Knowledge, attitude and acceptability of COVID-19 vaccine among residents in rural communities in Ghana: a multi-regional study

Abstract

Background The Coronavirus Infectious Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has continuously affected human life with several devastating effects. Currently, there are effective vaccines to protect people from COVID‐19 and the World Health Organization (WHO) has highlighted strategies to influence COVID-19 vaccine uptake in hard-to-reach communities in Ghana. However, prior studies on COVID-19 vaccine acceptability in Ghana are online surveys targeting the literates and those in urban areas, leaving residents in far-flung communities. We assessed knowledge, attitude and acceptability of COVID-19 vaccine among residents in rural communities in Ghana. Methods This study was a community-based cross-sectional study and was conducted at three selected regions in Ghana (Northern, Ashanti and Western North) from May to November, 2021. This study included residents 15–81 years, living in the selected rural communities for more than 1 year. Study participants were recruited and questionnaires administered to collect data on knowledge, attitude and acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccine. Statistical analyses were performed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 26.0 and GraphPad Prism Version 8.0 software. Results Of the 764 participants included in this study, more than half had inadequate knowledge (55.0%), poor attitudes (59.4%) and bad perception about COVID-19 vaccine (55.4%). The acceptability of COVID-19 vaccine in this study was 41.9%. The acceptability of COVID-19 vaccine in Ashanti, Northern and Western North regions were 32.5%, 26.2% and 29.6% respectively. In a multivariate logistic regression analysis, receiving recent or previous vaccine such as HBV vaccine [aOR = 1.57, 95% CI (1.23–3.29), p = 0.002], having good attitude towards COVID-19 vaccine [aOR = 61.47, 95% CI (29.55–127.86), p < 0.0001] and having good perception about the COVID-19 vaccine [aOR = 3.87, 95% CI (1.40–10.72), p < 0.0001] were independently associated with higher odds of accepting COVID-19 vaccine. Conclusion More than half of residents in Ghanaian rural communities have inadequate knowledge, poor attitudes and bad perception about COVID-19 vaccine. The acceptability of COVID-19 vaccine is generally low among rural residents in Ashanti, Northern and Western North regions of Ghana. Residents living in hard-to-reach communities must be educated about the benefits of COVID-19 vaccine to achieve effective vaccination program.

Factors associated with Covid-19 vaccine acceptance among persons with disabilities: A cross-sectional study in Ghana

“…Similar to what was observed in this study, a study by Mohamed et al in Malaysia also reported higher acceptance of Covid-19 vaccine among people with higher knowledge of the pandemic [ 29 ]. However, a multi-regional study among the general public in Ghana reported a contradictory result [ 30 ]. Their study did not find any significant association between vaccine acceptance and knowledge of Covid-19.…”

Revealing the pathogenesis of gastric intestinal metaplasia based on the mucosoid air-liquid interface

“…The statistical analysis was conducted using SPSS 23.0 (SPSS, Inc., Chicago, IL, USA), R software (version 4.2.1), and GraphPad Prism 8.0 software (GraphPad, Inc., La Jolla, CA, USA) [ 57 , 58 ]. Each experiment was repeated 3 times on 3 samples to ensure robustness and reproducibility.…”

COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance and Hesitancy in Ghana: A Systematic Review

“…It is crucial to recognize that demographic factors such as employment status, rural or urban residency, occupation, level of experience, and political party affiliation among opposition voters were not extensively examined in the assessment of factors influencing COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and hesitancy in Ghana (see Figure 4). [5], [8], [11], [13], [27], [34], [37], [49], [44] 9 Gender [6], [8], [11], [30], [35], [37], [42], [44] 8 Religion [8], [13], [15], [27], [34] [42], [44], [49] 8 Age [9], [11], [15], [27], [42], [49] 6 Marital Status [12], [37], [42] 3 Primary source of information about COVID-19 vaccine [11], [13], [44] 3 According to Backhaus [50], urban residency and current pregnancy were significantly and positively associated with refusing vaccination against COVID-19, whereas age, savings, and using contemporary contraceptives were significantly and negatively associated with refusing vaccination. Additional research by Hwang et al [51] indicates that younger age, lack of religious affiliation, political conservatism, and lower family income are also substantially associated with vaccine hesitancy.…”

“…A study conducted by Amponsah-Tabi et al [5] during the period of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout examined the influence of media awareness on the acceptance of vaccination. This study highlighted that those who had prior knowledge or education about vaccination were influenced by the inclusion of media awareness, hence influencing the dynamics of COVID-19 vaccine acceptability.…”