Hepatitis B Vaccination Coverage among Bangladeshi Healthcare Workers: Findings from Tertiary Care Hospitals

Abstract

Healthcare workers (HCWs) are at a four-fold higher risk of being infected with the hepatitis B virus in hospital settings. This study investigated the hepatitis B vaccination coverage among Bangladeshi HCWs in selected tertiary care hospitals. Between September 2020 to January 2021, a multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted in 11 hospitals across Bangladesh. Participants included physicians, nurses, cleaners, and administrative staff. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect data through face-to-face interviews. Descriptive and multivariate statistics were used to analyze the data. The overall hepatitis B vaccination coverage was 66.6% (1363/2046) among HCWs, with cleaning staff having the lowest at 38.8%. Among the unvaccinated, 89.2% of HCWs desired to receive the free vaccine in the near future. In the last year, over one-fourth of staff (27.9%) had at least one history of needlestick injury. Only 9.8% HCWs were found to have attended training on hepatitis B virus prevention and management in the previous two years. Multivariate analysis revealed that physicians (AOR: 7.13, 95% CI: 4.94–10.30) and nurses (AOR: 6.00, 95% CI: 4.09–8.81) were more likely to be vaccinated against hepatitis B than cleaners and administrative staff. Low uptake of hepatitis B vaccination among HCWs suggests policies that require vaccination are needed to achieve optimum vaccine coverage.

A multi-centre cross-sectional study on hepatitis B vaccination coverage and associated factors among personnel working in health facilities in Kumasi, Ghana

“…The finding that participants who had undergone Hepatitis B testing had significantly higher vaccination rates aligns with previous research where individuals who are aware of their Hepatitis B status are more likely to seek vaccination if they are unvaccinated [16]. In a study involving 114 undergraduate students studying public health in Ghana, about half (50.4%) had never had their HBV infection checked, and 100 (44.2%) had at least one dose of the vaccine [45].…”

“…Specifically, in the present study, participants aged 31-40 years had the highest (≥ 1 dose) vaccination rate (87.0%), with the least among those aged below 20 years (48.3%). This is not surprising as literature supports the notion that individuals older than 20 years may have higher vaccination rates due to longer exposure to healthcare settings and potentially greater awareness of the importance of vaccination [16]. Also, congruent with findings of this research, a study conducted in Ghana among university students had majority of the vaccinees to be 26 years and above [42].…”

“…Self-initiative being the commonest impulse of Hepatitis B vaccination is suggestive that proactive behaviour among healthcare workers plays a crucial role in ensuring vaccination uptake [14]. According to a related study, the common reasons given for not getting vaccinated were the non-obligatory nature of the Hepatitis B vaccination, lack of knowledge about the shot, its expensive cost, lack of interest or desire and problems with availability [16, 29].…”

“…As a result, those who work in specific occupations stand a higher chance of getting HBV infection than others. Healthcare workers (HCWs) are frequently exposed to bloodborne pathogens, which puts them at high risk of contracting HBV [14,16]. When providing care for patients who are HBV-positive, workplace exposure to the virus might happen from contaminated hospital surfaces or unintentional needlestick injuries (NSIs).…”

Uptake of Influenza Vaccine and Factors Associated with Influenza Vaccination among Healthcare Workers in Tertiary Care Hospitals in Bangladesh: A Multicenter Cross-Sectional Study

“…This lower level of employees, such as cleaning staff, is often neglected regarding preventive approaches such as vaccination. Recent research in Bangladesh found that cleaning personnel were generally overlooked when it came to acquiring vaccinations [ 25 ]. This implies that a change in mindset is required to incorporate cleaning staff into the mainstream of all preventive approaches.…”