[UPDATE] Research Centre Monthly Discussion: Vaksinasi COVID-19 dan Hoax

Jakarta – On the 9th of April 2021, LSPR Communication and Business Institute’s Research Centre held the first discussion session of the Webinar Series about COVID-19, themed “COVID-19 Vaccination and Hoax”. This discussion session was attended by Dr. Eddy Fadlyana, dr.,SpA(K), MKes who talked about the safety and the health benefits of the vaccine based on clinical testing, Dr. dr. Lia Pertakusuma, SpK(K), MM, MARS who talked about the strategy and vaccination target to reach herd immunity, and Dr Andhika Raspati, SpKO who talked about the ways to not be involved in, or trapped in hoax and misinformation. This discussion session was moderated by Dr. Syafiq B. Assegaff, MA, who also talked about hoax from a communication’s perspective.

Dr. Eddy Fadlyana, dr., SpA(K), MKes explained that we should not doubt the safety of the vaccines produced by vaccination companies; aside from the fact that the companies have gotten a recognition and permit from the World Health Organization (WHO), the ingredients of the vaccine are safe for humans, as COVID-19 vaccines work similarly to other proven-safe vaccines, like the polio vaccine. Dr. dr. Lia Pertakusuma, SpK(K), MM, MARS added that to reach the targeted herd immunity in one year, 70% of the public has to be vaccinated. That is why it is important for the general public to support the government’s vaccination program to accelerate the pandemic decline.

Dr Andhika Raspati, SpKO also responded to a question from a webinar attendant, about if it is necessary for the general public to know the vaccine ingredients in detail. According to him, it is necessary for the general public to know the ingredients, but not too much information either. This is to prevent information bias and more wide spreading of hoaxes. He also commented on the importance of communication experts to help educate the public about COVID-19 vaccination. According to Dr. Syafiq B. Assegaff, MA, the public oftentimes make inaccurate decisions because of the ‘infobesity’ phenomenon, which means an overload of information usually caused by social media, which makes the general public to be exposed to more information than it is humanly possible to process.

This webinar series is concluded by Emilya Setyaningtyas from LSPR Communication and Institute’s Public Relations department, “We hope that the general public won’t be easily fooled by hoax, acknowledge that the COVID-19 vaccine is important, and help educate people about the importance of this vaccine to help the success of the government’s program”.