Experts highlight polio eradication to deal with vaccine hesitancy

Effective social mobilisation strategy could be evolved to deal with misgivings and rumours, they say

Amid reports of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy, experts at a policy dialogue here laid emphasis on the experience of polio vaccination, which has succeeded in the elimination of the virus. An effective social mobilisation strategy could be evolved in Rajasthan to deal with misgivings and rumours, said the experts.

The vaccine hesitancy, reportedly mainly from the rural areas because of misinformation, trust deficit and indifference, could be managed by removing apprehensions and building trust in the State government’s health system, the participants said. Technical advances in the choice of vaccines could also play an important role.

The policy dialogue was organised by the Indian Institute of Health Management Research (IIHMR) University’s School of Public Health. Experts felt that the lessons learnt from polio eradication campaigns, with India having been declared polio-free in 2014, would be beneficial for COVID-19 vaccination with the innovations in the programme implementation strategy and delivery.