Presenter:
Kathleen Garrett, MA
Behavioral Health & Wellness Program
Webinar Objectives:
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, vaccine hesitancy (the reluctance or refusal to vaccinate despite the availability of vaccines) was a major public health concern in the United States and across the world. In fact, vaccine hesitancy was identified by the WHO as one of the top 10 global threats in 2019. We know that vaccine hesitancy is complicated and influenced by a wide range of personal concerns, not the least of which is a growing distrust of public health institutions and pharmaceutical companies. With the upcoming roll out of a national COVID-19 vaccine in late 2020, these issues are likely to be heightened at the very moment when vaccine acceptance will be essential to public health. For this reason, effective provider/patient COVID-19 vaccination conversations will be more critical than ever. Fortunately, we have learned much about the efficacy of Motivational Interviewing (MI) and other tailored strategies to respond to vaccination hesitancy in the areas of childhood and adolescent vaccine conversations that we can apply to COVID-19 conversations. In this webinar we will:
- Review the scientific evidence base for effective provider/patient communication strategies for improved vaccine acceptance related to non-COVID-19 vaccine
- Explore the unique issues relevant to COVID-19 vaccine decision-making that are likely to impact vaccine hesitancy and acceptance
- Discuss potential actions to support providers in COVID-19 vaccine conversations and enhance vaccine acceptance.
An Educational Series provided by the CU Anschutz Department of Psychiatry, Behavioral Health & Wellness Program
Supported by the University of Colorado School of Medicine
