COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance and Hesitancy Among Health Care Workers in Lebanon

Abstract

Background Lebanon endured its worst economic and financial crisis in 2020–2021. To minimize the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, it is important to improve the overall COVID-19 vaccination rate. Given that vaccine hesitancy among health care workers (HCWs) affects the general population’s decision to be vaccinated, our study assessed COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among Lebanon HCWs and identified barriers, demographic differences, and the most trusted sources of COVID-19 information. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted between January and May 2021 among HCWs across nine hospitals, the Orders of Physicians, Nurses, and Pharmacists in Lebanon. Descriptive statistics were performed to evaluate the COVID-19 vaccine acceptance, and univariate and multivariable to identify their predictors. Results Among 879 participants, 762 (86.8%) were willing to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, 52 (5.9%) refused, and 64 (7.3%) were undecided. Males (226/254; 88.9%) and those ≥ 55 years (95/100; 95%) had the highest rates of acceptance. Of the 113 who were not willing to receive the vaccine, 54.9% reported that the vaccine was not studied well enough. Participants with a previous SARS-CoV-2 infection and those who did not know if they had a previous infection (p = 0.002) were less likely to accept the vaccine compared to those with no previous infection. The most trusted COVID-19 sources of information were WHO (69.3%) and healthcare providers (68%). Conclusion Lebanese HCWs had a relatively high acceptance rate for COVID-19 vaccination compared to other countries. Our findings are important in informing the Lebanese health care authorities to establish programs and interventions to improve vaccine uptake among HCWs and the general population.

COVID-19 Vaccine Acceptance and Hesitancy among Healthcare Workers in Lusaka, Zambia; Findings and Implications for the Future

“…In addition, the results are lower than those among six LMICs, where over 90% of HCWs had already been vaccinated [ 58 ], lower than 92% of HCWs in another study in Nigeria [ 126 ], and lower than those seen in Central and West Asian countries where over 96% of HCWs had already been vaccinated when the study was conducted [ 59 ]. The rate is also lower than a mean of 80.3% (median 78% and range 30.1%) among HCWs willing to be vaccinated in the study by Solís Arce et al involving 10 LMICs [ 49 ], 85% of HCWs in the survey by Leigh et al across 23 countries [ 57 ], and an acceptance rate of 86.8% among HCWs in Lebanon with 7.3% undecided [ 61 ]. In addition, the rate is lower than the 94.9% acceptance rate among HCWs in Singapore [ 127 ].…”

“…High rates of over 96% of fully vaccinated HCWs have been reported among HCWs in Central and West Asia [ 59 ]. High rates of acceptance or actual vaccination have also been reported in South Africa (89% of HCWs vaccinated) [ 60 ], Lebanon (86.8% acceptance among HCWs, with 7.3% undecided) [ 61 ] and Malawi (82.5% of HCWs had received the first dose of the vaccine) [ 62 ].…”

“…However, we are unaware of any published study on the attitudes and acceptance of COVID-19 vaccines and associated hesitancy among frontline HCWs in Zambia. This is imperative given their crucial role in addressing vaccine hesitancy, including misinformation, across populations and the wide variations seen in hesitancy rates across LMICs, including Africa [ 49 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 103 , 104 ]. Consequently, this study sought to address this critical information gap among this crucial population by assessing their attitudes towards and acceptance of COVID-19 vaccines, and any associated hesitancy, in two general hospitals in Lusaka, Zambia.…”

COVID‐19 herd immunity in Lebanon: Challenges and prospects

“…Women and married people were more likely to refuse the vaccine [14]. A more recent study among Lebanese health workers found similar results regarding sex and added that those who were older and had never been infected were more likely to accept getting vaccinated [15].…”

Innovation for challenges of public health and sustainable growth

“…In fact, innovative measures are highly needed for the control of COVID-19 infection due to the unique situations in India [46] and other countries. For example, the children immunization App for vaccination registration in refugees camps [47], genetic screening [48] for predicting subsequent critical conditions, and improving acceptance rate for COVID-19 vaccination [49] among health care workers (HCWs) and the general population. Moreover, there are an urgent need of emotional and psychological support due to increased stress levels [50] among HCWs.…”