. 2022 Apr 11;36(6):934–947. doi: 10.1177/08901171221075612

Topic 3:

Unproven Treatment.

Didactic Message	Narrative Message
Contrary to what you might have read or heard, hydroxychloroquine has NOT been shown to be safe or effective for treating COVID-19. Hydroxychloroquine is not approved for the treatment of COVID-19 patients. Additionally, there is evidence to suggest that hydroxychloroquine can have serious side effects, including heart rhythm problems that can be deadly. There are currently several other potential treatments for COVID-19 being studied in clinical trials. Clinical trials are the primary way that researchers find out if a new treatment is safe and effective in people. Without conducting clinical trials, we do not have enough evidence to know if a treatment is safe and effective, and there is a risk that people will be given treatments that do not work and may even be harmful	On Apr 15, I got a call with news that didn’t surprise me at all: I tested positive for COVID-19. I had been miserable for many days at that point and was very scared. Several friends urged me to take hydroxychloroquine because they heard it could be used to treat COVID-19. I was desperate to try anything, so I asked my doctor for a prescription. My doctor told me that this drug has not been approved to treat COVID-19 and that in some patients, it can cause serious side effects, including heart rhythm problems that can be deadly. She talked me out of it, and in hindsight, I am glad I didn’t take the risk. I eventually felt better and thankfully, the worst is behind me. I’m actually a little embarrassed that I was so willing to try an unproven treatment. There is a reason they conduct clinical trials to prove the efficacy and safety of treatments before people can take them. We need the clinical trials to know what the risks and benefits are so we can make sure we are helping people and not hurting them

Didactic Message

Narrative Message

Contrary to what you might have read or heard, hydroxychloroquine has NOT been shown to be safe or effective for treating COVID-19. Hydroxychloroquine is not approved for the treatment of COVID-19 patients. Additionally, there is evidence to suggest that hydroxychloroquine can have serious side effects, including heart rhythm problems that can be deadly. There are currently several other potential treatments for COVID-19 being studied in clinical trials. Clinical trials are the primary way that researchers find out if a new treatment is safe and effective in people. Without conducting clinical trials, we do not have enough evidence to know if a treatment is safe and effective, and there is a risk that people will be given treatments that do not work and may even be harmful

On Apr 15, I got a call with news that didn’t surprise me at all: I tested positive for COVID-19. I had been miserable for many days at that point and was very scared. Several friends urged me to take hydroxychloroquine because they heard it could be used to treat COVID-19. I was desperate to try anything, so I asked my doctor for a prescription. My doctor told me that this drug has not been approved to treat COVID-19 and that in some patients, it can cause serious side effects, including heart rhythm problems that can be deadly. She talked me out of it, and in hindsight, I am glad I didn’t take the risk. I eventually felt better and thankfully, the worst is behind me. I’m actually a little embarrassed that I was so willing to try an unproven treatment. There is a reason they conduct clinical trials to prove the efficacy and safety of treatments before people can take them. We need the clinical trials to know what the risks and benefits are so we can make sure we are helping people and not hurting them