Table 1.

Themes identified in the data

Main theme	Sub-theme
Uncertainty	Uncertainty about COVID-19 diagnoses
	Outcomes of COVID-19 and vaccines
	Safety and efficacy of vaccines against COVID-19
Fear	Conspiracy theories and rumours about vaccines
	Fear of outcomes of vaccines
	Things will not go back to ‘normal’ without mandatory vaccination
Lack of control	Not being able to control others’ health behaviour
	Not wanting to be controlled by others
	Resignation towards mandatory vaccine policies
Lack of trust	Lack of trust in the government’s intentions
	Lack of trust in healthcare services
	Lack of trust in the government’s vaccine-related messaging
	Personal examples as more trustworthy sources of messaging