COVID-19 vaccine acceptance: knowledge and beliefs

Abdullah Alkattan; Nashwa Radwan; Nagla Mahmoud; Ahmed Alkhalifah; Ammar Alshamlan; Abdullah Alkamis; Amal Alfaifi; Wedad Alanazi; Amjad Alfaleh; Alhan Haji; Khaled Alabdulkareem

doi:10.1186/s42269-022-00949-z

COVID-19 vaccine acceptance: knowledge and beliefs

Bull Natl Res Cent. 2022;46(1):260. doi: 10.1186/s42269-022-00949-z. Epub 2022 Oct 24.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Research Department, General Directorate of School Health, Ministry of Health, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
² Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Tanta University, Tanta, Egypt.
³ Department of Research, Assisting Deputyship for Primary Health Care, Ministry of Health, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
⁴ Department of Sales, Fresenius Kabi, Alhaya Medical Company, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
⁵ Department of Pharmacy, Specialized Comprehensive Polyclinics for the Security Forces, Alahsa, Saudi Arabia.
⁶ In-Patient Pharmacy Care Department, Prince Sultan Hospital, Melija, Saudi Arabia.
⁷ Department of Family Medicine, College of Medicine, Al-Imam Mohammad Bin Saud Islamic University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

Backgrounds: Vaccine acceptance varies across countries, generations, and the perceived personality of individuals. Investigating the knowledge, beliefs, and acceptability of COVID-19 vaccines among individuals is vital to ensuring adequate health system capacity and procedures and promoting the uptake of the vaccines.

Results: A cross-sectional study was conducted from August 2021 to January 2022 in Saudi Arabia. The study included 281 residents to estimate their acceptance to receive COVID-19 vaccination. Around 70% of the included participants had a moderate to high COVID-19 vaccine acceptance rate during the data collection period. The risk increases to about two folds among undergraduates [OR 1.846 (1.034-3.296), p value = 0.036)] and increases to four folds among non-employed [OR 3.944 (2.310-6.737), p value = 0.001]. About 78% of participants with high and 44% with low COVID-19 vaccine acceptance (p value = 0.001) believed the vaccines were safe and effective. The belief that COVID-19 disease will be controlled within two years increased the risk for low vaccine acceptance by about two folds [OR 1.730 (1.035-2.891), p value = 0.035]. Good knowledge about COVID-19 vaccination significantly affected the acceptance rate (p value = 0.001).

Conclusions: Several factors affect the intention of individuals to receive vaccines. Therefore, building good knowledge and health literacy through educational intervention programs, especially vaccine safety and effectiveness, is important for successful vaccination campaigns among the general population and ensuring control of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Keywords: Acceptability; Beliefs; COVID-19; Knowledge; Vaccine.