90% Indian parents against sending unvaccinated kids to school: Survey

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As plans to roll out Covid-19 vaccines for children seem to gain momentum, a survey conducted by parenting brand Rabitat shows that 9 out of 10 parents are eager to give their children the vaccine as soon as it is available.

The poll surveyed parents' opinions regarding the vaccination for their kids and to assess whether parents would consider sending their children to school without getting vaccinated.

The result was mostly in favour of vaccination with just 1 in 10 parents not wanting to vaccinate their children. Even though it's a low number, it still poses a threat as children with mild infections of Covid-19 or asymptomatic can act as carriers and spread the virus further.

From the sample size of 300 parents, Rabitat found that 1.2 per cent of the parents didn't consider vaccinations for children to be important, 5.6 per cent were unsure and 93.2 per cent considered them very important. Of all parents interviewed, 64.3 per cent of the parents has been vaccinated themselves. The top reasons for the rest not being vaccinated were: Recovery from Covid-19 and waiting for the recommended 60-90 day period before taking the vaccination; pregnancy and breastfeeding; and the lack of availability of vaccines in their area and the unavailability of slots.

On asking if they have any preference of vaccine brand/company, 57.4 per cent preferred Covishield, 22.2 per cent vouched for Covaxin, 14.8 per cent for Sputnik and 5.6 per cent didn't prefer any of the three. When asked if they are keen on getting their kids vaccinated when the vaccine is out, 89.5 per cent of the parents want their kids to get vaccinated, 8.9 per cent of parents are unsure and 1.6 per cent don't want it.

The most concerning topic regarding children is the reopening of schools and as vaccinations would play a major role in keeping the kids safe, the survey asked if they would send their kids to school without getting them vaccinated. 89.7 per cent of the parents did not want to send their kids to school without getting vaccinated while 10.3 per cent said they are comfortable sending them even without vaccinations.