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Qatar Healthcare Workers' COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy and Attitudes: A National Cross-Sectional Survey.
Front Public Health. 2021; 9:727748.FP

Abstract

Introduction: Healthcare workers are the critical frontline workforce of the COVD-19 pandemic and are considered a target group for vaccination. Hesitancy to vaccinate is a major concern that can jeopardize the vaccination programme. The hesitancy rates in the general population and healthcare workers (HCWs) vary globally, and more importantly, hesitancy in HCWs is of particular concern, as it can influence the wider population. Materials and Methods: The present study evaluated the vaccine hesitancy rate and its sociodemographic and attitudinal factors among the HCWs in the state of Qatar. We conducted a national cross-sectional survey using a validated hesitancy measurement tool between October 15 and November 15, 2020. A total of 7,821 adults above the age of 18 years out of the 2.3 million adult Qatari residents completed the survey. While majority of the participants were from the general public, 1,546 participants were HCWs. Sociodemographic data, along with attitudes and beliefs around COVID-19 vaccination, were collected from the respondents. Results: We found that 12.9% of the study participants showed vaccine hesitancy, defined as definitely or probably will not take the vaccine if offered, and 25.31% reported that they were unsure about the uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine. Female respondents were more hesitant toward the vaccine. Safety and efficacy concerns of vaccine were the significant predictors of vaccine hesitancy. The primary predictor for vaccine acceptance was a better understanding of the disease and vaccine. Discussion: Overall, 1 in 8 HCWs were reluctant to get vaccinated against COVID-19, mainly due to concerns about the vaccine's efficacy and safety. Education about the vaccine's safety and efficacy can potentially improve acceptance among healthcare workers.

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Authors+Show Affiliations

Kumar R
Department of Psychiatry, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar. College of Medicine, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar.
Alabdulla M
Department of Psychiatry, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar. College of Medicine, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar.
Elhassan NM
Department of Psychiatry, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Reagu SM
Department of Psychiatry, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar. Weill Cornell Medicine- Qatar, Doha, Qatar.

MeSH

AdolescentAdultAttitudeCOVID-19COVID-19 VaccinesCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHealth PersonnelHumansQatarSARS-CoV-2

Pub Type(s)

Journal Article

Language

eng

PubMed ID

34513792

Citation

Kumar, Rajeev, et al. "Qatar Healthcare Workers' COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy and Attitudes: a National Cross-Sectional Survey." Frontiers in Public Health, vol. 9, 2021, p. 727748.
Kumar R, Alabdulla M, Elhassan NM, et al. Qatar Healthcare Workers' COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy and Attitudes: A National Cross-Sectional Survey. Front Public Health. 2021;9:727748.
Kumar, R., Alabdulla, M., Elhassan, N. M., & Reagu, S. M. (2021). Qatar Healthcare Workers' COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy and Attitudes: A National Cross-Sectional Survey. Frontiers in Public Health, 9, 727748. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.727748
Kumar R, et al. Qatar Healthcare Workers' COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy and Attitudes: a National Cross-Sectional Survey. Front Public Health. 2021;9:727748. PubMed PMID: 34513792.
* Article titles in AMA citation format should be in sentence-case
TY - JOUR T1 - Qatar Healthcare Workers' COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy and Attitudes: A National Cross-Sectional Survey. AU - Kumar,Rajeev, AU - Alabdulla,Majid, AU - Elhassan,Nahid M, AU - Reagu,Shuja Mohd, Y1 - 2021/08/25/ PY - 2021/06/19/received PY - 2021/07/30/accepted PY - 2021/9/13/entrez PY - 2021/9/14/pubmed PY - 2021/9/16/medline KW - COVID-19 vaccine KW - VAX scale KW - efficacy KW - healthcare workers KW - hesitancy KW - safety SP - 727748 EP - 727748 JF - Frontiers in public health JO - Front Public Health VL - 9 N2 - Introduction: Healthcare workers are the critical frontline workforce of the COVD-19 pandemic and are considered a target group for vaccination. Hesitancy to vaccinate is a major concern that can jeopardize the vaccination programme. The hesitancy rates in the general population and healthcare workers (HCWs) vary globally, and more importantly, hesitancy in HCWs is of particular concern, as it can influence the wider population. Materials and Methods: The present study evaluated the vaccine hesitancy rate and its sociodemographic and attitudinal factors among the HCWs in the state of Qatar. We conducted a national cross-sectional survey using a validated hesitancy measurement tool between October 15 and November 15, 2020. A total of 7,821 adults above the age of 18 years out of the 2.3 million adult Qatari residents completed the survey. While majority of the participants were from the general public, 1,546 participants were HCWs. Sociodemographic data, along with attitudes and beliefs around COVID-19 vaccination, were collected from the respondents. Results: We found that 12.9% of the study participants showed vaccine hesitancy, defined as definitely or probably will not take the vaccine if offered, and 25.31% reported that they were unsure about the uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine. Female respondents were more hesitant toward the vaccine. Safety and efficacy concerns of vaccine were the significant predictors of vaccine hesitancy. The primary predictor for vaccine acceptance was a better understanding of the disease and vaccine. Discussion: Overall, 1 in 8 HCWs were reluctant to get vaccinated against COVID-19, mainly due to concerns about the vaccine's efficacy and safety. Education about the vaccine's safety and efficacy can potentially improve acceptance among healthcare workers. SN - 2296-2565 UR - https://www.unboundmedicine.com/medline/citation/34513792/Qatar_Healthcare_Workers'_COVID_19_Vaccine_Hesitancy_and_Attitudes:_A_National_Cross_Sectional_Survey_ DB - PRIME DP - Unbound Medicine ER -