Pre-Vaccination COVID-19 Vaccine Literacy in a Croatian Adult Population: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Despite world-level efforts and the endeavors of scientists and medical professionals in suppressing the COVID-19 pandemic, inadequate levels of vaccine literacy of the general population can represent a grave obstacle. The aim of this study was to evaluate COVID-19 vaccine literacy in the Croatian adult general population before vaccination began. The specific objectives were to test differences regarding socio-demographic characteristics and to examine perceptions and attitudes about vaccination against COVID-19 considering the level of VL against COVID-19. A cross-sectional study with a translated and psychometrically tested questionnaire was conducted in 1227 participants before the start of vaccination, from 15 to 31 January 2021. The results show a medium level of vaccine literacy (M = 2.37, SD = 0.54) and a significant difference between functional and interactive-critical vaccine literacy (p < 0.001). The level of vaccine literacy grew with the level of education (p = 0.031) and reduced with age (p < 0.001). Participants who were employed, had chronic diseases, took medicine, or consumed alcohol daily had a lower level of vaccine literacy. There is room for progress in the COVID-19 VL level for the adult population in Croatia, especially at the interactive-critical VL, which could have an important role in people accepting the vaccine against the COVID-19 disease. A satisfactory level of vaccine literacy in the population is necessary because it can contribute to the fight against the pandemic.

COVID-19 Vaccine Literacy of Family Carers for Their Older Parents in Japan

“…Health literacy was assessed based on the approach developed by Ishikawa et al [27,28], with original scale items available in Japanese and versions of this instrument used in different health care contexts. This instrument has been validated for use in online surveys, based on a version in Italian used to assess COVID-19 vaccination [14]. The instrument is based on considering different aspects of health literacy: functional literacy, which is primarily about ability to read and understand information; communication literacy, which focuses on accessing information from diverse sources and explaining to others; and critical literacy, which is about assessing the quality and applicability of information to inform decisionmaking [12].…”

“…Thus, for specific instances of vaccination there is value in understanding overall health literacy as well as vaccine literacy [11]. While the same functional, communication and critical literacy components comprise health and vaccine literacy [11,12], the importance depends on context, such as communication and critical literacy viewed as important in the novel, changing, complex COVID-19 pandemic [13,14]. Thus, particularly for COVID-19 vaccinations, there is value in considering both concepts in a given situation: health literacy as a person's broad ability to understand health-related issues, and vaccine literacy as a person's specific understanding at a point in time for a particular vaccination, which is particularly pertinent in considering rapidly emerging novel COVID-19 vaccinations.…”

Investigating the Influence of Vaccine Literacy, Vaccine Perception and Vaccine Hesitancy on Israeli Parents’ Acceptance of the COVID-19 Vaccine for Their Children: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…As in other countries, the need for immunization in Israel is highly covered by the media. In addition to the adjustment and sensitization of the general population, the media can also cause negative effects by creating massive informative overload and/or providing unauthorized medical advice [16,20]. Therefore, the health literacy of the general population is exceptionally important.…”

“…Health literacy is defined as a "personal, cognitive and social skill that determines the capability of an individual to access, understand, and use information to improve and maintain personal health" [20,21]. The basic assumption of this definition is that people with a satisfactory level of health literacy manage their health more efficiently [20].…”

“…Health literacy is defined as a "personal, cognitive and social skill that determines the capability of an individual to access, understand, and use information to improve and maintain personal health" [20,21]. The basic assumption of this definition is that people with a satisfactory level of health literacy manage their health more efficiently [20]. However, contrary to expectations, studies that examined vaccine acceptance have shown that parents with higher skills appeared to be more at risk of not vaccinating their children.…”