The vaccination companion: A quick guide for healthcare workers
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The vaccination companion: A quick guide for healthcare workers. (2024). [Information kit (folder, banner, brochure)]. PAHO. https://iris.paho.org/handle/10665.2/61727
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English; 8 pages
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2024-09-27
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PAHO/CRB/23-0001
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In February 2023, a collaboration was formed between the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO/WHO), the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), and Global Affairs Canada to initiate a social and behavior change project in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. The project's initial phase aimed to understand barriers to vaccine uptake by raising public awareness, holding focus groups, and interviewing healthcare workers and the public. The Caribbean has seen significant reductions in vaccine-preventable diseases over the last twenty years, thanks to efforts such as PAHO's Expanded Program on Immunization. However, with the onset of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, misinformation has led to public skepticism and concerns regarding vaccine safety. Despite receiving the first COVAX Facility doses in March 2021 and making robust distribution plans, uptake remains low, especially among healthcare workers. This hesitancy threatens global health initiatives.
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Item Beliefs and attitudes of healthcare workers and community influencers toward COVID-19 and lifetime vaccines in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines(PAHO, 2025-10-28)The PAHO Subregional Programme Coordination Office, in partnership with Global Affairs Canada, launched a project aimed at social and behavioural change for vaccine uptake in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. This project involved collecting qualitative data from healthcare providers and the public to identify obstacles to accepting lifetime vaccines inclusive of COVID-19. Moreover, over six weeks, health promotional activities were organized across nine health districts in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, which resulted in the administration of 242 vaccinations. 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More than 1000 participated in this study. The objectives of this publication are to present quality data on the behavioral and social drivers of vaccination and COVID-19 vaccines among healthcare workers in the Caribbean, with the aim to improve implementation strategies and tailor communication approaches on COVID-19 vaccines in the Caribbean, and ultimately contribute to increased vaccination acceptance and improved vaccine confidence among HCWs. We hope that the findings presented will be useful to public health decisionmakers, policymakers, communication professionals, and HCWs who seek to be vaccine advocates.Item Frequently asked questions (FAQs) on behavioral sciences and vaccination(PAHO, 2024)As national immunization programs grapple with how to increase vaccine uptake for both vaccines against COVID and those that form part of the routine immunization schedule, they should consider the role of behavioral and social drivers of vaccination (BeSD), which help us understand the beliefs and experiences that influence vaccine uptake. The present document includes answers to questions submitted to PAHO about behavioral and social drivers of vaccination with the goal of helping immunization programs understand these factors; what the BeSD framework is and what its four domains – thinking and feeling, social processes, motivation, and practical issues – are; how social and behavioral data can be collected, analyzed, and used to implement and evaluate interventions to increase uptake; what tools are available to do this; the special considerations needed when considering health workers´ role in promoting vaccination; the relationship between BeSD and risk communication and community engagement (RCCE) for vaccination; and the definition and relationship between key social and behavioral terms like vaccine confidence and vaccine hesitancy. 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Trusted technical spokespersons should be used to empathetically communicate critical messages about vaccine safety and efficacy and the importance of getting vaccinated with the first vaccine that is offered.Item Combating false information on vaccines: Tips for journalists(PAHO, 2025-06-30)Journalists play a critical role in keeping the public up to date on information they need to be healthy, including staying current on their vaccines. Along with health workers, the media is one of the most trusted sources the public have for scientific information; journalists help shape perceptions, attitudes, and even behaviors. This document aims to support journalists, regardless of their medium, to accurately cover stories related to vaccines and vaccination. Journalists play a critical role in keeping the public up to date on information they need to be healthy, including staying current on their vaccines. Along with health workers, the media is one of the most trusted sources the public have for scientific information; journalists help shape perceptions, attitudes, and even behaviors. While misinformation about vaccination is as old as vaccines themselves, its more recent explosion, especially on social media, has caused concern for health professionals and scientists. Studies have demonstrated that even brief exposure to vaccine misinformation can negatively impact individuals’ attitudes and intentions toward vaccination, even among people who have previously been vaccinated. As vaccination coverage rates fall, populations are left exposed to deadly vaccine-preventable diseases (VPDs) like measles, pertussis (whooping cough), polio, tetanus, and others. Keeping people healthy and protected from VPDs requires collaboration across sectors, especially in the face of vaccine misinformation. For this reason, PAHO has created this document for media professionals covering vaccination, which covers bias and balance, norms and perceptions, and tips on other related topics, as well as additional resources for further information.