Project description:Immunization programmes have been globally recognized as one of the most successful medical interventions against infectious diseases. Despite the proven efficacy and safety profiles of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines, there are still a substantial number of people who express vaccine hesitancy. Factors that influence vaccine decision-making are heterogenous, complex, and context specific and may be caused or amplified by uncontrolled online information or misinformation. With respect to COVID-19, the recent emergence of novel variants of concern that give rise to milder disease also drives vaccine hesitancy. Healthcare professionals remain one of the most trusted groups to advise and provide information to those ambivalent about COVID-19 vaccination and should be equipped with adequate resources and information as well as practical guidance to empower them to effectively discuss concerns. This article seeks to summarize the currently available information to address the most common concerns regarding COVID-19 vaccination.
Project description:The determinants of vaccine hesitancy remain complex and context specific. Betrayal aversion occurs when an individual is hesitant to risk being betrayed in an environment involving trust. In this pre-registered vignette experiment, we show that betrayal aversion is not captured by current vaccine hesitancy measures despite representing a significant source of unwillingness to be vaccinated. Our survey instrument was administered to 888 United States residents via Amazon Mechanical Turk in March 2021. We find that over a third of participants have betrayal averse preferences, resulting in an 8-26% decline in vaccine acceptance, depending on the betrayal source. Interestingly, attributing betrayal risk to scientists or government results in the greatest declines in vaccine acceptance. We explore an exogenous message intervention and show that an otherwise effective message acts narrowly and fails to reduce betrayal aversion. Our results demonstrate the importance of betrayal aversion as a preference construct in the decision to vaccinate.
Project description:PurposeThe delay in acceptance or refusal to get vaccinated despite the availability of services is called vaccine hesitancy. The Global Polio Eradication Initiative in Pakistan faced consistent barriers preventing the eradication of the disease in the country. Similarly with the advent of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic mass vaccination drives were initiated to a vaccine hesitant population. The aim of this study is to explore the prevalence and reasons for COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in the Pakistani population.Materials and methodsCross-sectional study conducted during July to September 2021 using a snowball sampling technique targeting the adult population of Pakistan. The modified version of the vaccine hesitancy questionnaire related to the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization Vaccine Hesitancy matrix was distributed online.ResultsOut of 973 participants, 52.4% were immediately willing to take the vaccine and constituted the acceptance group whereas the remaining 47.6% who were still not sure formed the hesitant group. Support from leaders was found to be statistically significant for the difference between the hesitant and acceptance groups (p-value=0.027). Hesitant people were concerned about the effectiveness of the vaccine (60.9%) and potential side effects (57.9%) as it was not sufficiently tested prior to launch (44.7%). Age and education were significant factors affecting the acceptance of vaccination. The most trusted source of information regarding vaccination was health care workers (43.8%).ConclusionA moderately high prevalence of vaccine hesitancy was reported in Pakistan. To overcome it, policymakers need to address the reasons for it. Leaders, celebrities, and healthcare workers can play an instrumental role in dispelling conspiracy theories regarding vaccines and making the vaccination drive a success.
Project description:IntroductionVaccine hesitancy can lead to incomplete vaccination, increased risk of vaccine-preventable diseases, and distrust or conflict between physicians and patients. Yet many physicians are uncomfortable navigating vaccine hesitancy and educating vaccine-hesitant patients and families. We developed a vaccine hesitancy curriculum to increase vaccine knowledge, comfort, and communication skills in pediatric residents.MethodsThe curriculum consisted of four interactive 40-minute sessions delivered to pediatric residents over 10 months. The first two sessions discussed recommended childhood vaccines, the third session examined common vaccine misconceptions, and the final session reviewed vaccine hesitancy-specific communication skills, incorporating practice through role-playing. Residents completed pre- and posttests assessing knowledge and comfort as well as receiving a standardized patient (SP) assessment of vaccine-specific communication skills after the curriculum.ResultsThirty-five residents were in the educational intervention group and 35 in a control group. Pretest scores did not differ significantly between the groups. The mean knowledge score for the intervention group increased from 47% on the pretest to 66% on the posttest. The mean self-reported comfort score (1 = low comfort, 5 = high comfort) for the intervention group increased from 2.9 on the pretest to 3.8 on the posttest. The control group showed no difference between pre- and posttest scores for knowledge or comfort. The mean postintervention SP assessment score was significantly higher for the intervention group (78%) than the control group (52%).DiscussionImplementation of a comprehensive vaccine hesitancy curriculum resulted in improved vaccine knowledge, self-reported comfort, and communication skills among pediatric residents.
Project description:The scientific community has come together in a mass mobilization to combat the public health risks of COVID-19, including efforts to develop a vaccine. However, the success of any vaccine depends on the share of the population that gets vaccinated. We designed a survey experiment in which a nationally representative sample of 3,133 adults in the USA stated their intentions to vaccinate themselves and their children for COVID-19. The factors that we varied across treatments were: the stated severity and infectiousness of COVID-19 and the stated source of the risk information (White House or the Centers for Disease Control). We find that 20% of people in the USA intend to decline the vaccine. We find no statistically significant effect on vaccine intentions from the severity of COVID-19. In contrast, we find that the degree of infectiousness of the coronavirus influences vaccine intentions and that inconsistent risk messages from public health experts and elected officials may reduce vaccine uptake. However, the most important determinants of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy seem to be distrust of the vaccine safety (including uncertainty due to vaccine novelty), as well as general vaccine avoidance, as implied by not having had a flu shot in the last two years.
