Confidence in pediatric vaccines declines in Australia, worldwide after COVID-19

In 2022, 93.75% of Australian children were fully vaccinated by the age of 12 months and 94.3% of 5-year-olds were fully vaccinated. According to Australian Department of Health data.

Improving access to vaccines is just as important as addressing the decline in trust, Leask said.

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“Some people, especially in rural and rural areas, have to pay to see their primary care doctor because a lump sum bill for vaccination is not possible or it is difficult to get an appointment,” she said. I got

“We need to keep an eye on this space and already think about possible strategies to increase confidence in childhood vaccination.”

Globally, 67 million children did not receive one or more doses of immunization in three years, according to UNICEF, which was the largest setback in childhood immunization in 30 years.

Christopher Maher, Senior Vaccine Advisor for UNICEF Australia, said countries where confidence in vaccines fell significantly after the pandemic were also where primary health services were most dramatically disrupted by COVID-19. I was.

“[These are] Those are the people most likely to miss the service anyway,” he said. “When these services are not provided on a regular basis, people are less stimulated and motivated to use them.”

Papua New Guinea has one of the most dramatic declines in childhood vaccine confidence, from 90% pre-pandemic to just 46% by 2022. Confidence in vaccines also fell by 11% in Indonesia.

Mr Maher said it has become even more important for Australians to maintain the country’s high vaccination coverage, as confidence in their regional neighbors has dwindled.

“It protects us, it protects our neighbors. If we’re less likely to infect them with something nasty, that’s a very good thing,” he said.

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