Thread by @bopinion

We're perhaps weeks away from getting the first approved Covid-19 vaccine for use in the U.S.

Pfizer's and Moderna's vaccines have been shown to be effective, with no significant safety problems so far trib.al/9CfadE7

Now comes the hard part: Keeping public trust in the vaccine high.

One crucial element of this will be managing tracking and managing the reporting of vaccine side-effects trib.al/9CfadE7

💉As with any new drug, the range of adverse reactions to the vaccine — that’s unintended events linked to the medication — will only be known when a very large number of people have been vaccinated trib.al/9CfadE7

A reported adverse effect doesn’t mean a vaccine isn’t safe and may not even be related to the vaccine at all.

Most side effects appear soon after an injection and remain only for a short period, such as:

💉Injection-site pain
💤Fatigue
🤕Headache
trib.al/9CfadE7

A small percentage of people will experience side effects from any well-established vaccine, or even your typical pain relief medication.

Even so, monitoring and clear communication will be especially important with new Covid-19 vaccines trib.al/9CfadE7

Plans are being prepared to monitor them:

📲The U.S. CDC plans to send daily texts to those who are vaccinated for the first week, and weekly texts for six weeks
🔍The FDA will also be monitoring side-effects in real time trib.al/9CfadE7

Keeping track of reported side-effects can help doctors, pharmaceutical companies & regulators monitor the impact of drugs, identifying:

➡️Misuse
➡️Compromised batches
➡️Side effects that need to be disclosed, even if they don't change the safety profile trib.al/9CfadE7

New immunisation campaigns in the U.K. tend to receive one report per 1,000 shots.

But with vaccines likely to go to the oldest & most vulnerable first, there may be more than usual.

Even if they aren’t related to the vaccine, they can spook the public trib.al/9CfadE7

In a London survey last week:

➡️66% said they're likely to or will definitely get vaccinated
➡️47.5% of those that wouldn’t cited lack of trust in drug companies/government guidance

🇬🇧Nationwide, only 30% in July said they'd be certain to get the vaccine trib.al/9CfadE7

Concerns aren’t entirely irrational: If vaccines have traditionally taken up to a decade to win approval, people wonder how can we trust the safety of one produced in less than a year

One answer is that no effort, brainpower or resource was spared trib.al/9CfadE7

Nevertheless, it’s vital governments educate the public. The side-effect profiles so far seem nothing to be concerned about -- perhaps a bit harsher than a typical flu shot.

If people know what to expect, they’ll be less likely to worry or flood hotlines trib.al/9CfadE7

With vaccines expected to cover as much as a third of the population by the first part of next year, effective monitoring and total transparency will be essential if we are to defeat not just this pandemic, but the next one too trib.al/9CfadE7