YouTube to verify health workers to curb misinformation
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London: In a bid to curb the spread of misinformation and fake medical news on its platform, Google-owned YouTube on Friday announced that it has launched a verification system for healthcare workers in the UK.
Vishaal Virani, lead of health content for YouTube said that it was important owing to a vast number of people now accessing healthcare information on the platform.
In 2022, health videos were viewed more than three billion times in the UK alone on the video-sharing platform.
"Whether we like it or not, whether we want it or not, whether the health industry is pushing for it or not, people are accessing health information online," he said.
"We want to create an environment where those who are experts, who are authorities, are able to elevate the content that they are creating,” he added.
The healthcare professionals will be validated through a "multi-step process" based on collaboration with the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges (AoMRC) and National Health Service (NHS), along with other stakeholders such as the Royal College of Nursing.
Successful applicants will have a badge under their name identifying them as genuine, licensed healthcare workers, the report said.
When people search for a health topic on YouTube now, the top of the search results will show a “health shelf,” which is labelled to be from health sources.
According to the report, the videos that populate that list will be those from authoritative sources that have been validated by YouTube.
The company had earlier banned disinformation about vaccinations amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
With inputs from IANS