Millions of people all over the world are living
under some form of restrictions. The
organisations who research, develop and manufacture medicines,
vaccines and health tech are our best hope of treating,
preventing or one day even eradicating the virus.
But as these scientists work around the clock and
around the globe to find vaccines and treatments to help bring
the pandemic to an end, media and social media is awash with
information – and misinformation.
Worryingly, there are signs that trust in vaccination
is wavering. We need to take this incredibly seriously. If public
trust wanes further this will be yet another long-term impact of
the pandemic.
The World Health Organisation cites vaccination as
second only to clean water as the most effective public health
intervention in the world for saving lives and promoting good
health. Every single year 2 – 3 million lives are saved around
the world because of immunisation.1
We know that vaccination programmes are vulnerable to
fear and misunderstanding as we have seen with the effects of a
high profile – and later discredited study – falsely linking MMR
to autism being felt for many years with a drop in immunisation
rates.
Late last year the UK lost its ‘measles-free’ status
from the WHO, and globally cases nearly tripled in the first
seven months of 2019. This prompted the Prime Minister to call on health leaders to take “decisive action”
and renew their efforts to ensure 95 per cent of the population
gets two doses of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR)
vaccine.
Between 2000 and 2018, measles vaccination prevented
an estimated 23.2 million deaths according to the
WHO2. To see a resurgence in the UK of a disease that
we have an effective vaccine for is extremely
worrying.
Whilst there isn’t a single reason for this, the rise
of misinformation online is a key issues that we need to
address.
Media reports suggest that one in five in the UK
wouldn’t take a Covid-19 vaccine. The ABPI’s own research with
IPSOS MORI showed that five percent of people weren’t willing to
be vaccinated against any illness or disease.
We need to listen carefully to why people might be
concerned.
It normally takes 5-10 years to develop a vaccine;
with Covid-19 we’re aiming for 12-18 months. People are right to
ask questions about how this can be achieved.
The answer is in the unprecedented scale at which the
research is being carried out, using the latest cutting-edge
science and running stages of development in parallel. Companies,
research institutes and academics from all over the world are
focussing their efforts entirely on a pandemic which has brought
the world to its knees.
Advances in vaccine science and companies joining
forces to work in new and collaborative ways such as sharing
portfolios and technology is also speeding up the
process.
It’s important to stress that no corners will ever be
cut in the search for a safe and effective Covid-19
vaccine.
Vaccines face strict regulations which reflect that
they are likely to be given to millions of healthy
people.
We have a responsibility to tell that story. It’s
vital that among all of the noise, misinformation and fear
generated by the coronavirus that we get the facts out there.
That vaccines have a massive role to play to patients, the NHS
and the economies of countries all over the world, through
preventing disease and keeping people health.
If we can help tell the story of what our industry
does – how medicines and vaccines are discovered, and the strict
regulations that surround the process, we stand in a much better
place to beat the virus when a vaccine is found.
That’s why we are launching a digital campaign to
showcase this work.
Pharmaceutical companies have decades of experience
in the research, development and manufacturing of
vaccines.
We haven’t always been the best at telling our story,
but we have huge role to play in helping the public to understand
the vital role of vaccines in society.
