Understanding how COVID-19 vaccines are promoted and what leads to vaccination hesitancy across selected European countries and stakeholders. This information will be collected into a virtual observatory and training systems to guide policymaking.
Context
Following the COVID-19 pandemic, vaccination campaigns still differ greatly across different countries and the hesitation to be vaccinated against the virus continues throughout Europe. Vaccine hesitation therefore is a complex challenge that requires more research on citizens, healthcare professionals, and local governments, which should then be shared across countries.
The coOPERATOR project will focus on five European countries – Belgium, Cyprus, Greece, Italy and Portugal – to collect information on vaccine hesitancy and vaccination campaigns using theoretical frameworks from behavioural sciences such as COM-B and 7C Models. coOPERATOR will also map each country’s individual needs, e.g., taking into account historical relationships to vaccines, vulnerable groups and systemic barriers hindering access to vaccines, culture and language, and how vaccination campaigns can be better communicated to the public.
This project will culminate in a coOPERATOR Policy Making Lab which collects our data and translates it back to stakeholders in our five participating Member States in the form of healthcare training materials and suggestions for policymaking.
Objectives
- Build survey tools including reviewing available questionnaires, focus groups for content development, pilot for psychometric properties, translation procedure and cultural adaptation to measure the determinants of vaccine uptake (general population) and of skills for promoting vaccination programmes efficiently (healthcare professionals)
- Collate best-practice evidence and lessons learnt from participating Member States to develop a set of citizen-centred evidence- based, scientifically sound recommendations and advice on how to address low vaccination uptake and to help healthcare professionals communicating more efficiently about vaccines
- Design and develop an intuitive and interactive virtual observatory (the co-OPERATOR platform) to foster dissemination, transferability, utilization of project results across the participating member states, the EU/EEA and beyond
- Translate research evidence generated by other WPs into evidence-based recommendations (intervention toolset) by engaging with stakeholders through a Policy Lab to address barriers and knowledge gaps and co-create practical solutions for implementation at regional, national, and European level
- Provide a comprehensive assessment of factors underlying low vaccination uptake and healthcare professionals’ barriers and facilitators to communicate vaccination information as well as their distribution among target population groups to inform a citizen-centred approach to promote vaccination uptake
Activities
- Create online surveys and data analysis to identify the factors leading to vaccine hesitation within diverse demographics of the national populations;
- Create social media campaigns across the five participating Member States that reach (at least) 700 organisations and experts;
- Compile our research findings into scientific, peer-reviewed articles and conference papers;
- Train healthcare professionals, academics, civil society stakeholders, and policymakers on improved vaccine communication.
Resources
- Virtual Platform/Observatory and AI that identifies patterns and presents solutions
- Best practise and training manuals for healthcare professionals
- Report for improving policy guidelines for stakeholders
- Scientific journals and conference papers
- Website and social media channels sharing project information, events, and deliverables
Impact
- Understand the individual needs of five Member States in terms of cultural and historic relationships to vaccines, vaccine access, systemic barriers, communication and language
- Provide tools to better measure the predictors of vaccine hesitancy among population and healthcare professionals’ barriers in promoting vaccination programmes
- Co-create tailored policymaking recommendations that will be included in the coOPERATOR platform and unveiled through the Policy Making Labs to contrast hesitancy
- Create Guidance and Toolkit, including evidence-based guidance on how to increase vaccination uptake among the general population and to increase long-lasting healthcare professionals’ skills in promoting vaccination programmes in the EU/EEA and beyond
- Offer practical recommendations and tools on how to monitor hesitancy, vaccine literacy, psychological antecedents of hesitancy and the capabilities, motivation and opportunities of healthcare professional to promote vaccinations and to design and implement successful actions to contrast hesitancy and increase uptake
- Influence policy by ensuring wide dissemination to project outputs through adapted materials tailored to the different stakeholders and by performing appropriate outreach activities to engage Influence policy by ensuring wide dissemination to project outputs through adapted materials tailored to the different stakeholders and by performing appropriate outreach activities to engage policy makers, public health authorities and civil society organization to ultimately contribute to inform future public health agenda and strategic decisions
Partners
- Technologiko Panepistimio Kyprou (Cyprus, coordinator)
- European Public Health Alliance (Belgium)
- CSI Center for Social Innovation Ltd (Cyprus)
- Ministerio da Saude – Republica Portuguesa (Portugal)
- Università di Pisa (Italy)
- Computer Solutions SA (Greece)
- CESIE ETS (Italy)
