Young people are using social media to share their concerns about COVID-19 vaccines. Believing that their immune systems are strong enough to fight off the virus without help, or that vaccines are not effective, young people are still the UK’s least vaccinated group.
To dispel these myths, two Muslim doctors are using social media, especially the popular TikTok, to connect with young people.
“Social media is a huge part of people’s lives, especially young people, so they are more likely to be misled,” says Amalina Bakri, an NHS surgeon.
“When I spoke to some of these people of the younger generation, and asked them why they didn’t want to be vaccinated, they replied because they had received negative messages on the Internet or WhatsApp, even TikTok, about vaccinations.”
Bakri is best known for her work on celebrity-approved pseudo-scientific health products show. Over the past nine months, he has dispelled countless myths about Covid-19 vaccines.
Bakri works with Dr. Banar Talabani, an immunologist and transplant specialist in Wales. She and 75 healthcare professionals now use TikTok and Instagram to combat misinformation about vaccines.
“Thinker. Professional twitter fanatic. Certified introvert. Troublemaker. Unapologetic zombie maven.”