Misinformation has become a constant presence in modern life, moving through social media, podcasts, comment sections, and everyday conversations. It takes many forms, but health misinformation is perhaps the most common and the most dangerous. Doctors see this every day in their offices, clinics, and hospital wards. A recent survey by the Physician’s Foundation found that 99.9% of doctors had treated patients over the past year who had been influenced by misinformation. The effects are not abstract. Nearly half of those doctors said misinformation made patients less likely to stick with their medications or treatment plans. Two-thirds said it increased patient anxiety, making already stressful health situations even harder. And 45% said patients often or very often refused recommended care because of false beliefs they had picked up somewhere along the way. Hospitalists, the physicians who care for patients while they are admitted to the hospital, often face the heaviest burden. They meet patients at their most vulnerable, often without the benefit of an existing relationship. As Dr. Joseph Thomas, a hospitalist with the Buffalo Medical Group, explains, hospital medicine grew out of a need to care for people who did not have insurance or a primary care doctor. But even patients who do have a primary care physician can carry deep-seated beliefs that keep them from seeking care early, and they end up in the hospital as a result. The hospitalist is then left to untangle not only the medical problem but also the web of misinformation that may have led to it. It is a delicate balancing act, but with patience and compassion, hospitalists can do more than restore a patient’s health—they can begin to restore their trust in medicine itself.
Vaccine misinformation remains one of the most persistent and consequential challenges, especially during flu season. Dr. Thomas says vaccines have been a major source of misinformation for years, particularly in pediatric care. The consequences are visible in recent measles outbreaks across several states, outbreaks that many public health experts trace directly to growing vaccine hesitancy. What patients may not realize is that when a person skips a vaccine and becomes sick, they may encounter a physician who has never actually treated that disease, even if they have been trained to recognize and manage it. Measles is a stark example: the United States had essentially eliminated the disease before skepticism began to undo decades of progress. Dr. Michael Lou, medical director of hospital medicine at Northwestern Medicine Palos Hospital, hears many of the same misconceptions. Patients tell him the flu vaccine will give them the flu, or that because they can still get the flu after being vaccinated, the shot is worthless. Lou gently explains that the vaccine cannot cause the flu, and while it is true that a vaccinated person can still become infected, the illness is likely to be far less severe and shorter in duration. He also reminds patients that vaccines are not just a personal choice. They protect the elderly, the immunocompromised, and the people who cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons. In his hospital, the flu vaccine is offered to every patient at discharge. For older patients, staff take extra time to explain that the flu can weaken the body so much that it opens the door to bacterial pneumonia, turning a short illness into a long hospital stay. These conversations matter because they give patients a chance to make decisions based on understanding rather than fear.
Vaccines are only part of the story. Patients also arrive in hospitals with misinformation about detoxes, cleanses, supplements, and even their own lab results. Dr. Lou has seen patients who take potentially harmful supplements like ashwagandha or who adopt restrictive eating plans in the name of “detoxifying” their bodies. He reminds them that the human body already has a powerful detox system: the liver and kidneys. Some of these supplements, he points out, can interfere with prescribed medications and cause complications. There is also the growing issue of patients reading their lab results in online portals before a doctor has a chance to explain them. They often turn to Google or social media to interpret the numbers, drawing conclusions that may be completely wrong. Dr. Thomas has experienced this many times. Sometimes a lab value that looks alarming to a patient is not actually relevant to the condition being treated. Other times the information a patient finds online is simply incorrect. Dr. Richard Engel, associate division chief of hospital medicine at Phoenix Children’s Hospital, sees distrust across nearly every type of care. He notes that the more extreme the situation, the more anxious patients and families become. He recently recommended a nasal gastric tube to help a patient with nutrition, and the family hesitated, asking for time to think it over. They talked to friends, prayed, and even used artificial intelligence to generate questions for him. When they met again, they granted permission. Dr. Engel saw this as a positive use of AI because it helped the family ask thoughtful questions. But he worries when people use AI to seek definitive answers to medical problems, because AI cannot understand the full context of a patient’s history, symptoms, and individual circumstances. The underlying need is always the same: patients and families want to understand, and they want to feel respected in their search for answers.
Addressing misinformation requires more than simply correcting facts. It requires understanding why patients have come to distrust the medical system in the first place. Dr. Engel points out that there is a general erosion of trust in institutions across society, and healthcare has not been spared. Patients arrive more skeptical than ever, and that skepticism is often fueled by real experiences of feeling dismissed, rushed, or ignored. Dr. Thomas adds another uncomfortable truth: some members of the medical community have themselves spread misinformation. “Sometimes the call is from inside the house,” he says. This honest acknowledgment is important. It tells patients that their concerns are being taken seriously, rather than dismissed as ignorance. The task for hospitalists, then, is to build both personal and institutional trust, one interaction at a time. This begins with small but powerful actions. Dr. Thomas advises sitting down and interacting with patients at eye level, rather than standing over them, which can feel intimidating. It means giving patients space to explain what brought them to the hospital and listening without judgment. A patient who has not been taking their medication may not be stubborn or careless. They may be trying to balance caregiving for an elderly parent, raising children, working, and managing their own health at the same time. Their health has simply been pushed aside in the chaos of life. By acknowledging that life is hard and offering to find a path forward together, doctors can transform the relationship from one of authority to one of partnership.
Dr. Engel believes that the most important thing is to make sure patients feel heard. Everyone, he says, wants to be understood. When a patient senses that a doctor is genuinely trying to help, rather than just delivering orders, most will eventually come around. This is not about agreeing with everything the patient says or pretending that misinformation is harmless. It is about meeting people where they are, respecting their lived experiences, and guiding them toward better choices without shaming them. Clinicians who take the time to acknowledge how frustrating and confusing the healthcare system can be, and who establish a real human connection, are far more likely to break through the noise of misinformation. A patient who feels respected is more likely to ask questions, listen to explanations, and follow through on treatment. A family that feels supported is more likely to trust recommendations, even when those recommendations are difficult or scary. In this way, the hospitalist’s role extends far beyond diagnosing and treating. It is about creating a space where patients feel safe enough to reveal their fears, and where they can begin to see medicine as an ally rather than an enemy.
On a broader scale, every positive interaction between a hospitalist and a patient is a chance to repair the damaged relationship between the public and the medical profession. When doctors take time to listen, to sit at eye level, to explain without judgment, and to invite patients into their own care, they are doing more than treating a single illness. They are showing what medicine can be at its best. Misinformation will not disappear overnight. It will continue to spread through social media, conversations, and even artificial intelligence. But the antidote is not simply more data or louder corrections. It is human connection. Hospitalists, by virtue of the intense and intimate nature of hospital care, are uniquely positioned to offer that connection. They meet patients at some of the most frightening moments of their lives, and they have the opportunity to turn fear into trust, confusion into understanding, and isolation into partnership. Every conversation that ends with a patient feeling respected is a small victory against the tide of misinformation. Every patient who leaves the hospital with a clearer understanding of their health is a step toward rebuilding confidence in medicine. Trust is not rebuilt through grand gestures. It is rebuilt through the quiet, consistent presence of doctors who listen, care, and treat their patients as full partners in their own healing. In this way, hospitalists are not just caregivers. They are bridge builders, restoring faith in a profession that, at its heart, has always been about helping people live healthier, fuller lives. And that is a mission worth protecting.