Communicating doctors' consensus persistently increases COVID-19 vaccinations.
Nature
; 606(7914): 542-549, 2022 06.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-35650433
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.
Texto completo:
1
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Médicos
/
Conhecimentos, Atitudes e Prática em Saúde
/
Educação em Saúde
/
Vacinação
/
Consenso
/
Vacinas contra COVID-19
/
COVID-19
Tipo de estudo:
Clinical_trials
/
Guideline
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Qualitative_research
Limite:
Humans
País como assunto:
Europa
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2022
Tipo de documento:
Article