KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND BEHAVIOUR TOWARDS RECOMMENDED VACCINES AMONG MEDICAL STUDENTS IN MULTAN, PAKISTAN

Abstract

Intro: To evaluate the knowledge, attitude and behavior of medical students towards recommended vaccines. Methods: A cross sectional study was done, where 3000 students from medical colleges of Multan were included by convenience sampling. They filled a well developed, pretested questionnaire through Google forms and the results were analyzed by the Google forms itself. Findings: Mostly (69%) think they have adequate knowledge related to vaccination and that vaccines are effective for prevention (93%) of diseases. Almost 82% were of the opinion that vaccines are safe. Mostly (83%) believe that benefits of vaccines are greater. Majority (86%) think the unvaccinated people are at risk. Only 25% said they trust the information regarding vaccines acquired from society. Most (91%) think that one should get vaccinated according to the recommended vaccination plan and even 86% said one should get vaccinated even if it is not free. Some (59%) said the route of administration matters. Majority (68%) think there should be an aggressive law enforcement action to get vaccinated. Almost all of them (93%) think that medical students should persuade others for vaccination and 83% of them agreed that they'd consider to take part in any campaign/ program for vaccination. Conclusion: It has been found that medical students from all years have sufficient knowledge related to vaccination and show a positive attitude towards vaccination. Medical students can be used as a means for spreading awareness regarding infectious diseases and their prevention. We recommend medical institutes conduct workshops and introduce programs that can help to educate students on infectious diseases and vaccination.