How does it feel for me during COVID 19 - April 2021
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Healthwatch Leeds report on the findings from a survey about attitudes to the Covid-19 vaccination programme amongst 25 – 50 year olds. They heard from 749 people.
Eighty five percent of people said they intended to get vaccinated. Although only 15% of respondents were male, answers suggested that the younger a man is, the less likely he is to be willing to be vaccinated.
Some groups were more likely than others to want to be vaccinated, including people with autism or a learning disability, health workers and unpaid carers.
The three most common reasons for wanting to get vaccinated were: getting protected from the virus, getting back to normal and confidence in science and moral duty.
Eight percent of respondents didn’t want to be vaccinated. Some groups were more likely than others not to want to be vaccinated, including people with a mental health condition, people who are clinically extremely vulnerable, people with a child under 5, who are pregnant or have a pregnant partner and care workers.
Half said they couldn’t trust the vaccine, and nearly one in three were concerned about unforeseen side effects including risks around fertility. Over a third expressed a view that Covid posed a low risk to them personally.
Whilst over half said that nothing would change their minds, over one in five said they would potentially get their jab if over time it became clear that the vaccine was safe.
Seven percent of people were unsure about getting the vaccine. Issues of trust and fear of side effects were the most common reasons why people felt unsure. Nearly 3 in 10 said more information which they felt they could trust would encourage them to have the vaccine.
There were stark differences in the proportion of people who feel they don’t have enough information depending on whether or not they plan to get vaccinated. Only 9% of those who plan to get vaccinated feel they don’t have enough information, compared to 48% of those who don’t plan to get vaccinated, and 81% of those who are not sure about getting vaccinated.
More than half of those who felt they didn’t have enough information wanted to know about side effects and safety. Fifteen per cent wanted to know more about how the vaccine works.
The research asked respondents where and / or how they would like to get their information about the vaccine. The three most popular responses are as follows:
- In person in a healthcare setting
- Via social media
- By email