Determinants of COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance among Dental Professionals: A Multi-Country Survey
Mohammad Zakaria Nassani,
Mohammed Noushad,
Samer Rastam,
Mudassir Hussain,
Anas B. Alsalhani,
Inas Shakeeb Al-Saqqaf,
Faisal Mehsen Alali,
Amir Mohiddin Demachkia,
Renata Marques de Melo,
Mohammed Arshad,
Norhayati Luddin,
Adam Husein,
Zeeshan Qamar,
Pradeep Koppolu,
Mahmoud Darwish,
Ahmad Salim Abdalla Nassar,
Adnan Habib,
Firas Suleyman,
H. M. Khuthija Khanam,
Salah A. Yousief,
Sadeq Ali Al-Maweri,
Nafeesa Tabassum,
Abdulaziz Samran,
Mohiddin R. Dimashkieh,
Mohammed Sadeg Al-Awar,
Bassel Tarakji
Affiliations
Mohammad Zakaria Nassani
Department of Restorative and Prosthetic Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Dar Al Uloom University, Riyadh 13313, Saudi Arabia
Mohammed Noushad
Department of Restorative and Prosthetic Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Dar Al Uloom University, Riyadh 13313, Saudi Arabia
Samer Rastam
Department of Clinical Sciences, Vision College of Medicine, Vision Colleges, Riyadh 11691, Saudi Arabia
Mudassir Hussain
Department of Community and Preventive Dentistry, Karachi Medical and Dental College, Karachi 74700, Pakistan
Anas B. Alsalhani
Department of Oral Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences, Vision College of Dentistry and Nursing, Vision Colleges, Riyadh 11691, Saudi Arabia
Inas Shakeeb Al-Saqqaf
School of Social Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, George Town 11800, Malaysia
Faisal Mehsen Alali
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Diagnostic Sciences, College of Dentistry Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj 16278, Saudi Arabia
Amir Mohiddin Demachkia
Department of Dental Materials and Prosthodontics, São Paulo State University (UNESP), São José dos Campos 01049-010, Brazil
Renata Marques de Melo
Department of Dental Materials and Prosthodontics, São Paulo State University (UNESP), São José dos Campos 01049-010, Brazil
Mohammed Arshad
Department of Public Health Dentistry, Kannur Dental College, Kannur 670612, India
Norhayati Luddin
Prosthodontic Unit, School of Dental Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia
Adam Husein
Prosthodontic Unit, School of Dental Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian 16150, Malaysia
Zeeshan Qamar
Department of OMFS and Diagnostic Sciences, Riyadh Elm University, Riyadh 13244, Saudi Arabia
Pradeep Koppolu
Department of Preventive Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Dar Al Uloom University, Riyadh 13313, Saudi Arabia
Mahmoud Darwish
Department of Prosthetic Dental Sciences, Vision College of Dentistry and Nursing, Vision Colleges, Riyadh 11691, Saudi Arabia
Ahmad Salim Abdalla Nassar
Ministry of Health, Amman 11118, Jordan
Adnan Habib
Department of Conservative Dentistry, College of Dentistry, Aleppo University, Aleppo 12212, Syria
Firas Suleyman
Department of Prosthodontics, Hamidiye Faculty of Dentistry, University of Health Sciences, Istanbul 34668, Turkey
H. M. Khuthija Khanam
Department of Restorative and Prosthetic Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Dar Al Uloom University, Riyadh 13313, Saudi Arabia
Salah A. Yousief
Department of Restorative and Prosthetic Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Dar Al Uloom University, Riyadh 13313, Saudi Arabia
Sadeq Ali Al-Maweri
College of Dental Medicine, QU Health, Qatar University, Doha P.O. Box 2713, Qatar
Nafeesa Tabassum
Department of Diagnostic Sciences, College of Dentistry, Dar Al Uloom University, Riyadh 13314, Saudi Arabia
Abdulaziz Samran
Department of Restorative and Prosthetic Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Dar Al Uloom University, Riyadh 13313, Saudi Arabia
Mohiddin R. Dimashkieh
Department of Restorative and Prosthetic Dental Sciences, College of Dentistry, Dar Al Uloom University, Riyadh 13313, Saudi Arabia
Mohammed Sadeg Al-Awar
Faculty of Applied Science, Amran University, Amran 363655, Yemen
Bassel Tarakji
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Diagnostic Sciences, College of Dentistry Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University, Al-Kharj 16278, Saudi Arabia
Purpose: This study sought to investigate the acceptance rate and associated factors of COVID-19 vaccines among dentists and dental students in seven countries. Material and Methods: A structured questionnaire prepared and guided by the report of the SAGE Working Group on Vaccine Hesitancy was distributed among groups of dentists and dental students in seven countries across four continents. Results: A total of 1527 subjects (850 dentists and 677 dental students) participated in this survey. Although 72.5% of the respondents reported their intention to accept COVID-19 vaccines (dentists: 74.4%, dental students: 70.2%), there was a significant difference in agreement between dentists/dental students across countries; generally, respondents in upper-middle-, and high-income countries (UM-HICs) showed significantly higher acceptance rates compared to those in low- and lower-middle income countries (L-LMICs). Potential predictors of higher vaccine acceptance included being a dentist, being free of comorbidity, being well-informed about COVID-19 vaccines, having better knowledge about COVID-19 complications, having anxiety about COVID-19 infection, having no concerns about the side effects of the produced vaccines and being a resident of an UM-HIC. Conclusion: The results of our survey indicate a relatively good acceptance rate of COVID-19 among the surveyed dentists and dental students. However, dentists and dental students in L-LMICs showed significantly lower vaccine acceptance rates and trust in COVID-19 vaccines compared to their counterparts in UM-HICs. Our results provide important information to policymakers, highlighting the need for implementation of country-specific vaccine promotion strategies, with special focus on L-LMICs.
