Covid-19 Vaccination Acceptance and Its Associated Factors among Community in Kelantan

Abstract

Background:The global health crisis caused by the COVID-19 outbreak has significantly affected how people view the world and their daily routines. In response, the scientific community, with government support, has been actively working on developing a safe and effective vaccine as a preventive measure. To ensure adequate vaccination coverage, it is crucial to identify, comprehend, and tackle issues related to vaccine acceptance and hesitancy. Properly addressing these factors is a vital step in planning effective actions for successful vaccination efforts. Methods: In Kelantan, a descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted to investigate COVID-19 vaccination acceptance and its related factors among the general adult population. The study included 610 participants who completed an online, self-administered questionnaire adapted from previous research. The collected data were then analyzed using IBM Statistical Packages for Social Science (SPSS) version 26. Results: Almost all the respondents (99.0%) had been vaccinated, while only 1.0% were hesitant or refused. The majority of the respondents believed in the importance of the COVID-19 vaccine (86.1%); however, they still had concerns about the vaccine, such as doubts about its safety (51.6%), effectiveness (50.7%), and fear of adverse effects (61.1%). Most of the respondents (89.0%) had confidence in the vaccines that were being developed and found that the data on vaccine safety was adequate (88.9%). Meanwhile, 64.7% of them perceived a moderate to high risk of being infected with COVID-19, and 57.2% also perceived a moderate to high risk of developing severe disease following COVID-19 infection. Conclusion: The study found a high level of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among the community in Kelantan. Overall, most of the community exhibited positive attitudes towards the COVID-19 vaccine, health authorities, and the government. However, a small minority still held doubts, concerns, and distrust regarding the vaccine.

The relationship between vaccine hesitancy and health literacy in pregnant women: a cross-sectional study *

“…In a study conducted in China, it was determined that individuals who received negative information about the Covid-19 vaccine and had doubts about the source of information were more likely to experience vaccine hesitancy [ 30 ]. According to a study conducted in Kelantan, participants had concerns such as doubts about the safety of the Covid- 19 vaccine (51.6%), doubts about its effectiveness (50.7%) and fear of adverse effects (61.1%) [ 31 ]. The fact that pregnant women have sufficient and positive knowledge about vaccines affects the level of anti-vaccination.…”