Mahesh Kumar also pointed out that half-baked messages regarding the vaccine fueled hesitance. Science has shown that COVID-19 vaccines reduce the risk of serious outcomes of COVID-19 disease and death. But the vaccine will not reduce the risk of getting infected with the virus. "Because of improper and half-baked messaging, many people had thought that if they take the vaccine, they will not get infected. So, when some vaccinated people contracted the virus, then some of those who were unvaccinated began doubting the vaccines," remarked Mahesh. News of prominent doctors who headed government-run hospitals of 'getting infected again despite full vaccination' made it more difficult.
Prior online registration to get a shot in India was a challenge for many. "Sometimes, even after registration, people failed to get the shot as vaccines were out of stock," said Mahesh. Even last month, Lucknow had reported vaccine stockouts which hampered rollout of booster dose (referred to as precautionary dose).
Vaccine hesitancy in healthcare workers
Dr Surya Kant, one of the Brand Ambassadors for COVID-19 vaccination, National Health Mission, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, and part of the special task force for COVID-19 control, said that vaccine hesitancy was a pan India problem, and not confined to the state of Uttar Pradesh. In some states, like Kerala, which has a very high literacy rate, robust healthcare infrastructure, and strong advocacy programmes around vaccination, hesitancy was less. It takes strong advocacy programmes to mitigate vaccine hesitancy.
He added that in Uttar Pradesh, there was a lot of initial hesitancy, even among the doctors, nurses, paramedical staff, and health services administrators, to take the vaccine. Many rumours were floating around. Some thought a COVID-19 vaccine had been given premature approval for public use even during clinical trials.
Confirmed Dr Raman R Gangakhedkar, who was the top scientist in the National Task Force on COVID-19, and Head of the Division of Epidemiology and Communicable Diseases at the Indian Council of Medical Research when the pandemic hit us in 2020. He said that vaccine hesitancy was stressed because in case of the indigenously produced one, its approval process hinged on immunogenicity-related data only based on phase-2 clinical trials results. Phase-3 clinical trials had not been done by that time and there was no data on its efficacy to prevent infection or preventing risk of hospitalisation and death. This created anxiety in people's minds.
The situation is similar in Nigeria. In a study conducted across four specialised hospitals in the southern part of the country, only 55.5% of the medical personnel are willing to receive the vaccine.
Civil society at the frontline to decimate hesitancy and boost vaccine confidence
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