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Objective: South Asians represent the largest non-white ethnic group in Canada and were disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. We sought to determine the factors associated with vaccine hesitancy in South Asian Canadians., Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of vaccine hesitancy using data collected at the baseline assessment of a prospective cohort study, COVID CommUNITY South Asian. Participants (18 + years) were recruited from the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area in Ontario (ON) and the Greater Vancouver Area in British Columbia (BC) between April and November 2021. Demographic characteristics and vaccine attitudes measured by the Vaccine Attitudes Examination (VAX) scale were collected. Each item is scored on a 6-point Likert scale, and higher scores reflect greater hesitancy. A multivariable linear mixed effects model was used to identify sociodemographic factors associated with vaccine hesitancy, adjusting for multiple covariates., Results: A total of 1496 self-identified South Asians (52% female) were analyzed (mean age = 38.5 years; standard deviation (SD): 15.3). The mean VAX score was 3.2, SD: 0.8 [range: 1.0‒6.0]. Factors associated with vaccine hesitancy included: time since immigration (p = 0.04), previous COVID-19 infection (p < 0.001), marital status (p < 0.001), living in a multigenerational household (p = 0.03), age (p = 0.02), education (p < 0.001), and employment status (p = 0.001)., Conclusion: Among South Asians living in ON and BC, time since immigration, prior COVID-19 infection, marital status, living in a multigenerational household, age, education, and employment status were associated with vaccine hesitancy. This information can be used to address vaccine hesitancy in the South Asian population in future COVID-19 waves or pandemics., Competing Interests: Declarations. Ethical approval: All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee (Hamilton Integrated Research Ethics Board # 13323 – March 24, 2021 and British Columbia Research Ethics Board # H21-00866 – June 18, 2021) and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Consent to participate: Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study. Consent for publication: Not applicable. Conflict of interest: None to declare., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Objective: The study objective is to measure the influence of psychological antecedents of vaccination on COVID-19 vaccine intention among citizens of the Métis Nation of Ontario (MNO)., Methods: A population-based online survey was implemented by the MNO when COVID-19 vaccines were approved in Canada. Questions included vaccine intention, the short version of the "5C" psychological antecedents of vaccination scale (confidence, complacency, constraint, calculation, collective responsibility), and socio-demographics. Census sampling via the MNO Registry was used achieving a 39% response rate. Descriptive statistics, bivariate analyses, and multinomial logistic regression models (adjusted for sociodemographic variables) were used to analyze the survey data., Results: The majority of MNO citizens (70.2%) planned to be vaccinated. As compared with vaccine-hesitant individuals, respondents with vaccine intention were more confident in the safety of COVID-19 vaccines, believed that COVID-19 is severe, were willing to protect others from getting COVID-19, and would research the vaccines (Confident OR = 19.4, 95% CI 15.5-24.2; Complacency OR = 6.21, 95% CI 5.38-7.18; Collective responsibility OR = 9.83, 95% CI 8.24-11.72; Calculation OR = 1.43, 95% CI 1.28-1.59). Finally, respondents with vaccine intention were less likely to let everyday stress prevent them from getting COVID-19 vaccines (OR = 0.47, 95% CI 0.42-0.53) compared to vaccine-hesitant individuals., Conclusion: This research contributes to the knowledge base for Métis health and supported the MNO's information sharing and educational activities during the COVID-19 vaccines rollout. Future research will examine the relationship between the 5Cs and actual uptake of COVID-19 vaccines among MNO citizens., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Objectives: Vaccine hesitancy is a multifaceted decision process that encompasses various factors for which an individual may choose to get vaccinated or not. We aimed to identify the relationship between COVID-19 conspiracy theories, general attitudes towards vaccines, current COVID-19 vaccine factors, and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy., Methods: The present research is a multi-province cross-sectional study design. Survey data were collected in May and June 2021 (n=4905) in the Canadian provinces of Alberta, Ontario, and Quebec. Multivariate ordinal regression models were used to assess the association between vaccine hesitant profiles and COVID-19 conspiracy theories, general attitudes towards vaccines, and specific factors pertaining to COVID-19 vaccines., Results: Participants were aged 18 to 40 years and 59% were women. Individuals with low income, with low educational attainment, and/or who are unemployed were more likely to be vaccine hesitant. COVID-19 conspiracy theory beliefs and general attitudes towards vaccines are significantly associated with greater hesitancy for the COVID-19 vaccine. Vaccine factors including pro-vaccine actions and opinions of friends and family and trust in scientists and government as well as the country in which a vaccine is manufactured are associated with less vaccine hesitancy., Conclusion: Conspiracy theories are distinct from criticism and concerns regarding the vaccine. Nevertheless, poverty, low level of education, and distrust towards the government are associated with higher odds of being vaccine hesitant. Results suggest it is imperative to deliver transparent and nuanced health communications to address legitimate distrust towards political and scientific actors and address the societal gap regarding general attitudes towards vaccines as opposed to focusing solely on COVID-19., (© 2022. The Author(s) under exclusive license to The Canadian Public Health Association.)

