Two in five people believe the Covid-19 pandemic will never be fully over, according to new research carried out by Ipsos for the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association (IPHA ).
The research, measuring public attitudes to Covid-19 vaccination and to vaccination in general, shows that half of people believe the Covid-19 pandemic will end eventually while 39% believe it will never fully be over. Just 10% believe the pandemic has already ended.
Over four in five people, or 82%, believe vaccines, in general, are effective while 76% of people trust the medical evidence about vaccines. Over half of people could spontaneously name four vaccine-preventable diseases, with Covid-19, measles, mumps and rubella cited most often.
Just under half of people, or 48%, have not received adult vaccinations for diseases other than Covid-19. These diseases could include flu, mumps, rubella, Hepatitis B, whooping cough and pneumococcal disease.
The survey finds that 91% of people have been vaccinated for Covid-19, with three in four people having received at least one booster vaccine dose for the disease. One in four people, or 25%, say they are more likely to get vaccinated for other diseases as a result of getting protected against Covid-19.
Bernard Mallee, IPHA’s Director of Communications and Advocacy, said: “Covid-19 vaccination has substantially altered the course of the pandemic, saving tens of millions of lives globally. But people are far from putting the pandemic behind them. Epidemiologists say the pattern of recurring waves is likely to persist. Ensuring that we have answers for variants of concern is the work of scientists in our industry. That work is enabled by stable intellectual property rights.
“That we have very strong levels of vaccination, including take-up of booster doses, shows that people have confidence in science as the best defence against infection. Vaccination is effective in stopping serious illness and death.
“Encouragingly, a significant majority of people believe that vaccines, in general, are effective. But we would urge greater take-up among adults of vaccines for diseases other than Covid-19 where research shows there is a significant gap in coverage.
“Vaccination helps us to stay safe throughout life. It means we don’t have to worry so much about diseases like smallpox, rubella, measles, pneumonia, tuberculosis and polio that used to torment communities across the country.”
According to a study, published in The Lancet in June 2022, vaccinations prevented almost 15 million deaths from Covid-19 in 185 countries and territories between December 2020 and December 2021. With the exception of clean, safe drinking water, vaccination is among the most successful and cost-effective public health interventions ever.
