Episode 3 ¦ Vaccine Hesitancy among Pregnant Women

16:05, Tue 15 Nov 2022

In the third episode of our podcast series, Dr Joshua Kelsall from the University of Warwick speaks to Dr Helen Skirrow, a clinical research fellow and public health specialist registrar at Imperial College London. They discussed Covid vaccine hesitancy and confidence among pregnant women in the UK. Vaccine hesitancy among pregnant women is multi-factored. Key reasons for hesitancy included a lack of availability of vaccines, conflicting sources of information about the safety and efficacy of vaccines for pregnant women, as well as women’s considerations of their obligations as mothers and parents, which are sometimes not taken seriously by doctors. Women are more likely to get vaccinated after pregnancy rather than during pregnancy. It was also noted that hesitancy among pregnant women is generally stronger among vulnerable groups, where difficulties in accessing vaccines become more prevalent. Dr Skirrow’ research was drawn from the following study on pregnant women’s views and experiences with covid-19 vaccines during the pandemic:

Women's views and experiences of accessing pertussis vaccination in pregnancy and infant vaccinations during the COVID-19 pandemic: A multi-methods study in the UK - ScienceDirect

You can also view Dr Skirrow’s presentation slides from her contribution to our Vaccine Hesitancy and Disinformation Workshop here.

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(MP4 format, 1.1 GB)

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