Parents' perception of COVID-19 risk of infection and intention to vaccinate their children

Sabra, Hamdy Khaled; Bakr, Mostafa Abdulraheem; Rageh, Omar El Sayed Mohmed; Khaled, Asmaa; Elbakliesh, Omnia Mohamed; Kabbash, Ibrahim Ali

doi:10.1016/j.vacun.2022.07.004

Cited by 5 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 20 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The parents' impression towards COVID-19 in their children was surprising as most of them did not consider COVID-19 to be a very serious issue and more than half considered their children were not at high risk of COVID-19. This is in contrast to the findings of a recent study in Egypt where nearly half of parents surveyed considered COVID-19 a very serious threat to their child [73].…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

Awareness and Practices towards Vaccinating Their Children against COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study among Pakistani Parents

Harmain,

Alkubaisi,

Hasnain

et al. 2023

Healthcare

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

There are typically lower COVID-19 vaccination rates among developing versus higher-income countries, which is exacerbated by greater vaccine hesitancy. However, despite the increasing evidence of safety, parents are still reluctant to vaccinate their children against COVID-19. This is a concern in countries experiencing successive waves, such as Pakistan. Consequently, the objective of this study was to gain better understanding and practice regarding parents vaccinating their children against COVID-19 in Pakistan. A cross-sectional study was conducted to measure parents’ attitudes towards vaccinating their children. In total, 451 parents participated in the study, giving a response rate of 70.4%; 67.4% were female, 43.2% belonged to the 40–49 years age group, and 47.7% had three children, with 73% of parents fully immunized against COVID-19. We found that 84.7% of parents did not consider COVID-19 to be a very serious issue, and 53.9% considered that their children were not at high risk of COVID-19. Overall, only a quarter of the study participants had currently vaccinated their children and 11.8% were willing to vaccinate their children in the near future. Parents who had a better knowledge of COVID-19, secondary or higher education, children who had chronic illness, and those parents whose children had been infected with COVID-19 were more likely to have their children vaccinated. The most common reasons for vaccine hesitancy were “my child is not at high risk of COVID-19” (61%) and “I am afraid to put/inject a foreign object inside my child’s body” (52.2%). Overall, vaccine acceptance was low among the parents of the children. Those parents with higher education, chronic illnesses, greater knowledge of COVID-19 and its vaccines, and those whose children had been infected with COVID-19 were significantly (p < 0.001) inclined towards vaccinating their children. Effective campaigns as well as awareness sessions are needed to address misinformation and reduce vaccine hesitancy.

show abstract

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

Awareness and Practices towards Vaccinating Their Children against COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study among Pakistani Parents

Harmain,

Alkubaisi,

Hasnain

et al. 2023

Healthcare

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…International health organisations such as World Health Organisation (WHO) and Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) releases periodic updates during the height of the pandemic to increase public awareness regarding COVID-19 infections. Parents, especially those with children suffering from chronic illnesses, would probably be highly aware of the (16). The current study also revealed similar findings; almost all the parents (98%) perceived COVID-19 to be a danger to their child and more than 90% were worried their child will get severe complications from COVID-19 infection.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 79%

“…Parents, especially those with children suffering from chronic illnesses, would probably be highly aware of the consequences of severe COVID-19 infection and actively seeking ways to protect their children from the infection. A study by Sabra et al among parents of general population in Egypt, found that most of participants (86.8%) perceived COVID-19 as a serious disease and were concerned about themselves or a family member being infected with COVID-19 ( 16 ). The current study also revealed similar findings; almost all the parents (98%) perceived COVID-19 to be a danger to their child and more than 90% were worried their child will get severe complications from COVID-19 infection.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Caring for a child with cancer during COVID-19 pandemic: an assessment of the parents’ perception and stress level

