A literature Review: The Reasons

Why we should get the Jab

Vidal, Joshua, graduate student in Biology

Vaccines Hesitancy
COVID-19 vaccinations have been authorized after being tested in clinical trials and demonstrating that
the vaccine greatly decreases the risk of getting the virus.

Even if you catch the virus, the COVID-19 vaccination may help you avoid becoming very ill, based
on what has been shown regarding vaccines for other illnesses. Getting vaccinated may help protect
individuals around you, especially those who are at risk of severe COVID-19 disease or
immunocompromised people.

Yet a sizeable number of people are still hesitant to get the jabs. According to a recent assessment by
the International Monetary Fund, this number ranges from approximately 10-20% in the UK to around
50% in Japan and 60% in France. On social media, the outcome has erupted into a cultural war, with
many online critics arguing that vaccination skeptics are just uneducated or greedy. However,
psychologists who specialize in medical decision-making believe that these choices are typically the
consequence of a slew of confounding variables that must be handled delicately if population-level
immunity is to be achieved.

The 5Cs
The COVID-19 vaccine's global rollout is a reason for optimism. Vaccinations are the greatest
effective public health intervention in history, saving millions of lives each year, avoiding illness, and
providing tremendous societal and economic advantages throughout the world. An effective global
equitable immunization plan is essential for reversing and reducing the ongoing damage caused by
COVID-19. To establish adequate herd immunity, an estimated 60–70 percent of the world's
population must be vaccinated.

Hesitancy is one of the most significant barriers to vaccinations: a delay in acceptance or refusal
despite availability. To combat vaccination apprehension, we suggest five Cs: Confidence (vaccine
significance, safety, and efficacy); Complacency (judgment of low risk and illness severity);
Convenience (access difficulties based on context, time, and specific vaccination being provided);
Communications (information sources); and Context (sociodemographic characteristics).

Characteristics General Reason Specified Reason

Confidence The public's trust in vaccination
effectiveness and safety, the health
services that provide them, and the
policymakers who decide on their
implementation
Recent concerns regarding the
probable link between the
AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson
vaccinations and extremely
uncommon atypical blood clots such
as cerebral venous sinus thrombosis
underscore the significance of vaccine
safety, effectiveness, and importance.
The public needs to understand that
these events are extremely rare
(approximately 4 per million people
vaccinated), that the risk of cerebral
venous sinus thrombosis from
COVID-19 is up to 10 times higher
than from vaccination, and that for the
vast majority of people, the vaccine
benefits vastly outweigh the risk.
Other concerns impacting vaccination
uptake include religious concerns

Complacency Whether the person believes the
condition poses a serious threat to
their health
Constraints/ How easy it is for the person in
Convenience question to access the vaccine
Communication The individual's engagement in
extensive information searching to
weigh up the costs and benefits
regarding the vaccine's safety and
acceptability, as well as historical
mistrust and underrepresentation of
ethnic minorities in clinical trials. A
decline in vaccination trust was
directly related to religious judgments
declaring vaccines haram in Muslim-
majority nations such as Indonesia and
Malaysia (e.g. including unacceptable
ingredients derived from pigs or
containing alcohol).
Low vaccination uptake is closely
linked to complacency. Younger
persons and people from lower
socioeconomic backgrounds have
been found to have lower perceptions
of personal risk and illness severity for
COVID-19. As the vaccination is
being provided to younger age groups,
it is critical to overcome complacency
through recurrent risk communication
in order to promote informed decision-
making. It's critical to stress the
broader social benefits of population-
level immunity, as well as the
protection it provides to people who
are vulnerable, their families, and
friends.
Evidence speaks to the importance of
well-planned and convenient
vaccination distribution, emphasizing
the need of an accessible site and
consideration of the vaccine's financial
expenses. In the United States, high
vaccination rates were recorded when
vaccinations were administered in
schools, while in the United Kingdom,
high uptake of the influenza vaccine
was obtained through pharmacies and
general practices. However, according
to new statistics from England, more
individuals predicted a longer wait and
more inconvenient vaccine than they
received. Convenience perceptions
may also need to be addressed.
According to the Globe Health
Organization, the world is also facing
a ‘infodemic' of ‘a few facts, mixed
with fear, conjecture, and rumour,'
which has been magnified by
technology and social media platforms
in the context of continuous
uncertainties and information gaps. An
overwhelming quantity of information,
quick changes in COVID-19
information and recommendations,
and lack of clarity has led
disinformation to spread faster than
the infection, thereby causing broad

