News and Insights

Medical fake news: how can we fight misinformation in healthcare?

August 14, 2026

In this blog, you will learn:

• Why health misinformation is so difficult to tackle, from misleading social media content and sensational headlines to the growing use of AI for health-related questions.
• How healthcare organisations can respond to medical misinformation, using monitoring, evidence-based communication, trusted voices, empathy and crisis planning.
• Why proactive communication and PR are essential to building patient trust, helping people find reliable health information and understand when to seek advice from a healthcare professional.

From social media posts and misleading headlines to viral ‘health’ trends, sometimes even dangerous ones, health misinformation has become an increasingly complex challenge for the healthcare sector.

For patients, the consequences can be serious. For healthcare organisations, pharmaceutical companies and other health stakeholders, misinformation can also undermine credibility, damage reputations and erode one of their most valuable assets: patient trust.

Why health misinformation is so difficult to tackle

The digital environment has transformed how people access health information. A patient worried about something can find hundreds of diverging answers online within seconds. But not all of them are accurate, evidence-based or presented in the right context.

Health misinformation on social media is particularly challenging because misleading ‘clickbait’ content can spread faster than science-backed news. Emotional or sensational claims often attract more attention than nuanced scientific explanations. A study published in Health Policy & Technology found that, between 2012 and 2017, 40% of the top links related to common diseases contained misinformation and were shared more than 451,000 times.

Artificial intelligence (AI) adds another layer to the challenge. Patients are increasingly turning to AI tools to answer health questions, sometimes instead of consulting a qualified healthcare professional.

What’s more, instead of asking themselves, ‘is ChatGPT reliable for medical advice?’ patients may be taking AI’s answers at face value. A 2025 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that people may over trust AI-generated medical advice, despite its limitations.

While AI tools can help people understand complex information, they are not a substitute for medical diagnosis or personalised advice from a healthcare professional. Communicating this distinction clearly is essential.

Communication has a critical role to play

Healthcare organisations cannot simply wait for misinformation to disappear. They need to be prepared to identify, assess and respond to it, while avoiding involuntarily giving greater visibility to false claims.

This is where communications professionals can make a difference. An effective patient trust communication strategy should combine several elements:

• Listen and monitor: identify emerging narratives, questions and misleading claims across social media, online platforms and traditional media
• Respond with facts: provide clear, accessible and evidence-based information, adapted to the target audience
• Build trusted voices: healthcare professionals, patient organisations and credible experts can help make accurate information more relatable and trustworthy
• Prepare before a crisis: establish clear processes, define response principles, and media-train spokespeople before misinformation turns into a reputational issue
• Communicate with empathy: correcting inaccurate information is not just about presenting facts. Understanding patients’ concerns and avoiding judgement can be equally important.

From reactive response to proactive trust-building

The role of PR in combating health misinformation is crucial and goes far beyond crisis response. Proactive communication is a must, as it can help establish trusted sources of information before a crisis occurs.

From healthcare organisations’ point of view, the goal should not be to win every online debate, but rather to create an environment where patients know where to find reliable information, who to trust and when to seek professional medical advice.

In an increasingly vast and complex information landscape, fighting medical misinformation is ultimately about more than correcting false claims. It is about protecting trust and making credible, evidence-based healthcare information easier to find, understand and act on.

FINN Partners supports organisations spanning patient advocacy, policy, health provision and the product innovation sector through brand and corporate PR campaigns. Find out about our work in health.

FAQ

What is health misinformation?
Health misinformation is false or misleading information about health. It can spread quickly through social media, news or AI platforms.

How can healthcare organisations fight misinformation?
They can monitor emerging claims and respond with clear, evidence-based information. Trusted healthcare professionals can also help reinforce credible messages.

What role does PR play in fighting medical misinformation?
PR helps healthcare organisations build trust and credibility. It also makes reliable health information easier to find and understand for patients.