With the global outbreak of COVID-19, it is important that vaccination be emphasized to build herd immunity. However, vaccine hesitancy is negatively associated. Religious views impact the interpretations and acceptance of medical and scientific evidence, leading to a variety of responses to vaccination, such as vaccine hesitancy. The aim of this study was to delve into the reluctance of religious individuals towards vaccines, particularly towards COVID-19. An integrative review was conducted using PubMed/Medline, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases to find articles from 2020 to 2023. Twenty articles were selected for review. The review found that religiosity is negatively associated with COVID-19 vaccine uptake across different religious groups. The article proposes a theoretical way to mitigate religious influence on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination coverage among children with epilepsy (CwE), factors affecting vaccination coverage, and the effect of COVID-19 vaccines on epilepsy after severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. A questionnaire was administered to CwE and their parents at the Pediatric Neurology Clinic of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University between December 12, 2022, and February 28, 2023. Data were analyzed using the t-tests, chi-square tests, and logistic regression. The analysis included 250 CwE who responded to the survey; of these, 152 (60.8%) had been vaccinated against COVID-19. COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in parents whose CwE were not vaccinated was mostly due to concerns of vaccine-related exacerbation of seizures and of vaccine-related adverse reactions (44.30% and 41.90% of the respondents, respectively). Univariate analysis showed that vaccination and number of doses of vaccine did not affect seizure incidence within 1 month of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Logistic regression analysis showed that CwE below primary school age, and those taking two or more antiseizure medication (ASMs) were less likely to be vaccinated (p = 0.007). Conclusion: The primary reasons for vaccine hesitancy among parents of unvaccinated CwE were concerns regarding seizure exacerbation and adverse reactions following COVID-19 vaccination. CwE who were below primary school age and those who took two or more ASMs were less likely to be vaccinated. Addressing parents' concerns is necessary to build their confidence in COVID-19 vaccines and ensure that CwE are vaccinated. What is Known: • People with epilepsy have a higher risk of severe and fatal COVID-19 than those without epilepsy but, despite this, COVID-19 vaccination coverage is considerably lower in people with epilepsy than in people without epilepsy. What is New: • In unvaccinated children with epilepsy, the foremost reasons for COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among parents were concerns about seizure exacerbation and vaccine-related adverse reactions. • Vaccination and number of doses of vaccine did not exacerbate seizures in children with epilepsy, those below primary school level and those taking two or more antiseizure medications were less likely to be vaccinated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Longitudinal data from the Parenting Across Cultures study of children, mothers, and fathers in 12 cultural groups in nine countries (China, Colombia, Italy, Jordan, Kenya, the Philippines, Sweden, Thailand, and the USA; N = 1331 families) were used to understand predictors of compliance with COVID-19 mitigation strategies and vaccine hesitancy. Confidence in government responses to the COVID pandemic was also examined as a potential moderator of links between pre-COVID risk factors and compliance with COVID mitigation strategies and vaccine hesitancy. Greater confidence in government responses to the COVID pandemic was associated with greater compliance with COVID mitigation strategies and less vaccine hesitancy across cultures and reporters. Pre-COVID financial strain and family stress were less consistent predictors of compliance with COVID mitigation strategies and vaccine hesitancy than confidence in government responses to the pandemic. Findings suggest the importance of bolstering confidence in government responses to future human ecosystem disruptions, perhaps through consistent, clear, non-partisan messaging and transparency in acknowledging limitations and admitting mistakes to inspire compliance with government and public health recommendations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Since the outbreak of coronavirus (COVID-19) disease was reported in 2019, huge human and material resources have been expended globally to combat the spread of the disease. Achieving herd immunity through mass vaccination remains an important strategy to adopt in the war against this disease since it is practically impossible for 60–70% of the population to achieve immunity through natural infection alone. Unfortunately, there have been widespread reports of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. This study aims to systematically review the literature to provide an up-to-date assessment of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance rates and also explore factors impacting COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among adults in Nigeria. A systematic search of indexed electronic peer-reviewed literature published from 2019 onwards was conducted in Science Direct, PubMed, ProQuest, and EBSCOhost databases and reported according to the PRISMA checklist and Synthesis without meta-analysis (SWiM) in systematic review reporting guidelines. Fifteen out of the 148 studies retrieved, met the inclusion criteria and these were critically appraised using the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine Critical Appraisal checklist and Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool, version 2018. Basic descriptive statistic (percentage) was employed in the analysis of acceptance rates of the COVID-19 