71.9 percent of Spaniards who have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 indicate as the main reason that the vaccines “have been developed very quickly, are not safe or are in the experimental phase,” according to a survey by the Institute of Salud Carlos III (ISCIII) in the framework of the COSMO-Spain study of knowledge and social perception of the pandemic.
These initial results, which will be consolidated and reinforced with a complementary study, are based on the analysis of 2,312 responses obtained between October 1 and 19 through an online questionnaire launched through WhatsApp and different social networks such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Of the 2,312 people who completed the survey correctly, 89 percent said they did not have the complete guideline. Of these, 1,998 participants had not received any dose of the vaccine; 53 people (3%) had taken a single dose but were not planning to take a second, and 11 participants (0.5%) had one dose and were waiting to take a second.
The reason most mentioned among people who had taken a dose but did not plan to take the second is “having had many adverse effects with the first dose” (44 percent), followed by “having already passed the disease” (22 percent). ).
Among those who had not received any doses, the second most cited reason, by 48 percent of those surveyed, is that “vaccines are bad for your health and I am concerned about their side effects”, followed by “vaccines are a business ” (44 percent); “I’m healthy and I don’t need to get vaccinated” (41 percent) and “COVID-19 vaccines don’t work” (41 percent).
Other reasons cited are “the coronavirus does not exist or the vaccines are a hoax” (12 percent). 9 percent also cited “I have had the disease and therefore I am immunized,” a percentage that was also obtained for the reason “I am not going to get it.” At 8 percent, “I don’t do it because of health problems or medical indication” appears, and at 7 percent or less, other reasons cited are “I don’t believe in vaccines in general,” “I have religious or ethical reasons,” and ” I just believe in natural medicine.” MOST MINORITY REASONS
Finally, the reasons cited by a minority, with 5 percent or less among those surveyed, for not getting vaccinated are “mistrust of information and of pharmacists” (4 percent); “being pregnant” (3 percent); “I don’t like being pressured/forced” (2 percent); “the vaccination center is far from me” (2 percent); “I have administrative problems” (1 percent); “I am afraid of losing my job” (1 percent) or “I prefer to wait” (1 percent). 60% OF THOSE NOT VACCINATED WILL NOT DO IT
Almost 60 percent of the people surveyed who have not been vaccinated responded that they do not intend to be vaccinated in the future,
The 813 people with doubts or with the intention of being vaccinated later were asked under what circumstances they would be vaccinated. The majority (66 percent) indicated that they would be vaccinated “when time passes and it is verified that the vaccine is safe”; 24 percent will be vaccinated “if I can choose the vaccine” and 16 percent “when they need to be vaccinated to travel.”
9 percent answered that they will do so “when another vaccine is available” that is safer and more effective, with attenuated virus, intranasal, Spanish, etc.; and 5 percent mentioned that they would be vaccinated “when they assure me that going to the vaccination center will not have legal consequences” and “when there is more information about the secondary effects and these are minor”.
The results of the study also show the perception of the severity of the disease in case of contracting COVID-19. Among people who have not been vaccinated, this perception of severity is low, although the results are not very different from those obtained in the last round of the COSMO-Spain survey.
The percentage of the unvaccinated population that thinks that the disease would be “serious or very serious” in case of contagion is 27 percent, three points more than in the general population (24 percent).
In addition, the preventive and protection measures that the unvaccinated population reports practicing more frequently are similar to those of the general population, although with much lower adherence. For example, they use the mask less when it is recommended (64 percent among unvaccinated and 95 percent in the general population); they ventilate less in closed spaces (59 percent vs. 94 percent); take less care of hand hygiene (47 percent vs. 90 percent); avoid crowded places less (40 percent vs. 85 percent); and they comply less with the safety distance (37 percent vs. 87 percent) and they avoid social/family gatherings less (15 percent among unvaccinated vs. 69 percent in the general population).
On the other hand, the perceived ease of finding, understanding, evaluating and applying information related to SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 is generally low. In a range from 1 (‘very difficult’) to 4 (‘very easy’), the mean is less than 3 for all the proposed cases and is below the means of the general population.
The search for information among unvaccinated people is also low: 60 percent indicate that they “never or almost never” consult information about the coronavirus, 20 percent more than in the general population. In addition, their level of confidence in the information on COVID-19 and the sources that offer it is also low, with data also lower than that of the general population.
Finally, the population that has not been vaccinated or does not plan to complete the vaccination schedule is quite in disagreement with the measures taken in Spain to reduce the spread of the coronavirus: 77 percent consider that the decisions that have been made “have not have been adequate” and 62 percent think that “they have been exaggerated”, compared to 29 percent and 16 percent, respectively, in the general population.
