Private sector needs to demolish vaccine hesitancy among employees and workers

This move comes as the government opened the vaccination drive from April 1 for anyone above the age of 45 years. Until April 3 evening, a total of 7,44,42,267 vaccine doses have been registered across the country, including those of healthcare workers, frontline workers and people above the age of 45 years, with and without co-morbidity issues. (Image: Twitter @ANI)

Around this time last year India was in the middle of one of the most stringent lockdowns to deal with the Covid-19 public health shock.

The sense of fear, among people and the government, was overwhelming.

Testing facilities were far fewer. It used to take far longer, at least 48 hours during weekdays and longer during weekends, for test results to come out.

Protocols were constantly evolving as scientists, doctors and bio-statisticians were battling with a mountain of new data to understand the disease that had brought the world to a standstill.

Shops, restaurants, malls, offices, factories shuttered down as social distancing and masks emerged as the most potent weapon.

The results began to show. The daily caseload fell to around 10,000 in September from close to 100,000 in August 2020.

From a few thousand tests a day, India was clocking more than a million daily tests. Containment and quarantine became standard instruments in the fight-Covid-19 tool-kit for individuals and governments.

As humanity launched a blistering counter-attack riding on the power of science to halt Covid-19's onslaught, life began to limp back to a "new normal".

The economy, which suffered a debilitating blow for obvious reasons, showed remarkable lung power to rocket back.

From tax collections to footfalls at shops, from cars on roads to construction activities, most markers mirrored signs of an economy quickly finding its feet again.

To draw an analogy from physics, a modern connected economy functions more on the lines of a complex power reactor, rather than an electric bulb. Switching a reactor one is a step-by-step process as operation. Which is why some sectors such as financial services have bounced back faster than others such as the hotels and restaurants.

Only that the disease has struck back, threatening to crush the economy's euphoric comeback, raising the worrisome prospect of pushing the country through another lockdown.

Lockdown not an option

There is a reason why a lockdown is not the first line of defence now vis-à-vis the first wave.

The first lockdown was necessary to buy time, understand the enemy and create protocols. The difficult trade-off then was between lives and livelihood, with governments across the world opting for the former. Livelihoods can still be resurrected, lives cannot, was the line of argument.

That is no longer the case.

Protocols are in place and well established. There is greater awareness among people, scientists, and governments about the disease and its characteristics.

More importantly, there is no trade-off between lives and livelihoods now. Both are equally important. Both need to be saved for the country is still nursing the deep wounds of tens of thousands of lost livelihoods.

Decentralise vaccine supplies

The principal strategy to contain the virus’ spread remains the same: test, trace and treat; social distancing and quarantine.

This will require some smartly crafted moves to save lives and prevent the economy from collapsing from a V-shaped rebound to a W-shaped crash.

One, decentralise vaccine supplies. Currently, states are dependent on the Centre and districts are reliant on the state capitals for vaccine supplies.

For instance, as of April 5, 2021 Noida in Uttar Pradesh has reported that it has only one day of supply left and unless fresh stock arrives from Lucknow the vaccination drive could get affected.

Four states—Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Odisha and Haryana—have reported that their vaccine supplies will run out in a few days.

Vaccine stocks need to be replenished on an emergency scale. A little less bureaucracy will not hurt anyone, but help immensely in scaling up the drive to get millions more inoculated.

Thrash vaccine reluctance

Two, the private sector and public sector organisations should be proactive in demolishing the vaccine hesitancy among their employees.

Many factors influence vaccine decision-making—individual and group factors, and vaccine-specific factors. As is being seen in India, there are behavioural barriers to vaccines and these are getting further entrenched by misinformation and peer pressure. Anti-vaccine content is compelling and driven by emotion.

Organisations—large and small, including shops and small establishments—can set out a timeline for getting all their eligible employees and workers vaccinated within 30-45 days. This would, if achieved, help immensely in containing the spread. Importantly, it will help save livelihoods as much as these will save lives.

Organisations understand the cost of another lockdown. It is showing up in their balance sheets. They can play a big role in avoiding a repeat.

Three, the cost for violating Covid-19 protocols, both for organisations and individuals, should be prohibitively high and strictly enforced. Community involvement—traders, shopkeepers’ and resident welfare associations (RWAs)—can play a big role in getting this moving.

The time for launching a final assault on the deadly virus is now. The vaccines can serve as the blunt instrument for this war.