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Lessons Learned - Combatting Antivaccination Rumours: Lessons Learned from Case Studies in East Africa

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Summary


The following table shows how rumour campaigns have developed in different ways in western countries and in the three countries studied in the present study.


Comparison of Antivaccination Rumours in Western and East African Countries

 
Western Countries
East Africa
Target of Antivaccination CampaignsRoutine Vaccinations SIAs
Vaccines Most often TargetedPertussis and Measles/Mumps/RubellaTetanus Toxoid and Oral Polio Vaccines
Core Arguments against VaccinationMedical and Philosophical ArgumentsReligious and Political Arguments
HIV/AIDS ArgumentsNot ImportantImportant in some Countries
Family Planning ArgumentsNot an IssueImportant in some Countries
"Western Plot" ArgumentsNonexistentCommon
Military VaccinesImportant for AnthraxNot Important



While every rumour campaign has its specificities, the following generic responses are often indicated.


Before the Scheduled Activities

  • Prepare packages on frequently asked questions for all health workers, especially before vaccination campaigns or introduction of new vaccines.
  • Involve ethnic, religious and political minorities in information activities.
  • Schedule EPI campaigns outside the timeframe for family planning or AIDS awareness campaigns.
  • Associate tetanus toxoid in the public mind with successful pregnancies.
  • Give TT in prenatal clinics, not family planning clinics.
  • Keep TV, radio and other media on board.


When the Storm Breaks

  • Disseminate a single set of messages through the same channels as those used by the rumourmongers. Everyone from the dispensary attendant to the Minister of Health needs a copy of the key messages, with no confusion about the official line.
  • Do not raise the rumourmongers' profile by identifying and denouncing them. Our job is informing the public about vaccines, not denouncing our opponents.
  • Monitor vaccinations in areas reached by rumours. Do not overreact where there is no decline in vaccinations. Quantify impacts. Do your vaccination tally sheets tell a different story from what you anticipated? Do not respond to a decline in vaccinations which does not, in the event, materialise.
  • Meet with your opponents as well as your friends.
  • Combat ignorance with knowledge, not with coercion.