UK ethnic minority healthcare workers’ perspectives on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in the UK ethnic minority community: A qualitative study

Abstract

BackgroundThe experiences of UK ethnic minority (UKEM) healthcare workers are crucial to ameliorating the disproportionate COVID-19 infection rate and outcomes in the UKEM community. We conducted a qualitative study on UKEM healthcare workers’ perspectives on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy (CVH) in the UKEM community.MethodsParticipants were 15 UKEM healthcare workers (11 females; age range: 26–58 [43.3 ± 9.4] years). Data were collected using individual and joint interviews, and a focus group, and analyzed using thematic analysis.ResultsWe generated three themes: heterogeneity (two subthemes), mistrust (six subthemes), and mitigating (six subthemes). Therein, participants distinguished CVH in the UKEM community in educational attainment and ethnicity. They pointed to the role of mistrust in CVH in the UKEM community. They opined that the mistrust underlying CVH in the UKEM community is rooted in history and religion, conspiracy theories, the speedy development and novelty of the vaccines, post-vaccination complications/side effects, false positive test results, and social media and social support/influence. Participants recommended that interventions targeted at mitigating CVH in the UKEM community need to, in a non-judgmental way, tackle dis/misinformation and provide education, and incorporate UKEM healthcare worker endorsement. They also suggested such interventions be community-oriented, enhance the convenience of vaccination centers and the possibility of vaccine choice, and appreciate that overcoming CVH and accepting vaccination is a gradual process involving personal assessment of risks and benefits.ConclusionCVH in the UKEM community is a multifaceted phenomenon requiring multicomponent interventions.

A qualitative study exploring attitudes and perceptions of the COVID-19 booster vaccine in minority ethnic individuals in North East England

“…As such, although our study should be treated as exploratory, it offers valuable indications for areas that need to be explored further. Furthermore, it is important to note that some of the present findings, specifically those around medical mistrust, are particular to ethnicity and historical events involving racial discrimination, and are similar to prior research involving samples consisting solely of ethnic minority individuals (Sagoe et al 2022 ; Charura et al 2022 ; Magee et al 2022 ; Eberhardt et al 2022 ).…”

“…A particularly salient finding that emerged from the interviews concerned their lack of trust in the vaccine, which appeared in part to be rooted in historical events involving medical experimentation with minority ethnic individuals. As our previous research uncovered similar perceptions among minority ethnic groups in the general UK population (Sagoe et al 2022;Charura et al 2022;Magee et al 2022;, these concerns should be taken seriously: addressing the fear and mistrust associated with individuals' perceptions of these events is central to increasing their confidence in COVID-19 vaccination and is therefore likely to improve uptake.…”

COVID-19 booster vaccination uptake and infection breakthrough amongst health care workers in Wales: A national prospective cohort study

“…There are challenges with either side of mandatory vaccination, as pressure to receive the vaccine can actually reduce the likelihood of uptake [9] , as well as increasing an already pressured National Health Service [37] , and would not alleviate concerns around vaccine safety amongst the unvaccinated [38] . Hence, it is likely that building trust, and sharing factual vaccination information on clinical trials which represent a diverse range of patients may encourage at-risk groups to become vaccinated against COVID-19 [39] .…”