NE HEALTH BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, JUNE 6
More than 95 percent of the healthcare workers were willing to get vaccinated for COVID-19, a study conducted in six countries, including India, has shown. Findings of the study were published in the reputed International Journal of Infectious Diseases in May 2021.
The study was conducted to evaluate the willingness of healthcare workers to receive the COVID-19 vaccine given hesitancy among the general population on account of expected vaccine development.
A total of 1,720 healthcare workers from six countries in the Asia-Pacific, including 472 from Vietnam, 430 from Indonesia, 406 from India, 303 from China, 61 from Singapore, and 47 from Bhutan, participated in the study that collected information on the willingness to vaccinate, perception of COVID-19, vaccine concerns, stigma, trust in health authorities, among others.
The study was perceived by Professor Vijay Sharma of the National University of Singapore, Dr. Arvind Sharma, and Dr. Kalpesh Talati from Zydus Hospital, Ahmedabad, Dr. Komalkumar RN from Yashoda Hospital, Hyderabad, and Dr. Meenakshi PV from Senthil Multi-specialty Hospital, Erode.
“More than 95% of the healthcare workers surveyed were willing to get vaccinated. These respondents were more likely to perceive the pandemic as severe, consider the vaccine safe, have less financial concerns, lower stigmatization regarding the vaccine, and have trust in health authorities,” said Dr. Arvind Sharma on the findings of the study.
Many countries, including India, began with the vaccination of healthcare workers, frontline workers, and senior citizens and subsequently opened the vaccination for the entire adult population. More than 21 crore doses have been administered in India as of Tuesday, including a large chunk of healthcare workers.
“The findings are very reassuring since more than 95% of healthcare workers were willing to take the vaccine, regardless of the geographical location, and only 3.8% of the participants expressed unwillingness. Importantly, the vaccines were perceived to be safe and effective by almost all participants,” said Dr Kalpesh Talati, physician at Zydus Hospital.
The study also indicated that those willing to get vaccinated were more likely to have children or dependents than those who were unwilling (48.3 percent versus 35.4 percent). They were also more likely to engage in regular physical activity.
Participants with a higher prevalence of physical co-morbidities such as previous heart failure and asthma were more likely to be unwilling to get vaccinated.
Perceived COVID-19 susceptibility, low potential risk of vaccine harm, and pro-socialness were the main drivers of the healthcare workers’ willingness to undergo vaccination.
“These findings can help formulate vaccination strategies in other countries,” added Dr. Vijay K Sharma.
The healthcare workers who participated in the study included physicians, nurses, allied healthcare providers, medical students, technicians, clerical staff, administrators, etc.
