National survey of attitudes towards and intentions to vaccinate against COVID-19: implications for communications

Abstract

ObjectivesTo examine public views on COVID-19 vaccination and consider the implications for communications and targeted support.DesignCross-sectional study.SettingOnline and telephone nationally representative survey in Great Britain, January to February 2021.Participants4978 adults. Survey response rate was 84%, among the 5931 panellists invited.Main outcome measuresSociodemographic characteristics (age, gender, ethnicity, education, financial status), COVID-19 status, vaccine acceptance, trust in COVID-19 vaccination information sources, perceptions of vaccination priority groups and perceptions of importance of second dose.ResultsCOVID-19 vaccine acceptance (83%) was associated with increasing age, higher level of education and having been invited for vaccination. Acceptance decreased with unconfirmed past COVID-19, greater financial hardship and non-white British ethnicity; black/black British participants had lowest acceptance. Overall, healthcare and scientific sources of information were most trusted. Compared with white British participants, other ethnicities had lower trust in healthcare and scientific sources. Those with lower educational attainment or financial hardship had lower trust in healthcare and scientific sources. Those with no qualifications had higher trust in media and family/friends. While trust was low overall in community or faith leaders, it was higher among those with Asian/Asian British and black/black British ethnicity compared with white British participants. Views of vaccine prioritisation were mostly consistent with UK official policy but there was support for prioritising additional groups. There was high support for having the second vaccine dose.ConclusionsTargeted engagement is needed to address COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in non-white British ethnic groups, in younger adults, and among those with lower education, greater financial hardship and unconfirmed past infection. Healthcare professionals and scientific advisors should play a central role in communications and tailored messaging is needed for hesitant groups. Careful communication around vaccination prioritisation continues to be required.

Attitudes towards vaccines, intent to vaccinate and the relationship with COVID-19 vaccination rates in individuals with schizophrenia

“…In addition, our results indicate that individuals with schizophrenia (and individuals with other mental disorders) do not necessarily have more negative attitudes towards vaccines than the general population 13,30,31). This differs from what has been shown in other COVID-19 at-risk populations (e.g., ethnic minority groups and individuals with lower incomes or education) (30,32,33).…”

“…Due to the severity of this pandemic, the development of vaccines and vaccination campaigns progressed rapidly worldwide potentially contributing to an overall increase in vaccine confidence. In addition, our results indicate that individuals with schizophrenia (and individuals with other mental disorders) do not necessarily have more negative attitudes towards vaccines than the general population 13,30,31). This differs from what has been shown in other COVID-19 at-risk populations (e.g., ethnic minority groups and individuals with lower incomes or education) (30,32,33).…”

“…In addition, our results indicate that individuals with schizophrenia (and individuals with other mental disorders) do not necessarily have more negative attitudes towards vaccines than the general population 13,30,31). This differs from what has been shown in other COVID-19 at-risk populations (e.g., ethnic minority groups and individuals with lower incomes or education) (30,32,33). Second, a trend was observed in terms of the proportion of vaccinated participants which was lower in patients in comparison to the non-clinical controls (respectively, 64% versus 77.8%, P = .07).…”

Effects of vaccination against COVID-19 on the emotional health of Peruvian older adults

“…Clinical effectiveness studies have shown the need for a second dose of the vaccine to have greater effectiveness in preventing mortality and severe disease from COVID-19 in older adults (Bernal et al, 2021;Kissling et al, 2021). This information was communicated promptly to the population, making most people aware of the need for a second dose, especially those willing to be vaccinated (Goldfarb et al, 2021;Stead et al, 2021). This may explain that in the context where the communicational emphasis was placed on the need for the second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, the effect on emotional health could mainly be observed in those who received the two doses of the vaccine.…”

Community Engagement to support COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake: A living systematic review protocol

“…Authors' Contribution: All authors except NG were involved in a previous study on community engagement from which this current protocol took inspiration (18). BG conceived the study.…”