As any plumber will tell you, effluent always flows downhill. It seems the same applies to the consequences of emergencies.
It seems the people at the bottom of the social hierarchy are most vulnerable to the impacts of emergencies. Shanty towns are built on flood plains because no one else wanted the land. Famines affect those who have no resources to mitigate drought, by building dams.
In my work with the Red Cross Emergency Services, I have met with hundreds of Australians affected by natural disasters such as fires, floods and storms. There is a common thread in most of the stories I encountered, being a lack of preparedness (for example no insurance) coupled to an absence of support networks when things did go wrong.
With a universal rollout of a free vaccine in centres distributed all across the country, I was hopeful of a uniform takeup rate across all areas. Here, I thought, was an opportunity for all Australian’s to protect themself from the unnecessary suffering of a nasty disease, or the equally damaging financial and mental health consequences of a prolonged lockdown.
Alas, I was wrong and it seems that vaccinations against a COVID19 are being rejected by those in our lowest socioeconomic communities, rendering them most vulnerable to future outbreaks.
According to the Vaccination Rates by Local Government Areas released this week, the top 3 suburbs in Perth with more than 74% of residents who have received at least one vaccine dose were Nedlands, Cottesloe and Claremont. The bottom 3 with just over 40% were Serpentine-Jarahdale, Swan and Gosnells.
So why is nearly a 75% variance in the takeup in the most affluent vs least affluent areas?
Perhaps it could be put down in part to education, vaccine hesitancy has been found to be closely correlated with educational outcomes. This could be connected to a lack of scientific literacy. Another driver could be trusted in the government.
In order to beat this pandemic back, we must work harder to understand why some communities are slower than others to take up the opportunity presented by a miraculous vaccine and take the steps we need to build more trust.
Flattening social hierarchies is not an option (the great Leninist Experiment confirms this), so we must look to how we can innoculate those at the bottom of the ladder, from unnecessary suffering.