Objectives: A legally regulated program of mandatory vaccinations is in place in Poland. The number of vaccination refusals increased from 3437 to 48 609 in 2010-2019. The aim of the study was to determine the association of various socio-demographic factors with the attitudes of the residents of Poland to prophylactic vaccination.
Material and methods: The study was based on a secondary statistical analysis of a representative sample of 977 adult residents of Poland (a cross-sectional questionnaire-based study). Data was purchased from the Public Opinion Research Center.
Results: The study group was characterized by a high level of acceptance of vaccinations. At the same time, nearly a third (31%) of the subjects agreed with the statement that vaccination is promoted mainly because this is in the interests of pharmaceutical companies, and more than a fifth (22%) of the respondents believed that vaccines for children can cause serious developmental disorders, including autism. A detailed multivariate analysis based on logistic regression revealed that being deeply religious (compared to being a non-believer) and living in a town with a population of 20 000-499 999 (compared to living in a rural area) were strongly associated with a very high acceptance of the anti-vaccination content. The opposite attitude was associated with having an average or good financial situation (compared to a poor financial situation), having completed vocational education (compared to primary education) and being ≥65 years old (as opposed to being <30 years old).
Conclusions: Most socio-economic factors analyzed did not influence the respondents' attitudes to prophylactic vaccination or showed little influence. Strong anti-vaccination beliefs were associated with being deeply religious and living in a town with a medium-size or small population. Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2021;34(1):121-32.
Keywords: Poland; anti-vaccination movements; primary prevention; vaccination; vaccination schedule; vaccine.
This work is available in Open Access model and licensed under a CC BY-NC 3.0 PL license.