vaccine among various subgroups of adults in Nigeria, while a thematic analysis of the facilitators and barriers to the uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine in Nigeria was conducted. Acceptance rates ranging from 24.3% to 49.5% were observed across the four studies conducted among the high-risk populations in Nigeria, while the acceptance rates among the low-risk populations ranged from 26.0% to 86.2%. Themes such as socio-demographic factors, perception of risk factors, and concerns about the vaccine's safety and efficacy act interchangeably as facilitators and barriers to the uptake of COVID-19 vaccines, whereas political factors, conspiracy theories, and cost primarily act as barriers to vaccine uptake. Short conclusion: Substantial heterogeneity was observed in COVID-19 vaccine acceptance rates among adults in Nigeria. More than half of the studies reviewed reported acceptance rates below 60.0%. A multidisciplinary approach is recommended in engaging important stakeholders, to effectively address COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in Nigeria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Vaccine hesitancy promotes the spread of infectious diseases including COVID-19 virus, limiting the herd immunity. Complications caused by COVID-19 in people with multiple sclerosis forced governments to ensure them prior access to vaccinations. Their propensity to be vaccinated needs to be assessed to promote adhesion to vaccination programs. The aim of this study was to explore the COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy rate in pwMS. Methods: We conducted an observational study recruiting patients affected by multiple sclerosis followed at MS Clinical and Research Unit of Tor Vergata University, Rome. We invited them to fill in an online survey about their intent to get COVID-19 vaccination. Fisher's exact test and Kruskal–Wallis test were performed to explore differences in sociodemographic, clinical, and emotional variables relative to the opinions about vaccinations. An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was performed to assess the factorial structure of the questionnaire; Pearson's correlations between the factors and Big Five personality dimensions were also calculated. Results: Of 276 respondents, 90% was willing to get vaccinated, while only 1.4% was sure to refuse the vaccination. Education level, opinions on safety and efficacy of vaccines, and emotional status were found to be associated to the propensity of getting the COVID-19 vaccination (respectively: p = 0.012, p < 0.001, and p = 0.0001). Moreover, general opinions on healthcare system were related to the intention to get vaccinated. Conclusion: Our results reinforce the importance of a good relationship between doctor and patient and the need to adapt doctors' communication strategy to patients' personalities and beliefs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While marked differences exist between influenza virus, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), there is substantial overlap in the vulnerability of populations most at risk for severe disease following infection, chief among them being advanced age, multiple comorbidities, and immunocompromise. Vaccination is an established and effective preventative strategy to protect against respiratory viral infections (RVIs), reducing morbidity and mortality, minimizing the potential for long-term complications, and mitigating exacerbation of existing health conditions. Despite the demonstrated benefits of immunization throughout the life course and recommendations by health authorities, coverage rates of at-risk populations against vaccine-preventable diseases remain suboptimal and vary considerably by country and demographic strata. The objective of this supplement's concluding article is to discuss the current barriers to vaccination and strategies to enhance coverage against RVIs among adult at-risk populations. Identified barriers include low awareness of the risks of vaccine-preventable diseases, low perceived benefits of vaccination, and doubts regarding vaccine safety, which together contribute to vaccine hesitancy. Additionally, logistical issues related to vaccine supply, access, and costs present further challenges in achieving optimal coverage. Potential strategies to overcome these barriers and improve uptake include strengthening and harmonizing immunization guidelines and improving respiratory disease surveillance systems to appropriately identify needs and direct resources. Co-administration or use of combination vaccines against multiple viruses may be a viable strategy to enhance coverage by simplifying schedules and improving access, together with future utilization of enhanced vaccine platforms to develop novel vaccines. In addition, vaccination-focused healthcare provider training and consumer education are recommended to address vaccine hesitancy. Reaching vaccination targets and expanding coverage in adult at-risk populations are increasingly achievable with the availability of new and updated vaccination strategies for respiratory viruses, but will require collective efforts across providers, policymakers, scientists, health officials, and the general population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To evaluate perceptions of COVID-19 vaccination and psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic in women considering or undergoing fertility treatment. Materials and methods: Cross-sectional anonymous survey (n= 3558) from a single academic fertility center. A total of 1103 patients completed the survey (response rate = 31% of those emailed, 97.6% of those who opened the email). Participants were randomized 1:1 to a one-page educational graphic providing facts and benefits regarding COVID-19 vaccination. Assessment of vaccine hesitancy was conducted via the Medical Mistrust Index (MMI). Mental health was assessed via the Patient Health Questionnaire Depression Scale (PHQ-8) and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7). Results: The majority of participants were married, nulliparous, white women