Published: 1 March 2021
A survey commissioned by Public Health Wales has revealed that more than eight in 10 (85 per cent) of residents in Wales would have a COVID-19 vaccine if they were offered it right now, with 78 per cent also agreeing that they believe most people in Wales will choose to be vaccinated once a COVID-19 vaccine is offered to them.
Public Health Wales is commissioning a survey with YouGov every two months, where at least 1,000 people in Wales will be interviewed to understand the public’s feelings about vaccines, specifically COVID-19 and flu vaccines.
For the first report, the questions ran on the YouGov Wales Omnibus between 4 and 8 February 2021 with 1,009 responses.
According to the findings, 78 per cent agree their severity of illness will be reduced if they caught Coronavirus after their COVID-19 vaccine.
When asked about the safety of the vaccine, 77 per cent of people agree that COVID-19 vaccines which are approved for use by the NHS will be very safe. Furthermore, 77 per cent of people agree that they know enough about the safety of the COVID-19 vaccine to make an informed decision about whether or not to get vaccinated for Coronavirus.
The report also showed that three quarters (76 per cent) would regard health professionals as a reliable source of information about the COVID-19 vaccine, followed by Public Health Wales at 72 per cent.
In addition to the YouGov findings, Public Health Wales’ fortnightly public engagement survey 'How Are We Doing in Wales' also revealed 90 per cent of people they surveyed said either that they would want (60 per cent) a Coronavirus vaccination or that they had already had one (30 per cent). The 'How Are We Doing in Wales' survey covered the period of 15th to 21st February 2021, when 600 people were surveyed.
Dr Richard Roberts, Head of the Vaccine Preventable Diseases Programme at Public Health Wales said:
“Vaccination is one of the most effective ways of protecting ourselves from COVID-19, so it’s really encouraging to see that more than 8 out of 10 people would have a COVID-19 vaccine if they were offered it right now.
“As we know, The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has said that all current evidence suggests that the approved COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective and these latest findings clearly suggest that people are listening to the safety messages, which is extremely positive.
“However, it is important to remember that even if you have been vaccinated with a first or second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, you must still follow social distancing rules and other protective guidance as you may still be able to spread the virus.
“In future reports, we’re hoping to understand more about how people’s perceptions of vaccines may differ depending on their ethnicity, age and gender to identify any key trends and we will publish this data as and when it becomes available.”
The full YouGov report will be published on the Public Health Wales COVID-19 campaign microsite here.
The How are we Doing survey is also available here.