Factors associated with 2009 pandemic influenza A (H1N1) vaccination acceptance among university students from India during the post-pandemic phase

Abstract

BackgroundThere was a low adherence to influenza A (H1N1) vaccination program among university students and health care workers during the pandemic influenza in many parts of the world. Vaccination of high risk individuals is one of the recommendations of World Health Organization during the post-pandemic period. It is not documented about the student's knowledge, attitude and willingness to accept H1N1 vaccination during the post-pandemic period. We aimed to analyze the student's knowledge, attitude and willingness to accept H1N1 vaccination during the post-pandemic period in India.MethodsVaccine against H1N1 was made available to the students of Vellore Institute of Technology, India from September 2010. The data are based on a cross-sectional study conducted during October 2010 to January 2011 using a self-administered questionnaire with a representative sample of the student population (N = 802).ResultsOf the 802 respondents, only 102/802 (12.7%) had been vaccinated and 105/802 (13%) planned to do so in the future, while 595/802 (74%) would probably or definitely not get vaccinated in the future. The highest coverage was among the female (65/102, 63.7%) and non-compliance was higher among men in the group (384/595; 64.5%) (p < 0.0001). The representation of students from school of Bio-sciences and Bio-technology among vaccinees is significantly higher than that of other schools. Majority of the study population from the three groups perceived vaccine against H1N1 as the effective preventive measure when compared to other preventive measures. 250/595 (42%) of the responders argued of not being in the risk group. The risk perception was significantly higher among female (p < 0.0001). With in the study group, 453/802 (56.4%) said that they got the information, mostly from media.ConclusionsOur study shows that the vaccination coverage among university students remains very low in the post-pandemic period and doubts about the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine are key elements in their rejection. Our results indicate a need to provide accessible information about the vaccine safety by scientific authorities and fill gaps and confusions in this regard.

Pandemic influenza A/H1N1 vaccination coverage, adverse reactions, and reasons for vaccine refusal among medical students in Brazil

“…Nevertheless, fear of adverse reactions was a significant barrier to the acceptance of the vaccine among our students. In studies conducted among university students 19,32 and health-care workers in other countries 1,3,10,34,35 , fear of adverse reactions was also one of the most common reasons for non-acceptance of the influenza A/H1N1 vaccine, and other reasons identified in these studies for non-acceptance of the vaccine were, in general, similar to the reasons reported by our group.…”

“…In contrast, pandemic influenza A/H1N1 vaccination coverage in our group was higher than that reported by studies conducted in 2009/2010 among university students in other countries 19,31,32 . In Athens, Greece, only 8% of 922 medical students had been vaccinated against pandemic influenza A/H1N1 by December 2009, and 67% of them reported that they would definitely or probably not accept the vaccine 19 .…”

“…In our group, female students were more likely to have received the vaccine, but we did not evaluate other factors that could confound this association. In India, pandemic influenza A/H1N1 vaccination coverage was also higher among female university students 32 . In contrast, among health-care workers in Italy, women had a higher risk of not being vaccinated 2 .…”

“…In Athens, Greece, only 8% of 922 medical students had been vaccinated against pandemic influenza A/H1N1 by December 2009, and 67% of them reported that they would definitely or probably not accept the vaccine 19 . At a university in Texas, U.S. only 44% of 529 students interviewed were vaccinated against pandemic influenza A/H1N1 during a mass immunization campaign 31 80 study conducted in India reported a vaccination coverage of only 12.7% among 802 university students 32 . In several countries, the pandemic influenza A/H1N1 vaccination coverage among health-care workers, including physicians, was also lower than the vaccination coverage observed among our students [1][2][3]10,12,18,34,35 .…”

Pandemic Influenza A(H1N1) in Cote d'Ivoire: health-care providers’ knowledge of influenza and attitudes towards vaccination

“…In addition, the Ivorian health authorities had not released any specific information about the vaccine against pandemic influenza A (H1N1) to health-care providers; this situation posed a real risk in implementing a successful vaccination campaign [4][5][6][7]. Reports questioning the efficacy and safety of the pandemic vaccine [8][9][10][11][12] led to low vaccination coverage in health-care providers in some countries [13][14][15]. In Sub-Saharan Africa, there was a general lack of data on influenza, including both epidemiological data as well as data on seasonal vaccination against influenza [16][17][18].…”