Aim The frequency of vaccine refusal and hesitation, which is associated with many factors, is increasing worldwide. The purpose of this study is to estimate the frequency of vaccine refusal against COVID‐19 vaccines and to identify the underlying factors for refusal or hesitation. Materials and Methods This is a cross‐sectional study carried out in a district of Istanbul from 25 to 30 December 2020. A sample of people from the ages of 20 to 85 in the district was selected, and a total of 384 people were enrolled. A questionnaire about the COVID‐19 vaccine was administered to the participants by phone. The questionnaire consisted of questions about the sociodemographic characteristics of participants and their thoughts about possible COVID‐19 vaccines. Results 45.3% of the participants were hesitant about getting the COVID‐19 vaccine, which was declared appropriate by the Ministry of Health. The rate of those who think that the COVID‐19 vaccine will be effective in preventing and controlling the disease was 51.6%. 89.6% of the participants were hesitant about getting their children vaccinated. Those who do not consider COVID‐19 disease as a risk to their health were 22.9%, and 32.8% thought that they would be protected from the disease by natural and traditional ways. The median score of the participants' risk perception was 7 (IQR: 6‐8; Mean: 6.8; SD: 1.7). The median value of risk perception score of those who accept the vaccine was 6 (IQR: 4‐6), while the median value for those who did not accept the vaccine was 4 (IQR: 4‐6) ( P < .01). Factors affecting vaccine acceptance were determined as the perception of risk (OR: 1.26% 95CI 1.03‐1.55) and age (OR: 0.94% 95CI: 0.91‐0.98) in logistic regression analysis. Conclusion Half of the participants were hesitant about the COVID‐19 vaccines. The success of COVID‐19 vaccination programmes largely depends on the public willingness to accept the vaccine.

ObjectivesThis study aimed to determine the COVID-19 risk perceptions, vaccination intentions and predictive factors of family physicians and family healthcare staff working in primary care in Üsküdar.DesignA cross-sectional study was performed using an online questionnaire to determine the demographic and general characteristics of the participants and their willingness to be vaccinated.SettingAn online questionnaire was applied to family physicians and family health workers working in primary care family health centres in Üsküdar between 25 and 29 December 2020. Multivariate analysis was performed to identify independent predictors of the willingness of individuals to be vaccinated.ParticipantsOut of 323 health workers working in 44 family health centres in the district, a total of 276 health workers were reached, including 126 physicians (n=158, 79.7%) and 150 midwives/nurses (n=165, 90.9%) (response rate 85.4%).Results50.4% (n=139) of the healthcare workers were willing to have the COVID-19 vaccine, 29% (n=80) were undecided and 20.7% (n=57) refused the vaccine. The rate of acceptance to be vaccinated was higher in physicians, in men and in those who had not received a seasonal influenza vaccination regularly each year.ConclusionsHalf of the primary healthcare workers, one of the high-risk groups in the pandemic, were hesitant or refused to be vaccinated for COVID-19. Knowing the factors affecting the vaccine acceptance rates of healthcare professionals can be considered one of the most strategic moves in reaching the target of high community vaccination rates. For evidence-based planning in vaccination studies, there is a need to investigate the reasons for COVID-19 vaccine acceptance by healthcare workers at all levels.

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