By: Christian Alpha Conte
Aminata Bangura never seems to be in a hurry, even when navigating between a ward, a consultation desk and the young lady she had sent to buy gloves, all while talking about the change in perceptions around the COVID-19 vaccine.
Ms. Bangura is a nurse at the Macauley Street Government Hospital located in the central part of the capital, Freetown. She is one of the heroic health workers saving lives on the frontline of COVID-19.
According to Nurse Bangura before the second lockdown in the country uptake of vaccines was low. Now she says it is encouraging as people ask every day whether the hospital has received additional doses of the vaccine.
“There was a time when people did not want to come near me because they thought I would give them COVID-19 since I was interacting with and treating patients, many did not want to be vaccinated because they thought this was a trick by the government and the drug companies.” Nurse Bangura said.
In June of 2021 the Pentecostal Fellowship of Sierra Leone (PFSL) one of the Christian bodies in the nation expressed strong reservations over the process of mandatory and forced vaccination adopted by the National COVID-19 Emergency Response Centre (NaCOVERC) and other institutions.
“We believe that this process and its consequences have not been carefully thought through. We believe that there is an infringement upon our rights as citizens [and that we] are subjected to a process that is unlawful, inconsiderate, and has not been used in the developed world,” the release from PFSL stated.
As a result of awareness raising campaigns, evidence that the vaccine works and the COVID-19 wave hitting the country, there has been a noticeable change in perception in the capital. This has created a scramble for vaccines.
“Before the second lockdown, uptake of vaccines was low, but now it is encouraging, people ask us every day whether we have received additional doses of the vaccine.” Aminata says.
In August of 2021 acceptance of the vaccine has increased considerably. 63-year-old Benjamin Pratt a resident of Circular Road in Central Freetown has made his way to the Macauley Street Government Hospital on two occasions to check whether vaccines were available.
He received his first shot of the vaccine in May 2021 and was due for the second one in July 2021. Large numbers of people waiting to be vaccinated have discouraged him, on his 2nd attempt he still cannot access the vaccine. Fully masked, he walks away promising to keep safe, saying that he would be back.
Peter Sesay a resident of a nearby community, Mountain Cut, and a grandfather of three children was initially reluctant to get vaccinated, despite his own nephew being one of the local government officials responsible for public awareness and monitoring.
He now regrets his long term defiance. His wife recently caught COVID-19 but was among the lucky ones to have successfully battled the disease. The form that struck her was a mild one, and with relatively minimal treatment, she has now fully recovered.
“I am very lucky; it could have been worse for us as a family. Many people have died around here due to COVID-19, some of them stronger than I. I will definitely take the vaccine when it is available,” Peter said.
Mr. Sesays’ nephew, David said that some people didn’t take the disease as seriously as they should have done during the first wave, despite the awareness campaigns. “I do see a great difference now,” he said.
“People are responding well, regularly asking about the next rollout phase. There are many like my previously reluctant uncle. I am confident that the people will respond with zeal when the vaccines are available. We also still encourage them to report to the health centre, should they feel ill, in the meantime, while we await guidance from the government and health professionals,” David reiterated.
David’s optimism is supported by new research showing that a significantly higher proportion of people in low- and middle-income countries are willing to get vaccinated against COVID-19 than in higher-income countries like the USA and Russia. The challenge now is getting vaccines to them.
