Lack of trust hinders vaccine roll-out, study reveals

The latest Government Communication and Information System (GCIS) evidence-based strategy for Covid revealed communication and lack of trust were the biggest hurdles in the vaccination roll-out plan.

Chief executive of Ask Afrika Andrea Rademeyer said the research was based on public perceptions.

“A lot of research has been conducted on public perceptions because perceptions are the moving target, specifically with something as unexpected and new as Covid.

“The important thing is to track where the differences and similarities lie.”

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Rademeyer said the research was based on five types of citizens from different backgrounds in the country and looked at vaccine willingness, urgency to act, reasons for hesitancy and most trusted source of vaccine roll-out.

“The types of people we interviewed over the telephone are rooted realists who are primarily rural and mostly unemployed and reflected nearly half of the South African adult population.

“The city seekers are 25% of the adult population and are the people trying to create a new life in urban areas, safely suburban, metro mobiles based in Gauteng and cosmopolitan capitalists are fairly established,” she said.

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According to the research findings, more than 50% of the population was willing to receive the vaccination.

“Sixty-two percent are willing to receive the vaccine, 33% believe the worst is yet to come, 70% wear
a mask daily and 34% are aware of the electronic vaccination data system,” the research found.

University of KwaZulu-Natal Professor Mosa Moshabela said it was important for health workers to convey any information relating to Covid to members of the public as soon as they received it.