Infectious Disease

15% of healthcare workers were hesitant to get a COVID-19 vaccine, according to the survey

December 16, 2021

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According to survey results published in the American Journal of Infection Control, about three in 20 healthcare workers reported hesitant vaccination during the initial launch of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.

In addition, 99% of doctors reported getting vaccinated compared to 82% of nurses.

Toth-Manikowski SM et al. Am J Infect Control. 2021; doi: 10.1016 / j.ajic.2021.10.004.

The fact that “nurses are more hesitant to vaccinate than doctors may be related to the fact that there is less emphasis on evaluating and interpreting research studies during nursing than in medical school and that nurses have fewer opportunities to do more comprehensive Participate in analyzes of research articles on COVID-19 ”. Effectiveness and safety of the vaccine compared to doctors “, Gina Piscitello, MD, an assistant professor of internal medicine at Rush Medical College, said Healio Primary Care.

“These factors likely contribute to some nurses and other health care workers believing that there is insufficient evidence of the effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine in patients,” she continued.

For the cross-sectional study, Piscitello and colleagues electronically surveyed 1,974 healthcare workers from the University of Illinois at Chicago, Rush University Medical Center, and attorney Aurora Health. The survey was conducted between March and May during the Pfizer vaccine launch. The respondents provided information about their demographics; perceived vulnerability, severity, barriers, and benefits of COVID-19 vaccination; and factors that would influence their decision to get vaccinated.

According to Piscitello and colleagues, a total of 15% of respondents rejected the vaccine or expected it to be rejected. About 47% of those who were vaccinated or who wanted to be vaccinated said they had a family member with a chronic condition, compared with 40.1% of those who were against the vaccine (P <0.001).

Vaccinated respondents were more likely to believe that vaccination would reduce the spread of SARS-CoV-2 (OR = 41.59; 95% CI, 29.91-57.85) and reduce the likelihood of self-infection (OR = 28.22; 95% CI, 20.69.). -38.48), their patients (OR = 22.45; 95% CI 16.50-30.56) and their family members (OR = 27.19; 95% CI 19.97-37.03) in Compared to unvaccinated respondents. Vaccinated respondents were also more likely to be persuaded to vaccinate on the basis of external stimuli, such as z -6.51), friends and family (OR = 18.83; 95% CI 13.94-25.59), colleagues (OR = 8 , 24; 95% CI, 6.29-10.79) or supervisors (OR = 5.52; 95% CI, 4.25-7.18).

Unvaccinated respondents were 93% more likely to believe that there was insufficient evidence for the COVID-19 vaccine (OR = 0.07; 95% CI, 0.05-0.09), which the researchers said given the professions of the Respondents described as “surprising”. Piscitello and colleagues also found that workers who did not receive the vaccine were more likely to be younger, non-doctors, black, or had concerns about adverse events affecting their own body or a fetus or newborn baby.

“Better training health care workers to evaluate research studies and improving opportunities for open and safe discussion of COVID-19 vaccine data can reduce vaccine delay among these groups,” Piscitello said.

Researchers advised hospitals to “work in-house to foster relationships and confidence building among employees across departments and positions, especially among nurses and doctors who continue to be highly trusted in their communities” instead of focusing on media work.

References:

New study looks at vaccination reluctance among healthcare workers. https://today.uic.edu/new-study-looks-at-vaccine-hesitancy-among-workers-in-health-care. Published December 6, 2021. Accessed December 10, 2021.

Toth-Manikowski SM et al. Am J Infect Control. 2021; doi: 10.1016 / j.ajic.2021.10.004.

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