Risk Management and Healthcare Policy (Jun 2021)
Risk Perception and Hesitancy Toward COVID-19 Vaccination Among Healthcare Workers and Staff at a Medical College in Nepal
Abstract
Sabita Paudel,1 Subish Palaian,2,3 Pathiyil Ravi Shankar,4 Nuwadatta Subedi5 1Department of Pharmacology, Gandaki Medical College, Pokhara, Gandaki, Nepal; 2Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Ajman University, Ajman, United Arab Emirates; 3Center of Medical and Bio-Allied Health Sciences Research, Ajman University, Ajman, United Arab Emirates; 4IMU Center for Education, International Medical University, Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; 5Department of Forensic Medicine, Gandaki Medical College, Pokhara, Gandaki, NepalCorrespondence: Sabita PaudelGandaki Medical College, Rithepani, Pokhara, Gandaki, NepalTel +977 61 538595, 550253, 534657Fax +977 61 550254Email [email protected]: The study was conducted to explore the perception of healthcare workers and staff towards the risk of COVID-19 vaccination and to study vaccine hesitancy amongst them.Methods: A total of 266 healthcare workers working in a medical college in Nepal were studied using a questionnaire consisting of three sections: demographics, experiences and perception of COVID-19, and COVID-19 vaccine safety. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS version 26. The total perception score was calculated by noting respondent’s agreement with a set of eleven statements using a Likert-type scale. Non-parametric tests (Mann–Whitney U and Kruskal–Wallis) were used for analysis (p< 0.05).Results: Altogether, 13.9% of respondents had been diagnosed COVID-19 positive prior to the survey. Many considered themselves to be at increased risk of contracting COVID-19. Only over one third (38.3%) were willing to be vaccinated. The most common reason for refusal/hesitancy was concern about vaccine safety. The median (interquartile range) total perception score was 36 (4) (maximum possible score=55). The score was significantly higher among those who had been diagnosed COVID positive, those who perceived the pandemic as being moderate or severe and among those willing to be vaccinatedConclusion: Addressing doubts related to vaccine safety and providing more data on the safety of vaccine may be helpful in overcoming hesitancy.Keywords: knowledge score, nonparametric tests, staff, questionnaire
