Communicating COVID-19 Vaccines: Lessons from the Dengue Vaccine Controversy in the Philippines

• Main Authors: Lasco, Gideon, Yu, Vincen Gregory
• Format: text
• Published: Archīum Ateneo 2021
• Subjects: COVID-19; dengue; vaccines; Development Studies; Diseases; Health Communication; Medicine and Health Sciences
• Online Access: https://archium.ateneo.edu/dev-stud-faculty-pubs/70; https://archium.ateneo.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1068&context=dev-stud-faculty-pubs
• Institution: Ateneo De Manila University

As countries around the world begin to roll out COVID-19 vaccines; vaccine safety communication is more relevant than ever. The dengue vaccine controversy in the Philippines offers lessons that can be applied to immunisation programmes being organised today to address the COVID-19 pandemic. Effective vaccine safety communication entails (re)building relationships of trust between government and the public; upholding the credibility of scientific institutions and maintaining transparency. It also involves viewing health against the broader framework of equity; using an interdisciplinary approach to health communication and putting a premium on public feedback.