State of vaccine confidence in the European Union in 2018

Abstract

Background High confidence in vaccination programmes is crucial for maintaining high coverage rates. Across the European Union (EU), however, vaccine delays and refusals are contributing to declining immunisation rates in a number of countries and are leading to increases in disease outbreaks. Methods We assessed the overall state of confidence in vaccines among the public in all 28 EU member states and among general practitioners (GP) in ten EU member states, conducting the largest ever study on attitudes to vaccines and vaccination in the EU, eliciting the views of approximately 28,000 respondents across the 28 EU member states. Results We found that a number of member states (including France, Greece, Italy, and Slovenia) have become more confident in the safety of vaccines since 2015, but that the Czech Republic, Finland, Poland, and Sweden have become less confident. While GPs generally hold higher levels of vaccine confidence than the public, the survey found that 36% of GPs surveyed in Czech Republic and 25% in Slovakia do not agree that the MMR vaccine is safe and 29% and 19% respectively do not believe it is important. Countries whose GPs hold higher confidence in vaccines tend to have a larger proportion of the public expressing positive vaccination beliefs. Conclusions Even countries with well-established vaccination programmes and high levels of confidence are not immune to rising vaccine hesitancy. There is a need for continuous monitoring, preparedness and response plans to maintain and increase confidence in the importance, effectiveness and safety of vaccines, among both the public and health professionals.

Health Literacy, Vaccine Confidence and Influenza Vaccination Uptake among Nursing Home Staff: A Cross-Sectional Study Conducted in Tuscany

“…Vaccine confidence is defined as the trust in the effectiveness and safety of vaccines, as well as the trust in the healthcare system that delivers them; high confidence in vaccination programmes, together with low complacency and high convenience of vaccine, are crucial for maintaining high coverage rates [ 15 ]. From recent findings it emerged that higher vaccine confidence among healthcare workers could result in a larger proportion of the general population expressing positive vaccination beliefs, of vaccine acceptance by either the general population or the target groups, as well as of vaccine acceptance by themselves, although with differences by geographical areas and vaccine [ 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 ]. Recently, a Vaccine Confidence Index (VCI) has been developed in order to objectively measure the vaccine confidence, with findings that indicate the viability of this approach to measure vaccine-related confidence (that is, sentiments that influence vaccination behaviours), and, more broadly, to illustrate the relationships between these sentiments and public attitudes towards health services [ 19 , 20 ].…”

“…From recent findings it emerged that higher vaccine confidence among healthcare workers could result in a larger proportion of the general population expressing positive vaccination beliefs, of vaccine acceptance by either the general population or the target groups, as well as of vaccine acceptance by themselves, although with differences by geographical areas and vaccine [ 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 ]. Recently, a Vaccine Confidence Index (VCI) has been developed in order to objectively measure the vaccine confidence, with findings that indicate the viability of this approach to measure vaccine-related confidence (that is, sentiments that influence vaccination behaviours), and, more broadly, to illustrate the relationships between these sentiments and public attitudes towards health services [ 19 , 20 ]. A modified version of the VCI has been recently applied in a study conducted in a sample of healthcare workers, highlighting the usefulness and the versatility of such an index in understanding determinants of vaccine hesitancy and vaccine acceptance [ 16 ].…”

Vaccination Programs for Adults in Europe, 2019

“…Mandatory vaccination policies for healthcare personnel are also in place in several European countries [24]. It is likely that mandatory vaccination policies will be increasingly implemented, considering the recent devastating measles epidemics in Europe and the increasing vaccine hesitancy [6,34]. Beyond comprehensive vaccination policies, achievement of high and sustainable vaccination policies requires the successful implementation of additional policy elements, including funding, easy access to vaccines and vaccination services, good monitoring of vaccination rates, and reminding systems [11,20,[35][36][37].…”

Asymmetric participation of defenders and critics of vaccines to debates on French-speaking Twitter

“…Those who ought to defend vaccination -public health authorities, medical professionals, academics, internet giants -have long been accused of not doing enough to counter the spread of vaccine misinformation on the internet. But in the past years, these calls for action seem to have been heard: several online platforms have taken measures to decrease the virality of vaccine-critical contents 3 , national authorities and researchers have developed and applied new online communication tools 5,23 , and pro-vaccine social movements have emerged in several countries with citizens choosing to devote part of their free time to convince hesitant parents or to defend science more generally 24,25 . Recent studies suggest that, thanks to these mobilizations, the internet is not the realm of vaccine critics anymore 15,21,26 and, in some regions, pro-vaccine messages may be gaining the upper hand 27 .…”