This is a summary, written by members of the CITF Secretariat, of:

Murmann M, Reed AC, Scott M, Presseau J, Heer C, May K, Ramzy A, Huynh CN, Skidmore B, Welch V, Little J, Wilson K, Brouwers M, Hsu AT. Exploring COVID-19 education to support vaccine confidence amongst the general adult population with special considerations for healthcare and long-term care staff: A scoping review. Campbell Syst Rev. 2023 Aug 13;19(3):e1352. doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/cl2.1352.

The results and/or conclusions contained in the research do not necessarily reflect the views of all CITF members.

A CITF-funded review, published in Campbell Systematic Reviews, found that among various strategies for promoting vaccine confidence, educational interventions were introduced to support individuals in their vaccine decisions by building COVID-19 vaccine knowledge and confidence. Group-based and formal presentations were the most frequently used. Recognised community leaders who were familiar to and aligned with the priority population audience, both demographically and linguistically, were often involved in the development and dissemination of COVID-19 vaccination information to establish trust. This study was led by Dr. Kumanan Wilson and Dr. Amy Hsu (both from University of Ottawa).

Key findings:

  • Group-based educational interventions on COVID-19 vaccination (such as presentations, community events, and small group discussions), were used more frequently than individual-based approaches (such as phone calls, in-person consultations, and door-to-door communication).
  • Formal presentations, including webinars, coaching sessions, town halls, lectures, and information sessions were the most common type of intervention.
  • Given the complexity of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy, the utilization of several educational interventions in parallel could be effective. One third of studies in the review used multi-pronged strategies.
  • Healthcare professionals provided the education in almost all studies and community leaders, including local peer influencers, cancer patient advocates, and community-based organizations, also played an important role in facilitating education on COVID-19 vaccines.
  • A train-the-trainer model (which involved training facilitators to provide effective and tailored COVID-19 vaccine education) was shown to be of value for rapid diffusion of information, in light of staffing, timing, and resource challenges.
  • Trust and personal connections were key factors in fostering vaccine confidence.

Overall, the review showed that a range of educational interventions were used to boost COVID-19 vaccine confidence. This review also highlights the value of the train-the-trainer approach and of tailoring vaccine education to the unique needs of priority populations.

This was a scoping review with a search in five databases, including Ovid MEDLINE and Web of Science, as well as grey literature. The review included a total of 32 studies, published between February 2021 and February 2022. Only educational interventions that had an active interaction between an education facilitator and an audience member were included.