Amid an undiminished surge in coronavirus cases, vaccination was reintroduced across India. While there are long lines at vaccination centers, there have been reports from different parts of the country of people ignoring the vaccines and making multiple conspiracy theories. However, a new study shows that vaccine hesitation can be reduced by introducing new awareness techniques.
A report published in the medical journal The Lancet says that additional brief statements about Covid-19 vaccination could be effective in the most reluctant people if they indicate a risk for the benefit assessment.
The Lancet study focused on UK samples and was conducted between January and February. The authors rated whether brief written statements about Covid-19 vaccination could reduce personal benefits, collective benefits, safety concerns, or the severity of the pandemic to reduce hesitation in people.
Awareness of the risk-benefit ratio could help alleviate hesitation
Led by Michael Schwarzinger, the study found that additional short statements were effective if they addressed the individual risk-benefit ratio of the Covid 19 vaccination to the very reluctant people. The benefit-risk balance included providing information about the risks of health problems related to Covid-19 in the long term or directly addressing safety concerns about the pace of development of Covid-19 vaccines.
The authors reported that none of the statements highlighting the collective benefits of vaccination or the severity of the pandemic changed their attitudes towards taking a vaccine. (Photo: Getty)
The authors reported that none of the statements highlighting the collective benefits of vaccination or the severity of the pandemic changed their attitudes towards taking a vaccine. The authors found that these individuals “may be sensitive to reassuring arguments about the individual risk-benefit ratio of vaccination.”
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Positive reinforcement through greater vaccine acceptance
In the meantime, the authors also point out that among the very reluctant people there may be people who want to postpone vaccination and that they might be convinced of positive reinforcement from official communication given greater acceptance of the vaccination campaign.
“Additional social science contributions are urgently needed in these countries if the ultimate goal is to achieve herd immunity through mass vaccination,” writes Schwarzinger.
India has so far given almost 18 crore doses of Covid-19 vaccines and is facing a massive crisis. With the government opening up vaccination to people ages 18 to 44, the demand across the country has grown dramatically. Several states have already postponed the action announced on May 1st. Meanwhile, the country reported over 4,000 deaths for the thirds in a row as the number of new cases remains at 3.5 lakhs.
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