with > 1 year of infertility and moderate to severe distress. As compared to the non-intervention group, participants in the intervention group believed that COVID-19 vaccination does not cause genetic abnormalities in a fetus (98.0% v. 94.2%) and infertility (99% v. 96.2%) and that severe infection has been associated with pregnancy (81.3% v. 74.6%) (P <0.05). Higher MMI scores were associated with vaccine hesitancy (P = 0.01), higher GAD-7 scores (P = 0.01), and greater concerns about side effects of the vaccine (P < 0.05). GAD-7 and PHQ-8 scores were not associated with vaccine hesitancy. Nearly a quarter of participants initiated psychiatric treatment after March 2020. Conclusion: Vaccine hesitancy was associated with mistrust of the medical system. Psychological distress was highly prevalent in this study. Efforts should be made to improve patient trust and provide psychological support for fertility patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the progress of the vaccination campaign against the SARS-COV-2, we are ever closer to reaching that part of the population that refuses or is hesitant about vaccination. This study investigated the association between critical thinking motivation factors (i.e., intrinsic value of critical thinking and expectancy of one's critical thinking ability), conspiracy mentality, intolerance of uncertainty and hesitancy toward vaccination. A sample of 390 participants completed an online survey during April 2021. Across participants, results indicate that conspiracy mentality and expectancy about personal ability as a critical thinker positively predict vaccine hesitancy. On the contrary, the intrinsic value attributed to critical thinking, intolerance of uncertainty, and education are negatively associated with hesitancy. While the findings confirm existing evidence, particularly on the detrimental role of conspiracy mentality on vaccine acceptance, they also shed light on the double-faced role exercised by critical thinking. Practical implications and future directions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Albeit the vaccination is one of the most successful and cost-effective public health interventions, reluctance or refusal to vaccinate represents one of the ten threats to global health by the World Health Organization. Additional efforts to promote vaccination are required for at higher risk categories, such as pregnant women. Our approach supports the role of a clear and transparent communication by using efficient interventions and educational strategies to increase both willingness and confidence for preventable diseases in neonates and infants by vaccinations in pregnancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hesitant attitudes have been a significant issue since the development of the first vaccines—the WHO sees them as one of the most critical global health threats. The increasing use of social media to spread questionable information about vaccination strongly impacts the population's decision to get vaccinated. Developing text classification methods that can identify hesitant messages on social media could be useful for health campaigns in their efforts to address negative influences from social media platforms and provide reliable information to support their strategies against hesitant-vaccination sentiments. This study aims to evaluate the performance of different machine learning models and deep learning methods in identifying vaccine-hesitant tweets that are being published during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our concluding remarks are that Long Short-Term Memory and Recurrent Neural Network models have outperformed traditional machine learning models on detecting vaccine-hesitant messages in social media, with an accuracy rate of 86% against 83%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the trust relations involved in Israel's COVID-19 vaccination campaign, focusing on vaccine hesitancy and the concept of 'trust'. The first section offers a conceptual analysis of 'trust'. Instead of analyzing trust in the vaccination campaign as a whole, a few objects of trust are identified and examined. In section two, the Israeli vaccination campaign is presented, and the focus is placed on vaccine hesitancy. In section three, different trust relations are examined: public trust in the Israeli government and health institutions, interpersonal trust in healthcare professionals and experts, trust in the pharmaceutical companies that make the COVID-19 vaccine, the US FDA, and trust in the new vaccine and the new technology. Through this complexity of trust relations, I argue that it is impossible to completely separate the trust that the vaccine is safe and effective from social aspects of mistrust. Additionally, practices of silencing and censoring the concerns of vaccine hesitaters – both experts and among the public, are pointed out. I contend that these cases further minimize vaccine hesitaters' trust in vaccine-related entities. In contrast, in section four, I suggest the 'trust-based approach': since vaccine hesitancy is not solely the result of knowledge deficiency but also a lack of trust relations, any campaign that addresses vaccine hesitancy should also focus on trust. The advantages of this approach are spelled out. For governments, a discussion based on trust is, ultimately, the best democratic way to encourage hesitaters to take the plunge and get vaccinated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vaccine hesitancy is one of the top 10 threats to global health, which affects the prevalence and fatality of vaccine-preventable diseases over the world. During the COVID-19 pandemic, people living with HIV (PLWH) may have higher risks of infection, more serious complications, and worse prognosis without the protection of the COVID-19 vaccine. A systematic review and meta-analysis aiming to evaluate the prevalence of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among PLWH was conducted using PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science databases for studies published between January 1, 2020, and August 31, 2022. The pooled prevalence with a corresponding 95%CI of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among PLWH was reported. Subgroup analysis was conducted to explore variation in prevalence across different categories. 