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Covid-19 on Instagram: A Content Analysis of Selected Accounts Publisher



Niknam F1 ; Samadbeik M2, 3 ; Fatehi F3, 4 ; Shirdel M1 ; Rezazadeh M1 ; Bastani P5
Authors
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Authors Affiliations
  1. 1. Student Research Committee, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
  2. 2. Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Iran
  3. 3. Centre for Online Health, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
  4. 4. School of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
  5. 5. Health Human Resources Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran

Source: Health Policy and Technology Published:2021


Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to characterize the representation of public health information related to COVID-19 posted on Instagram in 2020. Methods: This qualitative content analysis study was conducted in Iran as one of the countries with the highest number of confirmed cases of COVID-19. Data were collected from the contents published from February 19 to April 3, 2020, on Instagram. The search feature of the Instagram app was used to find the posts related to Coronavirus or COVID-19. Overall, 1612 posts from 92 accounts were retrieved and analyzed using thematic analysis. Results: A total of 23 themes emerged from the analysis of the retrieved posts. These themes include epidemiology and statistics, training and caring, general prevention guidelines, hygiene, healthy diet and lifestyle, patients, diagnosis and treatment, personal protective equipment, traditional medicine, psychology, children, cultural aspects, socio-cultural impacts, religious, misinformation, and wrong behaviors, animals, satire, condition of the healthcare system, politics, quarantine, operations of the Iranian National Disaster Management Organization (NDMO), economic impacts, and world news. Conclusion: The contents analysis of Instagram posts during a public health crisis can provide new and realistic insights into the crisis and identify the topics of interest or concern of the public. Furthermore, the information collected in this way can help policymakers identify the most critical issues from the public perspective and utilize the gained knowledge to manage the ongoing and future pandemics. © 2020
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