Vaccine hesitancy in healthcare professionals and health sciences students of the last courses

Abstract

Objective

To evaluate the vaccination hesitancy of health professionals and students in the last courses of the medical and nursing degrees.

Material and method

Cross-sectional study in which the data of the students of the last courses of the main universities of Lleida and Barcelona and of the doctors and nurses teaching staff of them have been collected. The collection was done through a previously validated questionnaire about their opinions regarding different aspects of the vaccines and the fact of having delayed or refused the administration of a vaccine. The dependent variable was vaccine hesitancy and its association with the main independent variables was determined with the odds ratio (OR) and its 95% confidence interval (CI). The ORs were adjusted using logistic regression models.

Results

A 33% of vaccine hesitancy has been found among health professionals and students in the last courses, with 12% of people who have refused the administration of any vaccine. It is higher in women and nurses. The main rejected vaccines have been, in order, flu, COVID, and HPV and the main reasons, not believing them necessary, safe or effective.

Conclusions

Up to a third of health professionals or students have vaccine hesitancy, especially nursing staff, the main collective in charge of administering vaccines who, according to other studies, have more relevance in population vaccination hesitancy.