Nurse Mandeep Kaur administers a dose of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine to health administrator Brittany Orantes at a vaccination centre as part of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign in Brampton, Ontario, March 4, 2021.CARLOS OSORIO/Reuters
A survey of 14 countries by researchers at Imperial College London has found that acceptance of COVID-19 vaccines is rising and that Canadians are among the least confident in their government’s ability to deliver an effective vaccination program.
The poll found that 58 per cent of respondents across all of the countries would definitely get a COVID-19 vaccination if it were made available. That was up from 51 per cent in a similar poll conducted last November. Britain had the highest level of vaccine acceptance at 77 per cent, while France was among the lowest at 40 per cent. Canada came in at 55 per cent, up slightly from 53 per cent in November.
The researchers have been regularly polling around 1,000 people in each country since November to gauge attitudes toward COVID-19 vaccines. The latest survey, taken in February, showed that a strong willingness to be vaccinated had increased by at least nine percentage points in 11 of the 14 countries and by 20 points in seven. Meanwhile, concern about vaccine side effects had fallen over all, to 45 per cent from 54 per cent in November.
Canada pre-purchased millions of doses of seven different vaccine types, and Health Canada has approved four so far for the various provincial and territorial rollouts. All the drugs are fully effective in preventing serious illness and death, though some may do more than others to stop any symptomatic illness at all (which is where the efficacy rates cited below come in).
- Also known as: Comirnaty
- Approved on: Dec. 9, 2020
- Efficacy rate: 95 per cent with both doses in patients 16 and older, and 100 per cent in 12- to 15-year-olds
- Traits: Must be stored at -70 C, requiring specialized ultracold freezers. It is a new type of mRNA-based vaccine that gives the body a sample of the virus’s DNA to teach immune systems how to fight it. Health Canada has authorized it for use in people as young as 12.
- Also known as: SpikeVax
- Approved on: Dec. 23, 2020
- Efficacy rate: 94 per cent with both doses in patients 18 and older, and 100 per cent in 12- to 17-year-olds
- Traits: Like Pfizer’s vaccine, this one is mRNA-based, but it can be stored at -20 C. It’s approved for use in Canada for ages 12 and up.
- Also known as: Vaxzevria
- Approved on: Feb. 26, 2021
- Efficacy rate: 62 per cent two weeks after the second dose
- Traits: This comes in two versions approved for Canadian use, the kind made in Europe and the same drug made by a different process in India (where it is called Covishield). The National Advisory Committee on Immunization’s latest guidance is that its okay for people 30 and older to get it if they can’t or don’t want to wait for an mRNA vaccine, but to guard against the risk of a rare blood-clotting disorder, all provinces have stopped giving first doses of AstraZeneca.
- Also known as: Janssen
- Approved on: March 5, 2021
- Efficacy rate: 66 per cent two weeks after the single dose
- Traits: Unlike the other vaccines, this one comes in a single injection. NACI says it should be offered to Canadians 30 and older, but Health Canada paused distribution of the drug for now as it investigates inspection concerns at a Maryland facility where the active ingredient was made.
How many vaccine doses do I get?
All vaccines except Johnson & Johnson’s require two doses, though even for double-dose drugs, research suggests the first shots may give fairly strong protection. This has led health agencies to focus on getting first shots to as many people as possible, then delaying boosters by up to four months. To see how many doses your province or territory has administered so far, check our vaccine tracker for the latest numbers.
Britain had seen the largest increase in acceptance – from 55 per cent in November to 77 per cent in February – which coincided with the country’s rapid vaccination program, which has seen nearly one-third of the population inoculated so far.
Attitudes have also begun to shift in France despite the slow rollout of the country’s vaccination effort. In November, one quarter of French respondents said they would definitely get vaccinated and 42 per cent said they strongly opposed vaccines. By February, support for vaccination had climbed to 40 per cent, while opposition had fallen to 33 per cent.
People in Singapore and Japan, where skepticism about vaccines has also been high, have also begun to accept immunization. In the current survey, 48 per cent of respondents in both countries were willing to be vaccinated, up from 36 per cent in Singapore and 39 per cent for Japan in November.
Canada’s missed shots: How Ottawa’s COVID-19 vaccine promises were out of step with reality
Canada vaccine tracker: How many COVID-19 doses have been administered so far?
Tracking Canada’s COVID-19 vaccine rollout plans: A continuing guide
“With a number of safe and effective coronavirus vaccines being rolled out across the world, and many more in the pipeline, it is good news that people are becoming more willing to take one,” said Ara Darzi, co-director of the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College. “But our data shows that many countries still have much to do to address vaccine hesitancy.”
The researchers also measured the level of confidence respondents had in their government’s vaccination program. Canada has had a haphazard rollout so far, and just 26 per cent of Canadians in the survey said they strongly agreed that the government would provide an effective vaccine – one of the lowest percentages among all the countries. In contrast, 43 per cent of Israelis and 38 per cent of respondents in Britain said they had strong confidence in their governments’ vaccine drive.
Only 35 per cent of Canadians said they would have no difficultly accessing a vaccine, compared with 64 per cent of people in Israel and 54 per cent in Britain. Over all, 45 per cent of respondents said it wouldn’t be hard to get a vaccine, while 55 per cent said they would have difficulty.
“While the availability of COVID-19 vaccines is increasing in many countries … getting to a new normal will require a concerted effort to ensure that no nation is left behind,” said Sarah Jones, co-project lead and doctoral researcher at the institute.
The survey comes amid overwhelming support for vaccines among people 80 and older in Britain, who have been among the first to be vaccinated. A survey released Thursday by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) found that 96 per cent of respondents would be very or somewhat likely to encourage others to get a COVID-19 vaccination.
“The rollout of the COVID-19 vaccination is, no doubt, a huge relief to many people aged over 80,” said Tim Gibbs, of the ONS public service analysis team. “It will hopefully also improve a wider quality of life for this group. We can see that one-third of over-80s who had received two or more doses of the vaccine reported they would be more likely to attend a hospital for a medical reason since being vaccinated.”
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Paul Waldie