Listening to understand: vaccine hesitancy
Every person is worthy of having their health protected.
Last week I wrote out of some frustration that as a society, we seem unable to take advantage of solutions to our most challenging problems. One of those problems is the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, including the rapid and terrifying rise of the delta variant, and the public health consensus that widespread vaccination is our best solution to it.
Over the past week I’ve talked with - and tried my best to listen to - several people I know, love, and trust who are deciding not to be vaccinated against the coronavirus, yet.
Their reasons range from advice from medical providers not to get the available vaccines due to underlying health conditions, including a propensity to anaphylaxis, to simple fear: the vaccines seem so new, they say, and so many medical breakthroughs are promoted at the start only to discover side effects or harms later on.
All indicated that they know the benefits of the vaccines, and they are taking precautions such as masking and distancing to protect others. And all talked openly about what they experience as pressure to get vaccinated. The pressure was coming from their friends, family, employers, and society in general.
For each person, this dynamic was counterproductive in helping them move toward vaccination. As the pressure increased, they become more reluctant, not less.
At its worst, they described, the pressure takes the form of dehumanizing comments. Their concerns are dismissed as ignorance, their situations treated with skepticism, their politics assumed to be reactionary, and their personalities assumed to be selfish or careless or both. In all cases, nothing could be further from the truth. Each is thoughtful, caring, intelligent. They represent diverse faith traditions and political perspectives. Each has invested time in learning more about the vaccines, their risks, their own health, and the potential risks of Covid 19.
One theme that struck me was their repeated expression of dismay at being lumped in with a stereotype of “anti-vaxxers.” They felt vilified, treated as less than others who have been vaccinated. As I listened, my discomfort grew.
Because I have vilified unvaccinated folk. Not, I hope, directly to them, but certainly in comments to others I know are vaccinated. I have used dehumanizing language, describing them not as individuals but as an undifferentiated group who ignore what is best for the community to stake a claim for individual freedom.
My conversations this week helped me understand that there are as many stories about the choice not to vaccinate - at least, not yet - as there are folk who are making that decision. It does not help to attack or dehumanize them; in fact, it backfires.
I remain convinced that increasing vaccination rates is essential to bringing the pandemic under control, and that vaccine misinformation is a huge culprit in ongoing illness and loss of life.
Equally, I remain convinced that our best strategy for increasing vaccination rates is to humanize everyone. That’s everyone, not just the folk we understand or feel empathy for. Everyone. Listen for understanding. All of us, when we feel humanized, also feel empowered to make the best decisions for ourselves and our community. (Read more about vaccine hesitancy from sources listed after the photo.)
The solutions are there. Humanizing, compassionate understanding, will help us take advantage of them.
Be safe and well, and remember: you are worthy of having your concerns heard, and of having your health protected.
From the NYT Daily Podcast: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/06/podcasts/the-daily/delta-variant-coronavirus-vaccine.html?searchResultPosition=24
From the Washington Post on vaccine anxiety: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/08/04/us-has-been-promoting-vaccines-through-fear-research-political-anxiety-suggests-thats-mistake/