One in five Irish people would not take a traditional vaccine, survey suggests

One in five Irish people said they would not take a traditional vaccine, a worldwide research project found.

A further one in four said they would not take an mRNA vaccine, with this sentiment higher among parents of dependent children.

The Worldwide Independent Network of MR (WIN), an association of independent market research and polling firms, has released a survey of over 33,000 people across 38 countries, including Ireland.

It found that one-third of people globally either reject or are unsure about traditional vaccines despite decades of public health successes.

These include the eradication of smallpox through vaccination while a combination of the HPV vaccine and screening is hoped to eliminate cervical cancer.

Polling firm Red C Research surveyed 1,000 adults in Ireland as part of the global project.

The study found that a majority of people in Ireland still trust vaccines to a higher degree than the global average, with 73% saying they would accept a traditional vaccine compared to 68% globally.

Some 67% of Irish adults surveyed said they would be open to taking an mRNA vaccine, compared to 60% both in Europe and globally.

But a quarter of Irish adults surveyed said they would not be likely to take an mRNA vaccine and a fifth said they would not take a traditional vaccine.

Around 6% are uncertain about traditional vaccines.

A significant number of people said they would take a traditional vaccine (40%) over an mRNA jab (25%).

Messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine technology came to the forefront with the production of Covid-19 vaccines made by Pfizer and Moderna.

The messenger RNA approach starts with a snippet of genetic code-carrying instructions for making proteins. By picking the right virus protein to target, the body turns into a mini-vaccine factory.

Acceptance of mRNA vaccines is higher in Ireland among men (72%), Dubliners (73%), those with a third-level education (71%) and those in higher socio-economic grades (75%).

The parents of dependent children, and those in the associated 35-54 age bracket, are the least accepting of mRNA vaccines, at 57%.

The global survey also found that Irish adults are more comfortable with innovative medicines than the European average.

For medicines that directly interact with cell components to protect against disease, 55% of Irish people were comfortable compared to the European average of 46%, and for personalised medicine based on genetic traits, 55% said they were comfortable compared to the European average of 50%.

“These findings are largely positive and show the strong levels immunisation acceptance in the population of Ireland, driven perhaps by our highly educated population and being a global leader i pharmaceuticals,” said John Rogers, associate director at Red C Research.

“As with other countries, a challenge for medical professionals and health boards is to address the concerns many have with approved vaccines, in addition to tried and tested medical innovations.

“Given the high levels of conspiracy theories and misinformation relating to vaccines, particularly involving those that cause negative effects in children, it’s concerning to see the vaccine acceptance and trust of innovative medicines is lower amongst Irish parents.”

Professor Heidi J Larson, founder and director of the Vaccine Confidence Project, said: “In general, publics tend to hesitate when new vaccines are introduced, especially those made in new ways (ie the Covid-19 vaccine was the first vaccine ever to use an mRNA approach).

“The perceptions of mRNA and future RNA-related vaccines and medicines should be monitored over time as people become more familiar with this new approach to making vaccines and medicines, but at the same time, risk seeing more misinformation.”