CONVERSATIONS IN

VACCINE CONFIDENCE

Helping you understand vaccine hesitancy in others, and helping them to understand vaccine confidence in you.

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Design for Health: Human Factors (OCADu)

TEAM

graphics, research, report writing

ROLE

illustrator, indesign

tools

Challenge

From the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, misinformation and confusion about the virus have influenced individuals’ hesitation to vaccinate. Changing these hesitant attitudes is not always as simple as correcting misinformation, and lay persons and even well-meaning health practitioners can accidentally alienate the vaccine hesitant individuals they’re trying to help.

SOLUTION

We created a communication design framework in an attempt to bridge the gap. This booklet presents essential background to aid in communication between health and allied health professionals and their patients who have questions on vaccination (and beyond).

It consists of an information guide on vaccine hesitancy and an evidence-based discussion toolkit. The framework emphases comprehension through empathy to create an even-footed discussion built on trust and respect.

audience & structure

Designed for Health and Allied health professionals to be used as both a summary of background information, and as actionable information in the form of communication methodology.

Conversations is also accessible to laypersons who wish to address questions or concerns from their friends and family. Although it’s text-based, the guide avoids using jargon and breaks down the research into…

five digestable chunks:

  1. Post truths, misinformation, and medical mistrust,

  2. Vaccine hesitancy influences,

  3. Moral values & foundations,

  4. Backfire effects, and

  5. Conversation guide and empathy map.

process

LITERATURE REVIEW

Created in late 2020, we were still in a world without a vaccine for COVID-19. As such, the guide summarized existing literature on vaccine hesitancy and extrapolated to how it could be used to respond to denial of the existence of COVID-19.

Literature review included

  • Vaccine history

  • Vaccine Hesitancy and Rejection

  • COVID-19 acceptance and rejection

  • Medical mistrust

  • Misinformation, disinformation, and corrective information

  • Social psychology

  • Effective Public Health campaigning

september 2021 update

In September 2021, we worked with doctors from Scarborough Health Network to revise the booklet to be current to the time. Feedback from stakeholders allowed Conversations to be updated to a state that was deemed fit by multiple parties for clinician use.

impact and reflections

Conversations was modified/updated in Sept. 2021 in collaboration with a local vaccination clinic and their Q&A hotline, helping the doctors and nurses on staff communicate with patients and assuage their worries.

This project taught me a lot about kindness and empathy. Understanding and respect are essential if you genuinely want to change someone’s mind.