Communicating doctors' consensus persistently increases COVID-19 vaccinations.
Nature
; 606(7914): 542-549, 2022 06.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1921631
ABSTRACT
The reluctance of people to get vaccinated represents a fundamental challenge to containing the spread of deadly infectious diseases1,2, including COVID-19. Identifying misperceptions that can fuel vaccine hesitancy and creating effective communication strategies to overcome them are a global public health priority3-5. Medical doctors are a trusted source of advice about vaccinations6, but media reports may create an inaccurate impression that vaccine controversy is prevalent among doctors, even when a broad consensus exists7,8. Here we show that public misperceptions about the views of doctors on the COVID-19 vaccines are widespread, and correcting them increases vaccine uptake. We implement a survey among 9,650 doctors in the Czech Republic and find that 90% of doctors trust the vaccines. Next, we show that 90% of respondents in a nationally representative sample (n = 2,101) underestimate doctors' trust; the most common belief is that only 50% of doctors trust the vaccines. Finally, we integrate randomized provision of information about the true views held by doctors into a longitudinal data collection that regularly monitors vaccination status over 9 months. The treatment recalibrates beliefs and leads to a persistent increase in vaccine uptake. The approach demonstrated in this paper shows how the engagement of professional medical associations, with their unparalleled capacity to elicit individual views of doctors on a large scale, can help to create a cheap, scalable intervention that has lasting positive impacts on health behaviour.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Physicians
/
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
/
Health Education
/
Vaccination
/
Consensus
/
COVID-19 Vaccines
/
COVID-19
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
/
Qualitative research
/
Randomized controlled trials
Topics:
Vaccines
Limits:
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
Europa
Language:
English
Journal:
Nature
Year:
2022
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
S41586-022-04805-y
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