Project description:This article uses novel data collected on a weekly basis covering more than 35,000 individuals in the EU to analyze the relationship between trust in various dimensions and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. We found that trust in science is negatively correlated, while trust in social media and the use of social media as the main source of information are positively associated with vaccine hesitancy. High trust in social media is found among adults aged 65+, financially distressed and unemployed individuals, and hesitancy is largely explained by conspiracy beliefs among them. Finally, we found that the temporary suspension of the AstraZeneca vaccine in March 2021 significantly increased vaccine hesitancy and especially among people with low trust in science, living in rural areas, females, and financially distressed. Our findings suggest that trust is a key determinant of vaccine hesitancy and that pro-vaccine campaigns could be successfully targeted toward groups at high risk of hesitancy.
Project description:IntroductionIn the race to deploy vaccines to prevent COVID-19, there is a need to understand factors influencing vaccine hesitancy. Secondary risk theory is a useful framework to explain this, accounting for concerns about vaccine efficacy and safety.MethodsDuring the first week of July, 2020, participants (N = 216) evaluated one of three different hypothetical vaccine scenarios describing an FDA-approved vaccine becoming available "next week," "in one year," or "in two years." Dependent variables were perceived vaccine efficacy, self-efficacy, perceived vaccine risk, and vaccination willingness. Covariates included vaccine conspiracy beliefs, science pessimism, media dependency, and perceived COVID-19 risk. Data analysis employed multiple analysis of covariance (MANCOVA).ResultsPerceived vaccine efficacy was lowest for the next-week vaccine (η2p = .045). Self-efficacy was higher for the two-year vaccine than the next-week vaccine (η2p = .029). Perceived vaccine risk was higher for the next-week vaccine than for the one-year vaccine (η2p = .032). Vaccination willingness did not differ among experimental treatments. In addition, vaccine conspiracy beliefs were negatively related to perceived vaccine efficacy (η2p = .142), self-efficacy (η2p = .031), and vaccination willingness (η2p = .143) and positively related to perceived vaccine risk (η2p = .216).ConclusionsThe rapid development of the COVID-19 vaccine may have heightened public concerns over efficacy, availability, and safety. However, the current findings showed a general willingness to take even the most rapidly developed vaccine. Nonetheless, there remains a need to communicate publicly and transparently about vaccine efficacy and safety and work to reduce vaccine conspiracy beliefs.
Project description:The impact of vaccine hesitancy on childhood immunization in low- and middle-income countries remains largely uncharacterized. This study describes the sociodemographic patterns of vaccine hesitancy in Chandigarh, India. Mothers of children <5 years old were sampled from a two-stage cluster, systematic sample based on Anganwadi child care centers in Chandigarh. Vaccine hesitancy was measured using a 10-item Vaccine Hesitancy Scale, which was dichotomized. A multivariable logistic regression assessed the association between socioeconomic factors and vaccine hesitancy score. Among 305 mothers, >97% of mothers thought childhood vaccines were important, effective, and were a good way to protect against disease. However, many preferred their child to receive fewer co-administered vaccines (69%), and were concerned about side effects (39%). Compared to the "other caste" group, scheduled castes or scheduled tribes had 3.48 times greater odds of vaccine hesitancy (95% CI: 1.52, 7.99). Those with a high school education had 0.10 times the odds of vaccine hesitancy compared to those with less education (95% CI: 0.02, 0.61). Finally, those having more antenatal care visits were less vaccine hesitant (≥4 vs. <4 visits OR: 0.028, 95% CI: 0.1, 0.76). As India adds more vaccines to its Universal Immunization Program, consideration should be given to addressing maternal concerns about vaccination, in particular about adverse events and co-administration of multiple vaccines.
Project description:It is critical to develop tailored strategies to increase acceptability of the COVID-19 vaccine and decrease hesitancy. Hence, this study aims to assess and identify factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in Portugal. We used data from a community-based survey, "COVID-19 Barometer: Social Opinion", which includes data regarding intention to take COVID-19 vaccines, health status, and risk perception in Portugal from September 2020 to January 2021. We used multinomial regression to identify factors associated with intention to delay or refuse to take COVID-19 vaccines. COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in Portugal was high: 56% would wait and 9% refuse. Several factors were associated with both refusal and delay: being younger, loss of income during the pandemic, no intention of taking the flu vaccine, low confidence in the COVID-19 vaccine and the health service response during the pandemic, worse perception of government measures, perception of the information provided as inconsistent and contradictory, and answering the questionnaire before the release of information regarding the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines. It is crucial to build confidence in the COVID-19 vaccine as its perceived safety and efficacy were strongly associated with intention to take the vaccine. Governments and health authorities should improve communication and increase trust.