23 studies with a total of 19,922 PLWH were included in this study. The prevalence of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among PLWH was 34.0%, and the influencing factors included male, influenza vaccination experience, and a CD4 count of more than 200 cells/mm3. Subgroup analysis did not identify significant causes of heterogeneity but showed that the prevalence of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among PLWH varies by study period, region, and race. Although all PLWH are recommended to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, a large proportion of them remain hesitant to be vaccinated. Therefore, governments and relevant institutions should take specific measures to encourage and promote vaccination to improve the coverage of the COVID-19 vaccine among PLWH. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study was to assess the influence of workplace safety conditions alongside the World Health Organization's model of the "3 Cs", on grocery store workers' vaccine hesitancy concerning COVID-19. Data for this study come from the Arizona Frontline Workers Survey, a longitudin web-based survey of 770 grocery store workers in the state of Arizona (US) collected in July 2020 and January 2021. We utilized ordinary least squares and multinomial logistic regression analyses to assess predictors of hesitancy at our Wave 2. Thirty-nine percent of our sample reported being unlikely to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Two aspects of the "3 Cs" model, confidence and convenience, were correlated with lower levels of vaccine hesitancy while the perceptions of being protected by one's employer increased hesitancy. Our findings underscore the importance of workplace conditions for vaccine hesitancy and the need to include vaccine messaging in employers' safety practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article aimed to show the analytical potential of the life-world concept in the field of public health, which has not received much attention in the phenomenological literature. Specifically, based on phenomenologically grounded qualitative research, we aimed to show how the life-world concept, as worked out in Edmund Husserl’s philosophy, can offer new insights on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. Although there are many ways in which the life-world can motivate vaccine hesitancy, we have narrowed our focus to one of them. Our aim is to argue that COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy is motivated by discrepancies and conflicts between the perceptual life-world and the scientific knowledge. If the scientific knowledge about the pandemic and the vaccine is not integrated in the life-world—which in its core is an embodied, perceptual world—and instead conflicts with it, people are more likely to become disinclined to get vaccinated rather than motivated to pursue vaccination. We conclude the discussion by outlining ideas on how the insights offered by our analysis could be potentially used in devising management and communication strategies in public health crises, such as a pandemic outbreak. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the relationship between respondents' vaccine hesitancy, reported media consumption patterns, ideological leanings, and trust in science. A large-scale survey conducted in the US in 2022 (N = 1,646) assessed self-reported COVID-19 vaccination, trust in science, and reported media consumption. Findings show that, regardless of personal ideology, individuals who consumed less conservative media and had a more ideologically diverse media diet were more likely to be fully vaccinated and boosted. Additionally, consuming more conservative media was negatively associated with trust in science, but this relationship was weaker among those with a more ideologically diverse media diet. By incorporating data from an earlier wave of the survey in the summer of 2020, before COVID-19 vaccines were available, we found that a less conservative and more ideologically diverse media diet in 2022 predicted vaccination behavior in 2022, controlling for prior vaccine intentions and media consumption in 2020. A similar survey conducted in the UK in the summer of 2020 paralleled patterns in the US regarding vaccine intentions and media consumption. These results suggest that an ideologically diverse media diet is associated with reduced vaccine hesitancy. Public health initiatives might benefit from encouraging ideologically diverse media consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The World Health Organization has designated vaccine hesitancy and vaccine confidence among the most pressing issues in global health. The COVID-19 pandemic has made vaccine hesitancy and vaccine confidence particularly salient and urgent. The purpose of this special issue is to highlight a broad range of perspectives on these critical issues. We have included a total of 30 papers that address issues related to vaccine hesitancy and vaccine confidence across multiple levels of the Socio-Ecological Model. We have organized the empirical papers into the following sections: individual-level beliefs, minority health and health disparities, social media and conspiracy beliefs, and interventions. In addition to the empirical papers, three commentaries are included in this special issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore beliefs and attitudes toward the COVID-19 vaccine among vaccinated and unvaccinated pregnant persons in order to identify reasons for both vaccine hesitancy and vaccine uptake. Methods: From June–August 2021, we conducted a qualitative study consisting of semi-structured interviews with pregnant persons (n = 30). Participants were recruited from university-owned obstetric practices during prenatal and ultrasound appointments. Interviews were audio recorded and transcribed; transcripts