COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy and Attitude toward Booster Doses among US Healthcare Workers

Abstract

Vaccine reluctance among healthcare workers (HCW) can have widespread negative ramifications, including modeling behavior for the general population and challenges with maintaining a healthy workforce so we can respond to a resurgence of the pandemic. We previously reported that only one-third of HCW were willing to take the vaccine as soon as it became available prior to its Emergency Use Authorization (EUA). Here, we re-examine the attitude toward COVID-19 vaccines among HCW several months after the vaccines have been made widely available. In this study, only 7.9% (n = 107) of respondents were hesitant to take the first or second dose of the vaccine. Younger age (18–40 years) and lower level of education attainment (GED or less) were associated with higher vaccine hesitancy, whereas self-identified Asian racial identity was associated with greater acceptance of COVID-19 vaccination. Among the vaccine-hesitant group, more respondents noted mistrust of regulatory authorities (45.3%), government (48.6%), and pharmaceutical companies (50%) than mistrust of doctors (25.4%). Nearly two-thirds of respondents were concerned that vaccination may be ineffective against new strains and booster doses may be required; however, vaccine-hesitant respondents’ acceptance of a hypothetical booster dose was only 14.3%. Overall, vaccine hesitancy was observed to have demographic predictors similar to those previously reported; the hesitancy of some US HCW to receive booster doses may reflect a general hesitancy to receive other forms of vaccination.

Intention to Receive the COVID-19 Vaccine Booster Dose in a University Community in Italy

“…The association with the gender is in accordance with previous studies across different countries [10,[31][32][33] and may be explained by the fact that the spread of the COVID-19 in Italy has affected females slightly more than males, although the mortality rate was higher for males. Moreover, those older were more likely to accept the booster, which is consistent with prior studies on this vaccination [10,12,34]. This finding is not surprising and it may be because of the fact that older people are at higher risk of severe disease from infection of COVID-19.…”

“…A notable finding was that the hesitancy towards the booster dose was low among the responders since 24.7% of the sample were classified as hesitant with a total VHS score ≥25. Other surveys have found varying proportions of participants willing to receive the booster dose with values of 55.3% among HCWs in Saudi Arabia [13], 61.8% in adult Americans [14], 71% among adults in Poland [10], 71.3% among HCWs in Czechia [15], 83.6% a hypothetical yearly booster vaccine among healthcare workers in the United States [12], 84.5% among medical students in Japan [11], and 91.1% in the general population in China [16]. In the present study interviewees highlighted that the most common reasons in vaccine-related decision-making were because they would protect themselves and their relatives.…”

“…Hesitancy and willingness in relation to the COVID-19 vaccination have been investigated in different groups worldwide with a number of individuals who would either be unwilling to receive it or refuse it altogether despite the severity of the disease [8,9]. However, little is known yet about the intention to receive the booster dose [10][11][12][13][14][15][16]. In this current scenario, this is a challenging issue.…”

Acceptance of a Third Dose of COVID-19 Vaccine and Associated Factors in China Based on Health Belief Model: A National Cross-Sectional Study

“…Acceptance of the third dose of COVID-19 vaccine varied among different countries. For healthcare workers in the United States, the overall acceptance rate for a booster vaccination was 83.6% [13]. In addition, it was high (71.3%) among healthcare workers in Czechia, while 12.2% remained undecided and 16.6% opposed [14].…”

“…Sugawara et al revealed in 2021 that 89.1% of Japanese medical students were positive about a booster vaccination [16]. The main reasons against receiving included side effects after previous doses, a perception that further vaccination was not necessary, and the distrust of regulatory agencies (45.3%), government (48.6%) and drug companies (50%) [13,15].…”