Vaccines (Jul 2023)
Parents’ Attitudes towards Vaccinations Regarding the Ukrainian Migration to Poland in 2022
Abstract
Background: Russia’s aggression against Ukraine in early 2022 resulted in a large migration of refugees to many countries, including Poland. Vaccination coverage for some infectious diseases in Ukraine is lower than in Poland; consequently, the incidence of infectious diseases—including measles, poliomyelitis, tuberculosis, and COVID-19—is higher. We aimed to investigate whether the migration of Ukrainians had influenced decisions of Polish parents on having their children vaccinated and to examine their attitudes towards vaccinations. Material and methods: A cross-sectional online survey study was designed. Data on parents’ demographics, attitudes toward vaccination, and knowledge of the current epidemiological situation in Poland were collected. Parents participating in the study were divided into two subgroups for further analysis according to their decisions to have their children vaccinated. Results: A total of 568 questionnaires were collected, of which 21 did not meet the inclusion criteria for the analysis (respondents were not parents). The Ukrainian immigrants’ influx affected 54 (9.87%) participants in their decision of having their children vaccinated. Respondents in this group were more likely to have a positive attitude toward recommended vaccinations (p = 0.0428); in addition, they more often had their children vaccinated with recommended vaccinations (p = 0.0063), believed the vaccination coverage with mandatory vaccinations was higher in Poland than in Ukraine (p = 0.0014), and believed the incidence of diseases covered by mandatory (p = 0.0472) and recommended (p = 0.0097) vaccinations was higher in Ukraine. In addition, parents who declared that the migration had affected their decision regarding their children’s vaccinations had more often been vaccinated due to the influx of Ukrainian immigrants (p p = 0.0021). Moreover, the survey more often made these participants think about getting additional vaccinations for themselves (p p Conclusions: The Ukrainian immigrants’ influx affected nearly one tenth of surveyed parents in their decision of having their children vaccinated. This group was more aware of the differences between infectious diseases’ epidemiology in Poland and Ukraine. In addition, they also had a more positive attitude toward vaccinations.
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