Nawi,

Lau,

Chin

et al. 2024

Front. Public Health

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundThe emergence of COVID-19 pandemic has led to heightened fear and uncertainty among parents of children with cancer. This study was conducted to evaluate the parental perceptions toward effects of COVID-19 infection to children with cancer, determine their stress level and factors contributing to high stress level during the pandemic.MethodsThis cross-sectional study was conducted in three paediatric oncology centres in Malaysia from September 2020 until December 2022. A total of 167 parents were recruited. Parents completed a set of questionnaires to assess their perception on effect of COVID-19 infection to children with cancer and COVID Stress Scale (CSS) to assess the parents’ stress level.ResultsPatients’ mean age at study entry was 8.75 years (SD 4.38). Ninety-one (54.5%) patients were still on active treatment. More than 80% of the parents obtained information regarding COVID-19 infection from mass media and social networking. Fear of their children contracting COVID-19 infection was high especially among patients who were still on treatment. Forty-nine (29.3%) parents were significantly affected by the pandemic leading to loss of job or monthly income. Twenty-nine (17.4%) patients required treatment modification during the pandemic. The median total score for CSS was 78.0 (IQR 25th 64.0; 75th 95.0). Ninety-one (54.5%) respondents were very/extremely stressed based on the CSS scores. Components with high scores were xenophobia (median score 18.0; IQR 25th 13.0, 75th 22.0), fear of danger (median score 17.0; IQR 25th 14.0, 75th 20.0) and contamination fears (median score 16.0; IQR 25th 12.0, 75th 19.0). Lower household income was associated with higher stress level (p = 0.006).ConclusionOur study demonstrated high awareness regarding risk of COVID-19 infection among parents of oncology children. Half of the parents had high stress level, with low household income identified as a factor associated with high stress level.

show abstract

“…A significant proportion of parents expressed concern about their child being exposed to COVID-19 during their surgical procedure or hospital stay, particularly in the elective surgery group. This finding is consistent with existing literature that reports heightened concern among parents about the risk of COVID-19 infection in healthcare settings [27]. The difference in concern between elective and emergent surgery groups may be due to the perceived level of control over the situation; parents of children undergoing elective surgery may feel they have more choice in the timing of the procedure and thus may have heightened concerns about the risks of proceeding during the pandemic.…”

Section: Literature Analysissupporting

confidence: 89%

A Cross-Sectional Assessment of Parental Concerns in the Pediatric Surgery Department during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Gruescu,

Popoiu,

Levai

et al. 2023

Healthcare

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted various aspects of healthcare, including pediatric surgery. This study aimed to assess parental concerns and stress levels in pediatric surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic, identify factors associated with increased parental anxiety or concern, and provide recommendations for healthcare providers. A cross-sectional study was conducted in a tertiary pediatric hospital in Timisoara, Romania, involving 174 parents of pediatric patients requiring elective or emergency surgery, with a mean age of 37.6 (25–47) years, out of which 89.1% of respondents were women. Parental concerns were assessed using the Parental Concerns Questionnaire (PCQ), the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10). Parents of children undergoing emergency surgery (n = 108) reported higher levels on the practical impact domain of the PCQ scale (3.4 vs. 2.2, p < 0.001), emotional impact (2.7 vs. 2.2, p = 0.002), and total PCQ score (9.5 vs. 7.7, p < 0.001) compared to parents of children undergoing elective surgery (n = 66). Parents in the emergent surgery group also reported higher anxiety scores on the HADS questionnaire (7.9 vs. 6.5, p = 0.009) and higher perceived stress and total score on the PSS-10 survey (7.8 vs. 5.6, p = 0.046) (10.5 vs. 9.1, p = 0.047), respectively. A significantly higher proportion of parents in the emergent surgery group were concerned about restricted visitation policies (p = 0.013) and reported delaying or considering delaying their child’s surgery due to the pandemic (p = 0.036). The results demonstrate heightened concerns, anxiety, and stress among parents of children undergoing emergency surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic. Healthcare providers should address parental concerns, provide clear communication, and ensure adequate support for families. Recommendations include enhancing information about COVID-19 precautions, reassuring parents about personal protective equipment availability, and facilitating family support within visitation restrictions.

show abstract

Parents' perception of COVID-19 risk of infection and intention to vaccinate their children

Cited by 5 publications

References 20 publications

Awareness and Practices towards Vaccinating Their Children against COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study among Pakistani Parents

Awareness and Practices towards Vaccinating Their Children against COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study among Pakistani Parents

Caring for a child with cancer during COVID-19 pandemic: an assessment of the parents’ perception and stress level

A Cross-Sectional Assessment of Parental Concerns in the Pediatric Surgery Department during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About