Vaccine Uptake in the Caribbean: Structural and Psychosocial Considerations

According to the World Health Organization (2020), “while evidence on promoting vaccination in general is useful…the acceptance and uptake of COVID-19 vaccines present an unprecedented challenge” (p. 2). Aggregated global data therefore show that even though 66% of the world’s population received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine by early 2022, there were lower rates of uptake, when disaggregated, for African and Caribbean countries. Local and regional media reports also point to many psychosocial concerns related to the pandemic and to the central use of vaccines as a response. These observations both strengthen the need to contextualize the nature of these disparities and to assess the relevance of public health policies and related intervention strategies. The chapter situates some of the structural and behavioural aspects of vaccine uptake within the Caribbean, with an examination of the challenges related to cooperation, cognition, and affect. Implications for public policy responses related to health crises are also discussed.