WHILE terms like “lockdown”, “sanitisation”, “movement control order” and “asymptomatic” are almost on everyone’s lips in the current climate of the Covid-19 pandemic, there are other words that need to be understood by the common man in the street.
One must know and understand these terms before the mass Covid-19 vaccine rolls out in our country.
Words such as “vaccine-hesitancy”, which means undecided to take a vaccine. Or “anti-vaccine”, which means to have negative sentiments of a vaccine and to refrain from taking it. Not to mention, “anti-vaxxers”, a term used to describe a global group of people who discourage others from taking a vaccine and campaign against its usage on the world stage.
With the rapid development and distribution of the Covid-19 vaccine, the anxious wait is over. But with anti-vaccine ideologies growing, governments including Malaysia are facing the next obstacle. Getting the global population immunised – by making them understand how vaccines work and to trust their safety profile.
A group of young interns with the Malaysian Biotechnology Information Centre (Mabic), which hosts The Petri Dish, a science news portal, have rolled out a vaccine awareness campaign called TrustTheShot.
The vaccine-literacy campaign has been up and running since January 7.
Pushing Covid-19 virus into hibernation
“Vaccines are our only long-lasting weapon to fight this pandemic. It is predicted that around 70% of the global population has to be vaccinated to push the virus into hibernation. But it will not go away.
“But, we can control it so that future endemics are less severe,” Mabic executive director Dr Mahaletchumy Arujanan told The Vibes.
She said amid a global pandemic, the dissemination of misinformation and a lack of public awareness has given rise to the so-called infodemics. Inaccurate information is widely made available, and which spreads like wildfire via social media.
According to her, social media discussions reflect vaccine concerns and reluctance among the public to have themselves vaccinated.
“This is alarming. So, The Petri Dish has launched its pro-vaccine campaign. It is running on its Instagram page and other social media accounts belonging to Mabic”.
Mahaletchumy said anti-vaccination movements and ideologies are not new. They have been a long-standing issue in public health.
“We have seen many preventable diseases re-emerging, especially among children. Many people generally fear vaccines, no thanks to anti-vaccination campaigners. It is time to arrest this misinformation, especially when Covid-19 has taken 1.9 million lives around the globe.”
“As the situation looks alarming in Malaysia, the science interns with Mabic were open to the idea of becoming comrades to counter misconceptions about vaccines.
Young hotshot campaigners
The four campaigners are Saarani Vengadesan, 26, who has a degree in biotechnology and a masters in developmental studies, Nishat Anan, 24, holds a degree in biotechnology and is pursuing a masters in science (research) at Monash University, Muhammad Zakwan Zarudin, 22, currently pursuing a science degree in biomedicine (final year) at Sunway University and Aishwarya Vignesweran, 24, who holds a degree in science majoring in biotechnology.
They shared their thoughts with The Vibes on their pro-vaccine campaign and their interests in the project.
Nishat Anan, who heads the TrustTheShot project said: “We can all agree that social media is a massive tool to achieve so much in our society. But, its misuse at times like these can get dangerous. It’s exciting to lead this impressive initiative of The Petri Dish to make sure every one of us can understand and trust the role of vaccinations.
“The campaign is running with daily posts on The Petri Dish Instagram (@thepetridish). It aims to cover a wide range of topics surrounding vaccines. It will provide an insight into the historical and biological perspectives of vaccines in general, and will also address specific public concerns on the Covid-19 vaccine," said Nishat.
“Our campaign is interactive and we are happy with the response, so far. We will be adding another section to the platform soon titled 'Burning Questions'. Our audience will be able to ask us questions on vaccines and clear their every doubt and reservations about being vaccinated.”
Battling infodemics
Saarani Vengadesen, who is also a project officer with Mabic, said: “I am excited to be part of this project because I see this as an opportunity to save lives by raising awareness about vaccines. The frontliners are battling the pandemic, and it is exciting to be the ones to battle infodemics.”
“Social media has driven infodemics far and wide. It is causing jitters and uncertainty about vaccines among people while spouting conspiracy theories, unproven home remedies, and misleading claims. Conveying reliable and accurate information to the public is what the TrustTheShot campaign aims to do in tackling vaccine misconceptions,” she said.
Zakwan Zarudin, who is part of the content writing team for the project, said: “While the frontliners are fighting the pandemic, it is equally important for us as responsible members of society to play our part in this situation. It is even more exciting to be part of a campaign that will truly make an impact on people’s perspectives on vaccines, not just Covid-19 but all vaccines.”
He said the TrustTheShot team realises that the key to combating misinformation is not by simply releasing facts and figures. They also have a responsibility to explain and engage with the audience.
“Igniting a discussion among the public, and to provide the general public with the right information to make informed decisions on vaccines is the right path to arrest vaccine misinformation.”
Another member of the project, Aishwarya Vignesweran, who is also part of the content writing team, is excited to see what others will gain from this interesting and informative campaign.
“Working on this project has also given me the chance to expand my knowledge of vaccines and the ABCs of the impact of vaccines in the public health landscape.
“It is important for us all to know the role of vaccines and how they can improve our well-being. It is also exciting that this campaign highlights the importance of science communication.”
Aishwarya says vaccines have been the saving grace for mankind since they were first discovered. But their success has never convinced everyone to broadly accept them as a salient component in public health settings.
“Major communicable diseases are now slowly being controlled. Some even have been eradicated because of vaccines.
“It is now more important than ever to put a halt to the misconceptions on vaccines as the Covid-19 virus is wreaking havoc globally.
“We hope to make a difference with our TrustTheShot campaign and influence Malaysians to have a positive attitude towards the vaccination programme in Malaysia when it rolls in." – The Vibes, January 28, 2021
