In the oil towns of west Texas, a measles outbreak is spreading. Gaines County, where the flare-up began, had the state’s third-highest share of children exempt from measles and other vaccines for religious or philosophical reasons last year
Media and commentary
The way to discuss a vaccine, says Prof. Heidi Larson, founding director of the Vaccine Confidence Project, is to ask your patient how they feel about it and go from there, addressing patient concerns and developing a risk-benefit analysis to discuss.
This series of studies highlights the importance of adopting constructive approaches to restoring public health confidence in vaccination, particularly mRNA vaccines.
Professor Heidi Larson spoke to The i Paper about the role of the Covid pandemic in driving vaccine confidence declines among 18 to 24-year-olds: “It was not specifically a reaction to the vaccine. They felt that their education was disrupted, social life restricted and jobs lost or disrupted.”
In 2023 around 70% of UK adults said that vaccinations were safe and effective, down sharply from 90% in 2018, according to research from the Vaccine Confidence Project, run by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM).
The Covid pandemic has provoked a fresh wave of hesitancy. According to VCP data, between 2018 and 2023 confidence in vaccine safety, importance and efficacy fell by about 20% in the UK.
Heidi Larson, director of the Vaccine Confidence Project, discusses why there is more of a political divide on Covid vaccine acceptance than flu.
Professor Heidi Larson, director of the Vaccine Confidence Project explains how “medical injustices leave distrust not only in individual memories but community memories.”
Artificial intelligence has potential to counter vaccine hesitancy while building trust in vaccines, but it must be deployed ethically and responsibly, argue Heidi Larson and Leesa Lin
Heidi J Larson, along with contributors from the Vaccine Confidence Project, discuss the complex factors influencing decision-making around vaccines.
In this interview, VCP Founder and Co-Director Prof. Heidi J Larson outlines what research tells us about the impact of mandates on vaccine confidence amongst young people.
The data for the report was collected by The VCP. India, China and Mexico were the only 3 countries out of the 55 surveyed where there was an increase in respondents agreeing that vaccines are important for children to have.