Hong Kong vaccines: information overload, lack of context provoking ‘unnecessary’ fears of Sinovac jabs, experts say

While the city’s guidelines for reporting potential adverse reactions to Covid-19 vaccines are quite broad, officials have not done enough to supplement their briefings with the proper background, according to experts

For instance, if the public were better informed about the normal incidence rates of various ailments, ‘people would be mentally prepared’ when potential reactions are reported

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A health care worker prepares a dose of China's Sinovac Covid-19 vaccine. Photo: Reuters

Published: 10:00am, 11 Mar 2021Updated: 4:08pm, 11 Mar 2021

Hongkongers’ fears over the safety of Sinovac Covid-19 vaccines – exacerbated by recent medical emergencies involving people who received the shots – are an “unnecessary” side effect of broad reporting guidelines and a failure by authorities to put the events in the proper context, health experts have said.

The city has experienced an apparent plunge in public confidence in the Chinese-made Sinovac vaccine since the first death of a recent recipient of the jab was revealed last week. Reports of two more deaths and three other people requiring intensive care after receiving the shots surfaced in the past week.

Despite the repeated insistence of experts that the medications are safe and the inoculation scheme should carry on, the number of people turning up for their appointments at community vaccination centres has continued to fall, from 89 per cent on Saturday to 64 per cent on Tuesday, suggesting a drop in public trust.

The early take-up rate for the BioNTech vaccine – first made available on Wednesday – was 91 per cent, with 5,900 people receiving the shot.

The sentiment, according to respiratory medicine specialist Dr Leung Chi-chiu, was partly a “misunderstanding” born out of an unusual surfeit of information regarding adverse events following Covid-19 vaccinations.