Vaccine Hesitancy – Burning Issues

Table of Contents

Context

There is a 30% increase in measles cases worldwide in 2018 and the WHO included ‘vaccine hesitancy’ as one of the 10 threats to global health this year.
Vaccine hesitancy is defined as the “reluctance or refusal to vaccinate despite the availability of vaccines”.
It only appears to have grown more dangerous to public health.

Measles vaccine not only provides lifelong protection against the virus but also reduces mortality from other childhood infections.
There is a surge in measles cases from the WHO African region, WHO European region.
The infection spread in the European region has been unprecedented in recent years.

It found younger people (18-34 years) and those with less education are less likely to agree that the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine is safe.
Only 52% of respondents from 28 EU member states agree that vaccines are definitely effective in preventing diseases, while 33% felt they were probably effective. 48% of the respondents believed that vaccines cause serious side effects and 38% think vaccines actually cause the disease that they are supposed to protect against.

Feeding these concerns are unresolved controversieslike the one involving polio vaccines and the emergence of Type-2 polioin Uttar Pradesh last year.
The tragic incident in Hyderabad last week, where a child died and more than 20 others were reportedly hospitalisedfollowing treatment given after a vaccine was administered.

Work should be done to address misinformation.
Facebook committed to “reduce distribution” of vaccine misinformation.
Empower paediatriciansto project the value of vaccines and equip them to respond to concerns effectively and accurately. Sensitise media to an evidence based rather than sensational approach.