were coded and analyzed to identify themes and subthemes. Results: Of the participants, one-third (n = 10) had received the COVID-19 vaccine, while two-thirds (n = 20) were unvaccinated. Primary themes for unvaccinated participants were concern about the paucity of research on the vaccine in pregnancy and potential impact of the vaccine on both fetal development and maternal health. For vaccinated participants, main themes included potential maternal and fetal protection from COVID-19 and anticipated health complications from contracting COVID-19 as their motivations to get vaccinated. While most participants cited healthcare providers as the most trusted source of vaccine information, a majority reported that the internet was their primary source of vaccine information. Many participants wanted to learn more about the COVID-19 vaccine from their obstetric providers, and notably, most vaccinated participants reported the importance of their obstetrician in their vaccine decision-making process. Conclusions: COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy is prevalent among pregnant persons, with concerns for vaccine safety for their fetus, as well as for themselves, being common. Obstetric providers must therefore be prepared to address common concerns with patients during prenatal appointments, taking the time to actively recommend vaccination. Significance: At a time of high vaccine hesitancy, this study demonstrates the importance of the patient-physician relationship in influencing patients towards vaccination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to cancer survivors' increased vulnerability to complications from COVID-19, addressing vaccine hesitancy and improving vaccine uptake among this population is a public health priority. However, several factors may complicate efforts to increase vaccine confidence in this population, including the underrepresentation of cancer patients in COVID-19 vaccine trials and distinct recommendations for vaccine administration and timing for certain subgroups of survivors. Evidence suggests vaccine communication efforts targeting survivors could benefit from strategies that consider factors such as social norms, risk perceptions, and trust. However, additional behavioral research is needed to help the clinical and public health community better understand, and more effectively respond to, drivers of vaccine hesitancy among survivors and ensure optimal protection against COVID-19 for this at-risk population. Knowledge generated by this research could also have an impact beyond the current COVID-19 pandemic by informing future vaccination efforts and communication with cancer survivors more broadly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among Medicare beneficiaries is critical for increasing COVID-19 vaccine uptake in the US. This study aimed to estimate and compare the vaccine hesitancy rate among community-dwelling Medicare beneficiaries with and without cancer history, also to investigate factors associated with vaccine hesitancy during the first four months after COVID-19 vaccine became available. We used population-based, cross-sectional data on 3,034 community-living Medicare beneficiaries from the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey COVID-19 Winter 2021 Supplement. Sample weights were applied to account for the complex survey design with results generalizable to 16.4 million Medicare beneficiaries. Weighted multivariable logistic regression model was conducted to investigate the association between cancer history and vaccine hesitancy adjusting for covariates. A total of 39.6% were hesitant about getting COVID-19 vaccine. Those with cancer history were significantly less likely to be hesitant to get vaccinated than those without cancer history (adjusted odds ratio = 0.80, 95% confidence interval: 0.64, 0.99, p =.050). The most common reason for being hesitant to get COVID-19 vaccine was that the vaccine could have side effects or was viewed as not safe (19.2%), followed by not trusting what government says about vaccine (11.4%). Those with cancer history were more likely to report ongoing health conditions, lack of recommendation from a doctor, and doctor recommending against COVID-19 vaccination as reasons for not getting the vaccine compared to participants without cancer history. Increasing the confidence and knowledge about vaccine benefits among high-risk and more hesitant individuals are urgently needed to increase the vaccine uptake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: We aimed to measure the acceptability towards the COVID-19 vaccination in cancer patients and to investigate determinant factors associated with the patient's choice. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey with a self-administered questionnaire delivered to 329 cancer patients in 3 oncology cancer centers in Tunisia between February-May 2021. Logistic regression was used to evaluate odds ratio predicting patient's intentions toward the vaccine. Results: Acceptance rate was 50.5%, 28.3% (n = 93) reported to definitely refuse the vaccine and 21.2% (n = 70) did not make their decision yet. High educational level, history of comorbidities, history of influenza vaccination in the current season, and patient's opinion about the severity of COVID-19 did not predict vaccine resistance. However, patients who think that the vaccine may interfere with treatment efficacy (OR = 7.28, 95%CI [2.5–12.32]), or may impact cancer outcome (OR = 6.14, 95%CI [2.27–16.7]), were significantly more likely to refuse the vaccine. Patients who disagree that the vaccine is a major weapon against the pandemic (OR = 6.07, 95%CI [2.34–9.52]) or that it could reduce the virus transmission (OR = 7.34, 95%CI [4.22–11.81]) were also significantly more likely to reject the vaccination. Safety concerns were also significant predictive factors (OR = 7.9, 95%CI [4.10–11.27]. Confidence level in the authorities played a significant role in patient's acceptance of the vaccine, indeed patients who are not registered (OR = 5.9, 95%CI [1.58–8.7]) or not informed about the Tunisian national vaccination