Covid vaccine: convincing rather than imposing

Editorial of the “World”. Recent announcements about the potential effectiveness of a Covid-19 vaccine have sparked immense optimism around the world. While the waves of contamination punctuate the lives of many countries forcing them to more or less severe restrictive measures, the prospect of an immune solution against the disease constitutes “A ray of hope in a tunnel”, as summarized by Jean-François Delfraissy in an interview with World.

The president of the scientific council is right to rhyme with caution. Because the battle against the vaccine is far from won. Behind a majority optimism there is a movement of mistrust that it would be risky to underestimate and that should be addressed now to succeed in this crucial phase of the fight against the pandemic.

While the vaccine rush has brought results in record time, it has also led to an oversupply from states and pharmaceutical companies. The political priorities of some and the financial interests of others maintain a suspicion that makes us lose sight of the fact that this vaccine must be considered a “global public good”. The success of our fight against the virus depends on its degree of accessibility and acceptability.

At this stage, many questions remain unanswered. First, the unprecedented speed with which candidate vaccines have been developed has as its counterpart the lack of perspective on possible adverse effects. Then questions arise about the duration of immunity and the degree of effectiveness based on age and comorbidities. Finally, there are still many uncertainties about the organization of logistics and how to select priority populations.

On all these issues, health authorities will have to demonstrate pedagogy, transparency and humility in the advancement of knowledge. Despite the uncertainties, they must tirelessly persuade that the benefits of the vaccine far outweigh the potential risks, while accepting any questions.

Strong distrust in France

France approaches this winning streak with an additional handicap. It is one of the countries where distrust of the vaccine is strongest. Thus, more than four out of ten French people say they would not accept being vaccinated against the coronavirus, according to a recent study by the Jean Jaurès Foundation, corroborated by a survey conducted by Ipsos.

To reduce this skepticism to a conspiracy would be wrong. Distrust of vaccines is not new, but it accelerated at the time of the controversy over the appropriateness of the 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccination campaign and the disclosure of possible conflicts of interest. At the time, primary care doctors were not involved in the process. This error should not be reproduced. The solid capital of trust they enjoy is a lever we must rely on to encourage the population to get vaccinated.

The government must above all avoid any forced passage, taking care not to make vaccination mandatory. On a practical level, he will not have the means. The quantities available will not allow everyone to be vaccinated at the same time. Psychologically, this would be the best way to strengthen anti-vaccine movements. Rather than impose, we must persuade, inform and involve in decisions. This is the only way to stop the poison of the conspiracy, against which there is no vaccine.