Dr Yashoradha Raje
The ongoing vaccination programme in India is a test case that will determine whether the COVID-19 pandemic can be controlled by vaccination or not. Amid this, scepticism over the safety and efficacy of the vaccines used for COVID-19 has emerged as a challenge. This scepticism is bound to inhibit people from getting vaccinated. The speedy development of the vaccines in COVID-19 pandemic has raised several concerns and misconceptions that have fuelled scepticism over the vaccines approved.
Billed as the world’s largest, the COVID-19 vaccination program was launched on January 16, 2021 across the India with the target to inoculate about 3 crores of people by the end of first phase . The 2 shots being used after approval by the Indian Government for emergency use are Covishield, a locally produced version of Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine that has completed phase -3 trails overseas and Covaxin developed locally by Bharat Biotech. Though the vaccination is completely voluntary but the people who are getting Covaxin has to sign a consent form with many people questioning the confidence of the Government in the vaccines. You cannot decide on which vaccine you wish to take, so in some people there is fear of using Covaxin amid pending efficacy results. A total of 1,17,54,788 beneficiaries have been vaccinated as of February 22, 2021.
Total hospitalizations against vaccination is 46 i.e. only 0.0004% . Total deaths reported so far are 19 post COVID-19 vaccination but none of these have been causally linked to vaccination. The development of vaccines against flu has seen a slow and partial success, therefore scepticism over COVID-19 vaccines needs to be addressed.
The major predictors of scepticism in India are its extraordinary diversity, religiosity and political orientation, beliefs in alternative medicine practices such as naturopathy, limited data on trials of vaccines, fears of side effects and adverse events etc. Lack of reliable information on safety and efficacy of COVID-19vaccine trials has contributed to this trend of scepticism even among some healthcare workers too. The government has attempted to boost participation at various levels. Guidelines has been issued to ensure that the factual and timely information is shared with people to dispel apprehensions that has been introduced after incomplete trial raising safety concerns, fear of adverse events, misconceptions about vaccine efficacy, rumours and negative narratives . An online platform Co-WIN has been designed by the government for monitoring the COVID-19 vaccine delivery and reporting purpose.
India’s huge covid vaccination is underway, but it seems not to be keeping its pace with expectations. The goal may get delayed due to low confidence and willingness to accept the vaccines. There are apprehensions among people regarding accelerated approvals of vaccines, prevalence of misinformation, and worries about unforeseen events of vaccination. Lot of rumours surrounding COVID-19 vaccines are prevalent about their supposed links to infertility and assault on religious beliefs entrenched in some communities. The politics over the vaccination is also eroding public confidence with some politicians saying no to vaccine and urging others to do the same. The news of adverse events is pouring in. Deaths are reported following vaccinations, but none attributed so far to the vaccination. Clustering of cases of deaths due to cardiovascular problems post COVID 19 vaccination is reported. Establishing the cause of deaths occurred so far and making it public will help in gaining trust and overcoming the vaccine dubiety. The government has reassured the people that the side effects are minimal, and vaccines are safe. The adverse events following immunization monitoring system or committee is yet to come out in public domain amid concerns regarding cause of deaths. Recently South Africa halted the vaccination drive with AstraZeneca vaccine due to very low immune response against the South African COVID-19 variant. There is suspense over the effectiveness of these vaccines against the emerging variants and how long-lasting immunity they provide.
Only if a large population is immunized then only, we can stop the spread of infection. Few people taking the shots, the emerging variants and controversies over the effectiveness of vaccines has stirred up the agnosticism over the current vaccines. More transparency about the safety and side effects of vaccines and fact-based immunization is required to build more confidence amid COVID-19 scepticism in India. It is crucial to build trust, prevent misconceptions and increase willingness of people to get themselves vaccinated amid such apprehensions to maximize uptake.
However, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi took the vaccine jab, people have started changing their motion with regard to vaccines.
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