Health Care Professionals' Interest in Vaccination Training in Switzerland: A Quantitative Survey

Pia Lucas Ramanathan; Nadja Baldesberger; Léna G Dietrich; Camilla Speranza; Alyssa Lüthy; Andrea Buhl; Martina Gisin; Roswitha Koch; Dunja Nicca; L Suzanne Suggs; Benedikt M Huber; Michael J Deml; Philip E Tarr

doi:10.3389/ijph.2022.1604495

Health Care Professionals' Interest in Vaccination Training in Switzerland: A Quantitative Survey

Int J Public Health. 2022 Nov 30:67:1604495. doi: 10.3389/ijph.2022.1604495. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Pia Lucas Ramanathan^{1

2

3}, Nadja Baldesberger^{1

2

3}, Léna G Dietrich^{1

2}, Camilla Speranza⁴, Alyssa Lüthy^{1

2}, Andrea Buhl^{2

5}, Martina Gisin⁶, Roswitha Koch⁷, Dunja Nicca⁸, L Suzanne Suggs^{4

9}, Benedikt M Huber^{10

11}, Michael J Deml¹², Philip E Tarr^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ University Department of Medicine and Infectious Diseases Service, Kantonsspital Baselland, Bruderholz, Switzerland.
² University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
³ Pharmaceutical Care Research Group, Basel, Switzerland.
⁴ Institute of Public Health, and Institute of Communication and Public Policy, Università della Svizzera italiana, Lugano, Switzerland.
⁵ Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH), Basel, Switzerland.
⁶ Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospital of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
⁷ Swiss Nurses Association, Bern, Switzerland.
⁸ Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Prevention Institute, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
⁹ Swiss School of Public Health, Zurich, Switzerland.
¹⁰ Center for Integrative Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, Fribourg Hospital HFR, Fribourg, Switzerland.
¹¹ Faculty of Science and Medicine, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland.
¹² Institute of Sociological Research, Department of Sociology, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.

Abstract

Objectives: Health care professionals (HCPs) play an important role for patients' vaccination decisions. To counsel patients/clients appropriately, HCPs need current factual knowledge about vaccines and strong communication skills. Methods: We conducted an online survey with physicians, pharmacists, nurses, and midwives in Switzerland (01.11.2020-31.03.2021). We evaluated: 1) interest in vaccination knowledge and counseling training; 2) vaccination recommendation practices; 3) experience with vaccination counseling/administration; 4) comfort level in addressing vaccine hesitancy (VH); 5) perspectives on patient/client VH, delays, and refusals. Results: In total, 1,933 practicing HCPs responded (496 physicians, 226 pharmacists, 607 nurses, 604 midwives). 43% physicians, 31% pharmacists, 15% nurses, and 23% midwives felt comfortable counseling VH patients/clients. 96% physicians, 98% pharmacists, 85% nurses, and 91% midwives were interested in additional vaccination-related training. All professionals mentioned safety, efficacy, and side effects as topics of most interest for additional training. Conclusion: Results demonstrate a high interest among HCPs for additional vaccination-related training. In addition to factual information about vaccination, such training will likely benefit from a communication component, given the low rates of comfort reported by HCPs when counseling VH patients/clients.

Keywords: communication; healthcare professional; medical training; vaccine hesitancy; vaccine knowledge.

MeSH terms

Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice*
Health Personnel / psychology
Humans
Surveys and Questionnaires
Switzerland
Vaccination*