platform EVAX (OR = 5.51, 95%CI [2.1–7.9]) were more likely to be against the vaccine. Conclusion: Cancer patient's education about the impact of the vaccine on their disease and on the COVID-19 is needed. Governments should build strategies to gain more population confidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We administered a survey during the fifteen-minute wait time after the COVID-19 vaccine was given (N = 1475) to examine attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccines among adults who were vaccinated in Arkansas between April 22nd and July 6th, 2021. We found 60% of those who had just been vaccinated reported some level of hesitancy, including 10% who reported being "very hesitant." Hesitancy was not evenly distributed across sociodemographic groups (age, sex, race/ethnicity, and education) and was associated with whether a non-English language is spoken in the home, health care coverage, and flu vaccination over the past five years in bivariate analysis. Generalized ordered logistic regression results reveal associations between the log-ordered odds of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and age, sex, race/ethnicity, health care coverage, health literacy, and flu vaccination over the past five years. Surprisingly, a prior COVID-19 diagnosis was not significantly associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. These results can inform health care and communication strategies. Further attention to "hesitant adopters" can provide insights into the process of overcoming vaccine hesitancy that are critical to vaccine uptake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research explores the determinants of vaccine hesitancy during the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Hungary. This article utilizes data from in-person public opinion research conducted in Hungary (March 2021, N = 1000). Government supporters, older people (60 +) and COVID-19 survivors were more likely to accept vaccination, but these variables lose significance, once controlling for personal fears and pandemic-related attitudes. COVID-19 related fears and precautious behavior reduce, while general level of fears increase the probability of vaccine hesitancy. Fear from partner's aggression and higher levels of financial security negatively correlate with vaccine hesitancy. Our study separately analyzes the effect of various pandemic-related conspiratorial beliefs on vaccine hesitancy. All analyzed false beliefs have a significant positive effect on vaccine hesitancy, but the strongest predictors are vaccine-related conspiracy theories ("microchip" and "population control" theories) and virus denial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Vaccine hesitancy is an inevitable risk for societies as it contributes to outbreaks of diseases. Prior research suggests that vaccination decisions of individuals tend to spread within social networks, resulting in a tendency to vaccination homophily. The clustering of individuals resistant to vaccination can substantially make the threshold necessary to achieve herd immunity harder to reach. In this study, we examined the extent of vaccination homophily among social contacts and its association with vaccine uptake during the COVID-19 pandemic in Hungary using a contact diary approach in two cross-sectional surveys. The results indicate strong clustering among both vaccinated and unvaccinated groups. The most powerful predictor of vaccine uptake was the perceived vaccination rate within the egos' social contact network. Vaccination homophily and the role of the interpersonal contact network in vaccine uptake were particularly pronounced in the networks of close relationships, including family, kinship, and strong social ties of the ego. Our findings have important implications for understanding COVID-19 spread dynamics by showing that the strong clustering of unvaccinated individuals posed a great risk in preventing the spread of the disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 crisis has exposed the public to considerable scientific uncertainty, which may promote vaccine hesitancy among individuals with lower tolerance of uncertainty. In a national sample of US adults in May–June 2020, we examined how both perceptions of uncertainty about COVID-19 and trait-level differences in tolerance of uncertainty arising from various sources (risk, ambiguity, and complexity) are related to vaccine hesitancy-related outcomes, including trust in COVID-19 information, COVID-19 vaccine intentions, and beliefs that COVID-19 vaccines should undergo a longer testing period before being released to the public. Overall, perceptions of COVID-19 uncertainty were not associated with trust in information, vaccine intentions, or beliefs about vaccine testing. However, higher tolerance of risk was associated with lower intentions to get vaccinated, and lower tolerance of ambiguity was associated with lower intentions to get vaccinated and preferring a longer period of vaccine testing. Critically, perceptions of COVID-19 uncertainty and trait-level tolerance for uncertainty also interacted as predicted, such that greater perceived COVID-19 uncertainty was more negatively associated with trust in COVID-19 information among individuals with lower tolerance for risk and ambiguity. Thus, although perceptions of uncertainty regarding COVID-19 may not reduce trust and vaccine hesitancy for all individuals, trait-level tolerance of uncertainty arising from various sources may have both direct and moderating effects on these outcomes. These findings can inform public health communication or other interventions to increase COVID-19 vaccination uptake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Characterizing the seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in children is needed to optimize the COVID-19 public health response. We quantified the seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection-acquired antibodies and vaccine-acquired antibodies among children receiving primary care in Toronto, Canada., Methods: We conducted a longitudinal cohort study between