The Central government is expected to issue guidelines which will make it mandatory for the influencers to disclose their qualifications.
Published Apr 11, 2023 | 8:30 AM ⚊ Updated Apr 11, 2023 | 8:30 AM
For health influencers to disseminate content, they must have the relevant licences. (Creative Commons)
The Central government has decided to make it mandatory for all health influencers on social media to display their qualifications.
Though this can be seen as a “positive step towards promoting evidence-based healthcare and protecting public health”, doctors are saying the government needs to take certain precautions to ensure the effectiveness of this measure.
Dr Rajeev Jayadevan, former president of the Indian Medical Association’s Kochi chapter, told South First: “This is definitely the first step towards flagging misleading health information, but the government needs to have a strict monitoring committee and also needs to intervene in a stringent manner.”
To regulate how online influencers impart information to their followers, the Central government, as a new control measure, said that their content in the fields of medicine and health must now have the relevant licences for their fields.
Rohit Kumar Singh, secretary to the Department of Consumer Affairs, said in an interview that the guidelines issued by the department last month were for all social media influencers and celebrities, asking them to disclose their relationship with what they endorsed.
The Centre is expected to issue guidelines which will make it mandatory for the influencers to disclose their qualifications for dispensing advice on health and wellness.
He explained in the interview that if influencers are talking about any medicine or food stating it is good or bad, they must be qualified and also disclose how they are qualified to make that statement. Otherwise, it will be considered as misleading.
Taking to Twitter, Dr Cyriac Abby Philips, a specialist in hepatology and liver transplant medicine, popularly known as TheLiverDoc, said, “The Indian government has asked wellness and health influencers to display qualifications that legitimately authorise them to dispense healthcare suggestions on social media,”
He added, “My question is, if we have a certification as shown on the right side, would that be considered legitimate? It’s a certificate after all.”
Citing an example of a person who calls himself a “cancer healer” and advises people on how he can cure their cancer, he argued that the problem was a certificate on absolute quackery from a legit quack promoting nonsense groups and a guy who cannot even understand or spell oncology was now a “cancer healer”,
So the doctor asked how getting a certifiate from “Unhurry School of Healing” to heal cancer was the same as getting a certificate from the “Please Stop School of Healing” to heal diarrhoea or “Just Hurry School of Healing” to heal constipaton.
“Who’s regulating these quacks in India?” he asked.
The Indian Government has asked wellness and health influencers to display qualifications that legitimately authorize them to dispense healthcare suggestions on social media.
My question is, if we have a certification as shown on the right side, would that be considered… pic.twitter.com/twyINyBkJk
— TheLiverDoc (@theliverdr) April 10, 2023
Several other doctors also expressed concern and said that the same thing has happened with other streams of medicines as well.
For instance, a handle by one Dr Gooner said: “Same thing with Dermatology too. People getting certificates of Cosmetology from BUMS and dentists. And then displaying it proudly like a big achievement when all they have done is paid 50k and attended 2 days of some BS course and now think they’re equal to MDs. [sic]”
Same thing with Dermatology too. People getting certificates of Cosmetology from BUMS and dentists. And then displaying it proudly like a big achievement when all they have done is paid 50k and attended 2 days of some BS course and now think they’re equal to MDs.
— Dr. Gooner (@Gooner_Yahya) April 10, 2023
Another individual with Twitter handle @chetuzz expressed concern that “New online institutions will crop up to issue certificates. Govt should clearly specify certification authority.”
Agreeing that this was not going to be an easy task for the government unless there were not just clear guidelines but also constant monitoring, Jayadevan said, “As far as matters of health go, to say something on a public platform that is accessible to the general public and it is misleading or against any establishments or any form of healthcare, there must be tangible rules. Unless, we put in a penalty rule people won’t fall in line in this country,”
Citing examples, he explained that any post where the person was speaking about therapy or intervention measure to cure something meant they were committing to it and hence if it is coming from someone who is not an authority or doesn’t have eligibility then he must be prosecuted by law. If that’s not done, these guidelines won’t work, says Rajeev.
He says there has to be a monitoring committee and the public should definitely flag such things. This committee should be run by central agency which is not corruption prone he added. Meanwhile, even on twitter the doctors explained that influencers must be made vicariously responsible for any injury caused due to their unqualified and irresponsible statements (Advice). if medical professionals can be bound by a statutory code of conduct and ethics.
Why place “influencers” in a more laxed position? asked a Twitterati. Another Dr Sujeet Narayan C with twitter handle @SujeetMD said, “well highlighted, the definitions of qualification and certification need to be clarified along with the regulation so that, people know the difference. Very thin line between the two in unregulated nations across the world,” he tweeted.
Well highlighted, the definitions of QUALIFICATION and CERTIFICATION need to be clarified along with the regulation so that, people know the difference.
Very thin line between the two in unregulated nations across the world.
— Dr Sujeet Narayan C (@SujeetMD) April 10, 2023
The new policy is expected to raise the bar for grassroots, and independent content creators and also be good for tackling disinformation, especially when their opinions can potentially have effect on individuals’ healthcare decisions.
However, establishing clear guidelines, having a system in place to verify the authenticity of the qualifications displayed by these health influencers, educating the public about importance of qualifications when seekign healthcare advice, regular review and updating of guidelines for displaying qualifications can help in monitoring such disinformation opined the doctors.
