More than one in five adults who delayed getting their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine said they were apprehensive about the injection, reveal data from the Ministère de la Santé et des Services sociaux (MSSS) obtained by The duty. This new information sheds light on one of the reasons why thousands of Quebecers are turning their backs on immunization.
Since October 8, people who make an appointment on Clic Santé can declare that they have apprehensions about inoculation. “It’s not just the fear of the needle, but also the fear of the injection and the side effects”, immediately states Ève Dubé, anthropologist and researcher at the National Institute of Public Health of Quebec (INSPQ ).
“We are dealing with people who waited before receiving the vaccine, so they were probably more fearful than those who received it earlier,” says the expert. Indeed, a very large majority of adults in Quebec (85.6%) had already obtained their first two doses when the question was introduced into the form.
Among adults who made an appointment between October 8, 2021 and February 1, 2022, the proportions of people who say they fear the vaccine are much higher among those who got their first (22%) or their second (18%) dose, compared to those who received their third dose.
In Quebec, the anti-COVID vaccination campaign was launched on December 14, 2020. The first doses were made available according to age groups; those aged 18 and over had access to it from May 14, 2021. Adults who picked up their first dose after October 8 were therefore at least four months late.
The slots for obtaining a second dose were then opened in June (from June 7 for those aged 80 and over and from June 23 for those aged 18 and over), provided there was an interval of 8 weeks or more between doses. two doses.
“When you look at the pre-COVID proportions, for routine vaccines, it’s between 3 and 10% of adults who are afraid of needles enough to avoid medical procedures, like going to the dentist or getting vaccinated,” says Eve Dube. This estimate echoes the proportion of adults who reported feeling apprehensive in anticipation of their third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine (3.5%) in Quebec.
It is therefore not surprising that the Ministry reports higher rates for the first and second doses, since a greater number of belonephobes registered late. “Probably if we had asked the question from the first meetings, in the spring of 2021, it would have been closer to these values. [habituelles]adds the anthropologist.
These conclusions are in line with those of a British study, published last spring, which estimates that fear of needles is responsible for around 10% of cases of vaccine hesitancy in the United Kingdom. The non-probability study was conducted online with some 15,000 respondents from January 19 to February 5, 2021.
The more fearful children
Children, and to a lesser extent, adolescents, are generally more anxious about a needle, according to Ève Dubé, who says that about 30% of them feel this fear. “The experience of having had several injections helps to desensitize us. As adults, we are less in the imagination than children too. »
The data obtained by The duty are in the same direction as those pre-COVID: the proportion of fearful adolescents is significantly lower than among 5-11 year olds, at 25 and 35% respectively.
“All the interventions that have been put in place to facilitate the experience of children, such as pet therapy at mass vaccination sites, are extremely positive because it can affect trust,” says the researcher.
The first dose was made available to 12-17 year olds starting in June and their inoculation was spread out all summer, while children over 5 had access to it starting November 24. Moreover, this is still going on; only 61.5% of 5-11 year olds received at least one dose.
By email, the MSSS reveals that the question related to apprehension was added late in the Clic Santé form at the request of the CISSSs and CIUSSSs. “It was put in place mainly with the start of vaccination for 5-11 year olds, but had been requested by the field teams for some time in order to be able to better support the customers when they arrive on the site”, writes the door. -word Marjorie Larouche.
However, not all establishments take this information into account and the ministry does not follow up on the actions taken as a result. The publicist specifies all the same that “it remains a common practice for nurses to ask questions about apprehension”.
“It depends on the culture of the CIUSSS, their management of work and manpower,” she explains, recalling that staff shortages have possibly reduced their level of intervention.
” We have to be realistic “
Despite everything, the variety of strategies used by the CISSSs, the CIUSSSs and Quebec allow the government to boast of having one of the highest vaccination rates in the world. As of February 15, 85.8% of the general population has obtained at least one dose and 90.4% of the population aged 12 and over is adequately vaccinated.
“There is no vaccination program that succeeds in reaching 100% of the target populations, reminds Ève Dubé, we have to be realistic. The researcher thus considers that the campaign is “a great success”, in particular thanks to the persuasive effect of the vaccine passport. “I think that all the people we could reach with communication strategies went to get vaccinated for the first two doses. »
“To get the rest, she adds, it takes a much more individual approach. You have to meet them, try to understand their issues and respond to them in a personalized way. »
This is what the Legault government has been trying to do since January 24. Through his most recent attempt, he aims to identify Montreal neighborhoods with low vaccination coverage, the opening of an ephemeral vaccination site in Montreal and asks for the help of community organizations and university students to lend a hand in the operation.
One last way to reach those who still haven’t rolled up their sleeves because of access barriers or false beliefs, according to the expert. She believes that with all the efforts that have been made, the unvaccinated are today eternal recalcitrants, those who have “very firm positions” rather than a fear of the needle. “There are people we will never convince”.