Context The readiness to vaccinate oneself
in order to protect others from
infection
distrust and uncertainty.  People's
worries and anxiety about the
pandemic are used by misinformation
to promote anti-vaccination
conspiracy theories. To address the
public's concerns and develop
confidence, a real transparent
discussion backed by community
involvement is necessary. It's also
crucial to accept that things aren't
always, as they seem. Social media
sites should be held more accountable
for their material and should delete
damaging and inaccurate information.
Vaccine deployment should take
advantage of existing infrastructure
such as primary care, pharmacies, and
trusted healthcare experts, according
to lessons learned from prior
pandemics and vaccination programs.
Ethnicity, religion, employment, and
socioeconomic position are all factors
that are sometimes neglected. The
issue begins with the term "vaccine
reluctance." Despite the fact that it has
been frequently used in the literature
and accepted by the World Health
Organization, it ignores strong
structural variables such as systemic
racism and access hurdles, which may
contribute to low vaccination uptake
in particular populations. Furthermore,
it emphasizes individual agency while
also implying a degree of guilt.
According to European data, racial
and ethnic minorities, those with lower
education, younger people, and those
who had previously failed to comply
with recommended vaccinations have
lower intentions to be vaccinated
against COVID-19, with
corresponding low uptake of COVID-
19 vaccines in some ethnic minorities
and deprived communities. This is
consistent with previous findings in
the UK, suggesting that COVID-19
has worsened disparities based on race
and socioeconomic class.

By the announcement made by Dr. Lydia Watson, chief medical officer, at MidMichigan Health said.

“As a member of your community, and as a mother, wife and friend, I, like you want nothing
more than for COVID-19 to simply – go away. The COVID-19 vaccine is our best chance at
doing just that. We strongly encourage everyone to consider receiving the vaccine.”

Added that stopping a pandemic necessitates the use of all available tools. Vaccines boost our immune
system, assisting our body in fighting the virus if and when we become infected. Other precautions,
including as wearing a mask over your mouth and nose, remaining at least 6 feet away from people,
and washing our hands, can help minimize the risk of contracting the virus or transmitting it to others.
Benefits of Getting a COVID-19 Vaccine
1. COVID-19 vaccinations were created utilizing decades-old research.
2. COVID-19 vaccinations are not trial vaccines. They completed all of the essential clinical trial
phases. These vaccinations have undergone extensive testing and monitoring and have proven to be
both safe and efficacious.
3. COVID-19 vaccinations have undergone and are now undergoing the most rigorous safety testing in
US history.
4. COVID 19 vaccinations work well. They can prevent you from contracting COVID-19 and
transmitting it to others.
5. Even if you do acquire COVID-19, COVID-19 vaccinations can assist you from becoming very ill.
6. Getting vaccinated can help protect those around you, especially those who are at risk of serious
disease from COVID-19 or even those immunocompromised people.

How Effective the Vaccine in Delta Variant

The Delta version of the virus that causes COVID-19 generates more infections and spreads quicker
than earlier variants of the virus. In unvaccinated persons, it may cause more severe disease than earlier
strains.

1. Vaccines, including this version, remain extremely effective in avoiding hospitalization and death.
2. People who have been fully vaccinated but have had a breakthrough illness from this variety tend to
be infectious for a shorter length of time.
3. To prevent the transmission of this type, be vaccinated and use masks inside in public places.

Vaccine fear is complicated, varied, and influenced by a variety of variables. The majority of research
has been done in high-income nations, with few treatments proven to be successful in low- and middle-
income countries. Along with COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX)22 – a method for
distributing COVID-19 vaccine doses equally across the world – a coordinated worldwide effort to
study, analyze, and overcome vaccine hesitancy is required. During a crisis, international organizations
like the Red Cross, Red Crescent, and UNICEF have the knowledge and skills to convey risk. Building
local capacity to mobilize different populations by addressing the five Cs of vaccination hesitancy
through customized, attractive, culturally competent, and multilingual communications is evidence-
based and has the best chance of success.
 References

Koplon, S (2021), Why it’s safe and important to get the COVID-19 vaccine,
https://www.uab.edu/news/youcanuse/item/11797-why-it-s-safe-and-important-
to-get-the-covid-19-vaccine

Robson, D (2021), Why some people don't want a Covid-19 vaccine,

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210720-the-complexities-of-vaccine-
hesitancy

MidMichigan Health (December 2020), Why the COVID-19 Vaccine is Important,

https://www.midmichigan.org/about/news/2020/why-the-covid-19-vaccine-is-
important/

Mohammad, Pippa Oakeshott , Aneez Esmail (2021), COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy:

the five Cs to tackle behavioural and sociodemographic factors,
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/01410768211018951

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (August 2021), Benefits of Getting a
COVID-19 Vaccine,
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/vaccine-benefits.html