Identification of optimum combinations of media channels for approaching COVID-19 vaccine unsure and unwilling groups in Japan

Daisuke Yoneoka, PhD; Akifumi Eguchi, PhD; Shuhei Nomura, PhD; Takayuki Kawashima, PhD; Yuta Tanoue, PhD; Michio Murakami, PhD; Haruka Sakamoto, PhD; Keiko Maruyama-Sakurai, MPH; Stuart Gilmour, PhD; Shoi Shi, PhD; Hiroyuki Kunishima, PhD; Satoshi Kaneko, PhD; Megumi Adachi, BN; Koki Shimada, PhD; Yoshiko Yamamoto, PhD; Hiroaki Miyata, PhD

The Lancet Regional Health. Western Pacific (Jan 2022)

Identification of optimum combinations of media channels for approaching COVID-19 vaccine unsure and unwilling groups in Japan

Daisuke Yoneoka, PhD,
Akifumi Eguchi, PhD,
Shuhei Nomura, PhD,
Takayuki Kawashima, PhD,
Yuta Tanoue, PhD,
Michio Murakami, PhD,
Haruka Sakamoto, PhD,
Keiko Maruyama-Sakurai, MPH,
Stuart Gilmour, PhD,
Shoi Shi, PhD,
Hiroyuki Kunishima, PhD,
Satoshi Kaneko, PhD,
Megumi Adachi, BN,
Koki Shimada, PhD,
Yoshiko Yamamoto, PhD,
Hiroaki Miyata, PhD

Affiliations

Daisuke Yoneoka, PhD: Graduate School of Public Health, St. Luke's International University, Tokyo, Japan; Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Medicine, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan; Department of Global Health Policy, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan; Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research, Tokyo, Japan
Akifumi Eguchi, PhD: Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Medicine, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan; Department of Global Health Policy, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan; Center for Preventive Medical Sciences, Chiba University, Chiba, Japan
Shuhei Nomura, PhD: Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Medicine, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan; Department of Global Health Policy, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan; Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research, Tokyo, Japan; Corresponding author: Dr. Shuhei Nomura, PhD, Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Medicine, Keio University, 35 Shinanomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8582, Japan, Tel: +81-35363-3774
Takayuki Kawashima, PhD: Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Medicine, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan; Department of Global Health Policy, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan; Department of Mathematical and Computing Science, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo, Japan
Yuta Tanoue, PhD: Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Medicine, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan; Department of Global Health Policy, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan; Institute for Business and Finance, Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan
Michio Murakami, PhD: Department of Health Risk Communication, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Division of Scientific Information and Public Policy, Center for Infectious Disease Education and Research, Osaka University, Osaka, Japan
Haruka Sakamoto, PhD: Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Medicine, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan; Department of Global Health Policy, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan; Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research, Tokyo, Japan
Keiko Maruyama-Sakurai, MPH: Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Medicine, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan
Stuart Gilmour, PhD: Graduate School of Public Health, St. Luke's International University, Tokyo, Japan
Shoi Shi, PhD: Department of Systems Pharmacology, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan; Laboratory for Synthetic Biology, RIKEN Center for Biosystems Dynamics Research, Osaka, Japan
Hiroyuki Kunishima, PhD: Department of Infectious Diseases, St. Marianna University School of Medicine, Kanagawa, Japan
Satoshi Kaneko, PhD: Department of Ecoepidemiology, Institute of Tropical Medicine, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan
Megumi Adachi, BN: Department of Global Health Policy, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
Koki Shimada, PhD: Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Medicine, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan
Yoshiko Yamamoto, PhD: National Center for Child Health and Development, Tokyo, Japan
Hiroaki Miyata, PhD: Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Medicine, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan; Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research, Tokyo, Japan

Journal volume & issue: Vol. 18
p. 100330

Abstract

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Summary: Background: Optimizing media campaigns for those who were unsure or unwilling to take coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccines is required urgently to effectively present public health messages aimed at increasing vaccination coverage. We propose a novel framework for selecting tailor-made media channels and their combinations for this task. Methods: An online survey was conducted in Japan during February to March, 2021, with 30,053 participants. In addition to their sociodemographic characteristics, it asked the attitude toward vaccination and information sources (i.e., media channels) for COVID-19 issues. Multinomial logic regression was fitted to estimate the combinations of the media channels and their odds ratio (OR) associated with vaccination attitudes. Findings: The proportion of respondents who were unsure or unwilling to take the vaccination was skewed toward younger generation: 58.1% were aged under 35, while 28.1% were 65 years or older. Media channels such as “Non-medical and Non-TV” and “Non-medical and Non-government” were associated with the unsure group: OR (95% Confidence intervals, (CI)) = 1.75 (1.62, 1.89) and 1.53 (1.44, 1.62), respectively. In addition, media channels such as “Newspapers or the Novel Coronavirus Expert Meeting”, “Medical or Local government”, and “Non-TV” were associated with the unwilling group: OR (95% CI) were 2.00 (1.47, 2.75), 3.13 (2.58, 3.81), and 2.25 (1.84, 2.77), respectively. Interpretation: To effectively approach COVID-19 vaccine unsure and unwilling groups, generation-specific online and offline media campaigns should be optimized to the type of vaccine attitude. Funding: Funded by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of Japan (H29-Gantaisaku-ippan-009) and the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED) (JP20fk0108535).

Published in The Lancet Regional Health. Western Pacific

ISSN: 2666-6065 (Online)
Publisher: Elsevier
Country of publisher: United Kingdom
LCC subjects: Medicine: Public aspects of medicine
Website: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanwpc/home

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