THE misconception that the Covid-19 vaccines are dangerous to children is the main reason for the low inoculation rate in Kelantan and Terengganu, health experts said.

Parents who spoke to The Malaysian Insight said they are hesitant to vaccinate their children because of the perceived dangers and the low risk of infection and death.

Dr Harmy Mohamed Yusoff, dean of the faculty of medicine at University Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA), said parents are afraid of adverse events.

“The parents feel that Covid-19 has not impacted children much, so they refuse to vaccinate for fear of the side effects,” Harmy said.

“The fact that the vaccines for children werre manufactured later also adds to their fear that there is something wrong with the vaccines when in fact we have always vaccinated adults before children.

“So it all comes down to misconception; they are worried about side effects of the vaccine while thinking that Covid-19 doesn’t have a big impact on children.”

The CovidNow website shows that less than 10% of children in Kelantan and Terengganu are vaccinated under the National Immunisation Programme for Children (PICKids).

In Kelantan, only 7.3% of children between the ages of five and 11 have had the shots. In Terengganu, the rate is 9.9%.

Nationally, 33.3% of children in the age group are fully vaccinated.

Harmy said the figures are not surprising as the take-up among adults was also slow in the two states when the jabs were rolled out last year.

Until August 2021, only 64.% of the adult population in Kelantan and 79% in Terengganu were dosed.

“Available data show that infections and deaths among children are low; what we should be worried about are high-risk children.

“Children are at risk of multi-system inflammatory syndrome, which can affect their heart, lung and brain, if they are exposed to Covid-19.

“While the percentage of children who suffer from Covid-19 complications is low, it is still worrying. Health experts see the vaccine as a means of prevention, especially now when we may be facing a new wave of infections,” he said.

Harmy said the government needs to pay attention to the inoculation of children to face a new wave of Covid-19.

It also needs to improve the way it explains the vaccine to the public, Harmy said.

“Communication is one of the main reasons why the parents are hesitant to allow their children to take the vaccine.

“If we look at the campaign promoting the vaccine among children, it is limited. There are also limited studies involving children.”

Kelantan Amanah chief Dr Hafidzah Mustakim also said it was no surprise that the vaccination rates for children in the Kelatan and Terengganu are low.

“A study from 2013 to 2016 showed that vaccine hesitancy is highest in the two states.

“According to the study, parents refuse the vaccines because they don’t know if they are halal and they fear side effects.

“Some of them feel that natural remedies to prevent diseases are better,” she said.

Hafidzah said parents are concerned about the safety of the vaccines even with studies showing otherwise.

This is made worse by the spread of fake or wrong information, she said.

There is still a subset of the population who believe the shots are unsafe, she added.

“They get similar information but they way they understand it is different.” – June 30, 2022.