WASHINGTON — As COVID-19 vaccinations continue and accelerate across the U.S., a new rapid expert consultation from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine offers advice for decision-makers communicating to the public about vaccine efficacy, effectiveness, and equity — drawing on findings from social and behavioral science.

Effective communication can help people make vaccination decisions that are right for them and their community, and build public trust in the COVID-19 vaccination program, says the consultation.

The consultation outlines a process for producing communications content about COVID-19 vaccine efficacy and effectiveness:

1. Identify the outcomes that are most relevant to recipients’ decisions through community partnerships, such as the convenience of getting the vaccine or the benefits to society of getting vaccinated.
2. Summarize the evidence regarding those outcomes, such as the vaccine’s ability to reduce hospitalizations or prevent death, emphasizing the quality of the evidence and the institutions involved in the vaccine program.
3. Identify the most relevant subset of evidence to share with a specific audience, such as how the vaccine was tested on people like them.
4. Evaluate messages before dissemination, using techniques like think-aloud interviews, in which people from the target audience read a draft message and state how they interpret its meaning.

Communication about equity in vaccine distribution needs to be transparent, clear, timely and done in a trustworthy way for audiences, so that they are able to judge for themselves how well equity has been achieved. The lack of such communication so far has eroded trust in the distribution process among communities of color, the consultation says. Transparent decision-making, accountability, and effective messages together can help garner public trust in vaccination programs.

The rapid expert consultation, Understanding and Communicating about COVID-19 Vaccine Efficacy, Effectiveness, and Equity, is available for immediate release. 

Undertaken by the Societal Experts Action Network, the rapid expert consultation was sponsored by the National Science Foundation and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, and conducted in collaboration with the Standing Committee on Emerging Infectious Diseases and 21st Century Health Threats, which is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.

The National Academies are private, nonprofit institutions that provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions related to science, technology, and medicine. They operate under an 1863 congressional charter to the National Academy of Sciences, signed by President Lincoln.

Contact:

Megan Lowry, Media Officer
Office of News and Public Information
202-334-2138; e-mail news@nas.edu

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