as blogs and opinion websites. Men were more likely to report encountering misinformation and to trust friends or family (odds ratio [OR] 1.49, 95% CI 1.24-1.79) and blogs or opinion websites (OR 1.24, 95% CI 1.03-1.50), compared to women. Compared to those aged 18-40 years, participants aged ≥41years were more likely to trust all assessed information sources, with the exception of web-based media sources, and less likely to report encountering misinformation. Of those surveyed, 58% (n=1053) had challenges identifying or appraising COVID-19 information. Conclusions Over half of our participants perceived that they had encountered COVID-19 misinformation, and 58% had challenges identifying or appraising COVID-19 information. Gender and age differences in perceptions of misinformation and trust in information sources were observed. Future research to confirm the validity of these perceptions and to explore information-seeking patterns by population subgroups may provide useful insights on how to optimize health communication during public health emergencies.

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Exploring Canadian perceptions and experiences of stigma during the COVID-19 pandemic

Cited by 5 publications

References 41 publications

Canadian public perceptions and experiences with information during the COVID-19 pandemic: strategies to optimize future risk communications

Canadian public perceptions and experiences with information during the COVID-19 pandemic: strategies to optimize future risk communications

Challenges facing Canadian Long-Term Care Homes and Retirement Homes during the COVID-19 pandemic

Ontarians’ Perceptions of Public Health Communications and Misinformation During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Survey Study

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