This 23-country study provides new evidence of the prevalent factors that contribute to vaccine hesitancy among healthcare providers.
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A substantial minority of healthcare providers report COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy.
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Their hesitancy may influence community perceptions negatively, especially among their patients and family members and can contribute to their refusal or delayed uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine.
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Campaigns reinforcing vaccine safety, dissemination of scientific data underpinning vaccine development, and clear, consistent, and comprehensive information and engagement supporting the equitable distribution of vaccines are all potentially useful strategies to encourage healthcare professionals who are hesitant to vaccinate.
Abstract
Background
Several early COVID-19 studies aimed to assess the potential acceptance of a vaccine among healthcare providers, but relatively few studies of this population have been published since the vaccines became widely available. Vaccine safety, speed of development, and low perceived disease risk were commonly cited as factors for COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among this group.
Purpose and methods
In a secondary analysis based on a cross-sectional, structured survey, the authors aimed to assess the associations between self-reported vaccine hesitancy and a number of sociodemographic and COVID-19 vaccine perception factors using data from 3,295 healthcare providers (physicians, nurses, community health workers, other healthcare providers) in 23 countries.
Findings
494 (15.0%) of the participants reported vaccine hesitancy, of whom 132 (4.0%) would outright refuse to accept a COVID-19 vaccine. Physicians were the least hesitant. Vaccine hesitancy was more likely to occur among those with less than the median income and, to a lesser degree, younger age. Safety and risk concerns and lack of trust that vaccines would be equitably distributed were strongly associated with hesitancy, less so were concerns about the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines.
Interpretation
Findings suggest a need to address safety and risk concerns through tailored messaging, training, and/or incentive approaches among healthcare providers, as well as the need for international and national vaccination efforts to ensure equitable distribution.