Timothy Caulfield Previews SPD 2024 Session on Misinformation in Pediatric Dermatology

Timothy Caulfied, JD, professor in the Faculty of Law in the School of Public Health and research director of the Health Law Institute at the University of Alberta, discusses the sessions he's most looking forward to at this year's Society of Pediatric Dermatology (SPD) annual meeting, including his talk on overcoming misinformation in pediatric dermatology.

Transcript

What sessions are you most looking forward to checking out at SPD 2024?

You know, I'm really looking forward to talking to this community. First of all, I think this community is incredibly relevant. I think this is a hot topic for this community, for this audience. So I'm looking forward to engaging with them. And also [I'm] really interested in their thoughts about what kinds of issues in the misinformation sphere they're seeing. But the other reason I'm thrilled to have this opportunity is I think this community can make a real difference. We know that there's been an erosion in trust for institutions generally—for science and, yes, for physicians—but health care providers are still amongst the most trusted voices, especially when you're talking about that physician-patient relationship. So, yeah, [I'm] very excited to talk with this community and looking forward to the event.

What will audiences be able to take away from your presentation on misinformation in the field of pediatric dermatology?

Look, I hope it was obvious that this is a major problem. I think that the spread of health misinformation is one of the greatest challenges of our time, and I really tried to hammer that.

I don't think that's a hard sell for this community but the scope and the breadth of the problem is really tremendous. And so the presentation was a little bit a call to arms, right? You know, we need everyone to step up.