The announcement of the commencement of immunization of children in the month of September brought great relief to parents, amidst the rumors of the probable 3rd wave of COVID-19 taking a heavy toll on kids. Although amongst the adults, there have been a lot of rumors that people believed in and they have been afraid to get vaccinated, which in turn affected the pace of the vaccine campaign. But, a survey conducted by parenting brand Rabitat shows that 9 out of 10 parents have a positive outlook on their kids getting vaccinated and eagerly waiting for the vaccination drive for children to begin.
Only 1% Of Parents Expressed Reluctance
The result was mostly in favor of vaccination with just 1 in 10 parents not wanting to vaccinate their children. Even though it's a low number, it still poses a threat as children with mild infections of COVID-19 or asymptomatic can act as carriers and spread the virus further.
From the sample size of 300 parents, Rabitat found that 1.2 percent of the parents didn't consider vaccinations for children to be important, 5.6 percent were unsure and 93.2 percent considered them very important. Of all parents interviewed, 64.3 percent of the parents had been vaccinated themselves. The top reasons for the rest not being vaccinated were: Recovery from COVID-19 and waiting for the recommended 60-90 day period before taking the vaccination; pregnancy and breastfeeding; and the lack of availability of vaccines in their area and the unavailability of slots.
Covishield Remains The First Preference
On asking the parents if they have any preference of vaccine brand/company, 57.4 percent preferred Covishield, 22.2 percent vouched for Covaxin, 14.8 percent for Sputnik and 5.6 percent didn't prefer any of the three. When asked if they are keen on getting their kids vaccinated when the vaccine is out, 89.5 percent of the parents want their kids to get vaccinated, 8.9 percent of parents are unsure and 1.6 percent don't want it.
No Schools Without Vaccination
There are many doubts in the minds of people regarding the efficacy of vaccines in protecting children from the virus. In the same regard, the parents were asked if they would send their kids to school without getting them vaccinated. 89.7 percent of the parents did not want to send their kids to school without getting vaccinated while 10.3 percent said they are comfortable sending them even without vaccinations.
A few months ago, AIIMS chief Randeep Guleria informed about the possibility of vaccination in children beginning from the month of September. He informed that both Bharat Biotech and Zydus’ vaccines are being considered important to India. Furthermore, he said that the availability of the Pfizer vaccine will be very helpful for immunizing children. Apparently, Zydus has already conducted a test for the same. Alongside, Dr. N. K. Arora, head of the National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration said that there is a possibility of commencing vaccination in children of 12-18 years of age, with Zydus vaccine from September.
