COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy: What Have We Learnt? - A Cross-Sectional Survey Among Adults in Tamil Nadu, India

Abstract

Aim: Today, vaccine hesitancy is one of the top 10 global health threats, which hinders adequate immunization coverage and herd immunity. The most recent global event that has led to a surge in vaccine hesitancy is the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 vaccines have been studied extensively, but a sizable number of people continue to have misgivings towards COVID-19 vaccines. Materials and Methods: We performed a cross-sectional survey among adults across Tamil Nadu, India, to measure the frequency of vaccine hesitancy and to understand the factors contributing to it. Results: In our study population (n=1622), 49% were unwilling to get vaccinated. Hesitancy was higher among males when compared to females (54% vs. 41%) and among the older population when compared to the younger population (58% vs. 43%). The most preferred information sources regarding COVID-19 vaccines were television (38%), social media (25%), and newspapers (16%). Among the various social media platforms, WhatsApp was the most popular (33%), and Twitter was the least popular (2%). Half the population (52%) felt that herbal supplements were sufficient to provide immunity against COVID-19. The most common reason for hesitancy towards COVID-19 vaccination was the perception that the vaccine was not safe enough (52%). Conclusion: Our study shows that even after sufficient time had passed since the start of the pandemic, vaccine hesitancy in a progressive state such as Tamil Nadu was disturbingly high. This warrants the need for more efforts to educate the public about the necessity of vaccines.

Keywords

• covid-19 vaccines
• adults
• willingness
• source of information
• hesitancy