WHO engaged 40 female community leaders in North Macedonia to help persuade people to get vaccinated against COVID-19, in 8 rural areas where vaccination rates are among the lowest in the country. Many communities in the country remain unvaccinated against the disease, leaving thousands still vulnerable to any surge in infections this autumn and winter.
“We have learned that successfully fighting the coronavirus largely depends on the extent to which people are willing to apply preventive measures, including getting vaccinated against COVID-19,” said Dr Anne Johansen, WHO Special Representative in North Macedonia. “As trusted messengers, these community leaders let people know what the COVID-19 vaccine does, that it is safe and why it is so important for them and their communities.”
This initiative was implemented in partnership with the local nongovernmental organization “Association for sustainable development – BIOM”, with support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) North Macedonia.
Providing knowledge and skills
At the beginning of the initiative, the community leaders learned about the importance of COVID-19 and routine immunization, as well as proven methods for communicating to their community members to help them understand the benefits of the vaccine programme. This enabled them to share accurate, science-based information on COVID-19, to help individuals make informed decisions about their own health.
Antonija Todorovska is one of these community leaders. She is a law student who lives in the small village of Petrovec near the capital, Skopje, and she highlighted how she uses social media to boost vaccine confidence among her peers.
“I received a lot of information and top-notch scientific knowledge at the training,” said Antonija. “I share this information through social media, as this is the best way I can reach my friends and influence them to get vaccinated – so that we can see an end to the COVID-19 pandemic.”
In the same village, Dushka Zelenikovska, a retiree, also spreads reliable information among her peers and relations to help overcome their hesitancy towards getting vaccinated.
“Even though we were isolated for a long time, since our age group was one of the most affected by the pandemic, I shared everything I read on the websites of institutions or the advice given by my doctor with my neighbours and friends who were hesitant about the vaccine,” said Dushka. “I even managed to convince my daughter, who was sceptical about it, as well as the people close to her, that we can protect ourselves only if we get vaccinated and if we comply with recommendations given by the competent institutions.”
Materials to address misinformation
To help address circulating misinformation on the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines, the leaders found out common questions and prevailing narratives among their communities. Based on these insights, tailor-made flyers were produced to help answer all questions, debunk rumours and address vaccine safety concerns.
Rinora Asani, an assistant to the mayor in the Municipality of Bogovinje, noted that due to the nature of her job, she is in constant contact with people of different age groups and backgrounds and she listens to many of their concerns.
“After I’d had my jab and experienced no adverse side effects whatsoever, I tried to influence the sceptics around me by sharing my personal experience with them. I told them to go to the vaccination centres in our municipality to get vaccinated,” Rinora added.
Community forums
The women community leaders joined forces with trusted health-care workers from their communities to share more in-depth information at community forum events.
While the community leaders spoke about their personal positive experiences and explained their motivations for getting vaccinated against COVID-19, local doctors encouraged community members to get vaccinated to protect themselves. Mirijeta Sinani, a primary school teacher from the village of Selce in Bogovinje, experienced the negative effects of the virus first-hand.
“A family member was asymptomatic, and we all caught the disease from him. We went through it with different symptoms, but this experience turned out to be very traumatic for us as we couldn’t help each other; we were all staying in one house, isolated in our rooms. We all got vaccinated as soon as vaccines arrived,” she said.
Combining the medical knowledge of health-care workers and the women’s personal experiences has proven to be an excellent approach to help people make decisions about getting the vaccine.
“Leveraging the support of trusted doctors and community leaders has been crucial for successfully hosting these forums where people had an opportunity to ask questions and receive reliable, evidence-based information on COVID-19 vaccination,” said Zurija Memedova, President of BIOM.
A community with a high COVID-19 vaccination rate is a better protected, better prepared and safer community. WHO in North Macedonia will continue to support health authorities to increase vaccine coverage, especially for those most at risk from COVID-19.