Thanks to the UK Government’s massively successful vaccine role out, the United Kingdom has one of the highest vaccination rates in the world; 83% of all UK adults have received their first dose, and 60% of UK adults have received both doses. However, one major hurdle, proving difficult to overcome across the 4 nations, is that of vaccine hesitancy from within the Black Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) population.
The statistics are striking. OpenSafely reports that 95% of the over 70’s have been vaccinated. While this means that 96% of the over 70’s within the White community are vaccinated, only 70% of members of the Black African community in the same age group are vaccinated. This lower rate of uptake is particularly concerning given the BAME community has been hit much harder by the pandemic, with Black African communities suffering a 3 to 4 times higher Covid-19 mortality rate.
These statistics can be disheartening, especially in the wake of numerous public information campaigns by BAME doctors and public figures to tackle “fake news” about the vaccine on social media platforms. However, GP’s argue that false information isn’t the only factor driving vaccine hesitancy in the BAME community, with a lack of trust in health services being a considerable barrier, the BBC reports.
Whatever the reason, it is clear that more needs to be done to build up confidence in the vaccination programme amongst the BAME community so that the United Kingdom can navigate its way out of the pandemic.