January 2021 and November 2022 in healthy children aged 0-16 years receiving primary care in Toronto. The primary and secondary outcomes were seroprevalence of SARS-COV-2 infection-acquired antibodies and vaccine-acquired antibodies ascertained from finger-prick dried blood spots. Samples were tested using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for antibodies to full-length spike trimer and nucleocapsid. We explored sociodemographic differences with Firth's penalized generalized estimating equations., Results: Of the 475 participants, 50.1% were girls and mean age was 6.4 years (SD = 3.2). We identified 103 children seropositive for infection-acquired antibodies, with a crude seroprevalence that rose from 2.6% (95%CI 1.39-4.92) from January to July 2021 to 50.7% (95%CI 39.5-61.8) by July to November 2022. Seroprevalence of vaccine-acquired antibodies was 45.2% by July to November 2022 (95%CI 34.3-56.58). No differences in sociodemographic factors (age, sex, income, or ethnicity) were identified for infection-acquired antibodies; however, children with vaccine-acquired antibodies were more likely to be older, have mothers with university education, and have mothers who had also been vaccinated., Conclusion: Our results provide a benchmark for seroprevalence of SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in children in Toronto. Ongoing monitoring of the serological status of children is important, particularly with the emergence of new variants of concern, low vaccine coverage, and discontinuation of PCR testing., Competing Interests: Declarations. Conflict of interest: The authors declare no competing interests. Ethics approval: All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional (REB# 20–080 Unity Health Toronto Research Ethics) and national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Consent to participate: Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study., (© 2024. The Author(s) under exclusive license to The Canadian Public Health Association.)

Background: People with mental health problems are at particular risk both for infection with COVID-19 and for more severe course of illness. Understanding COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy is crucial in promoting vaccine acceptance among people with mental health diagnoses. This review aims to identify the prevalence and discuss factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among the mentally ill population. Main body: We conducted a detailed literature search and included 15 articles for discussion in this review. Several studies showed varying trends of vaccine hesitancy rates among different countries. Major factors involved in vaccine hesitancy in general include mistrust, misinformation, believing in conspiracy theories, and negative attitudes towards vaccines. It was surprising that none of the studies were focused on vaccine acceptance rates and factors associated with vaccine hesitancy among the mentally ill population. However, studies do show that COVID-19 is associated with worse healthcare outcomes for psychiatric patients, and vaccine hesitancy correlated with a lower likelihood of receiving mental health treatment and vaccinations. Psychiatrists need to address issues among patients who are particularly vulnerable to the fear of vaccines which include anxiety, panic attacks, certain phobias including trypanophobia and agoraphobia, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and certain types of traumas. Psychiatrists need to communicate effectively, show respect, empathy, and deliver accurate and honest information about the vaccines. Motivational interviewing, getting people with mental health illness to organize vaccine campaigns, and involving families with mental health problems may promote vaccine acceptance among this group. Conclusion: Existing literature on the rates of vaccine hesitancy among people with mental health illness is limited. The mental health illness may increase the risk of hesitancy especially in patients having certain emotional disorders such as anxiety and phobia. More studies addressing vaccine hesitancy rates and factors associated with the mentally ill population need to be done in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acute kidney injury (AKI) has been noticed after both COVID-19 vaccination and infection, affecting risk-benefit evaluations and vaccine hesitancy. We conducted a large-scale N3C cohort study to compare AKI incidence following COVID-19 vaccination and infection. Participants from December 2020 to August 2023 were divided into two groups based on their initially observed COVID-19 antigen exposure: COVID-19 vaccination group (n = 2,953,219) and COVID-19 infection group (n = 3,616,802). AKI was defined by diagnostic codes and serum creatinine changes within a 30 day follow-up window after exposure. The absolute risk of AKI was 0.66% in the vaccination group versus 4.88% in the infection group. After adjusting for various confounders, COVID-19 infection was associated with a significantly higher risk of AKI than COVID-19 vaccination (aHR = 10.31, P < 0.001). Our study reveals that COVID-19 vaccination is associated with a significant lower AKI risk compared to COVID-19 infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

COVID-19 has emerged as the greatest threat in recent times, causing extensive mortality and morbidity in the entire world. India is among the highly affected countries suffering severe disruptions due this pandemic. To overcome the adverse effects of COVID-19, vaccination has been identified as the most effective preventive measure globally. However, a growing amount of hesitancy has been observed among the general public regarding the efficacy and possible side-effects of vaccination. Such hesitancy may proved to be the greatest hindrance towards combating this deadly pandemic. This paper introduces a multimodal deep learning method for Indian Twitter user classification, leveraging both content-based and network-based features. To explore the fundamental features of different modalities, improvisations of transformer models, BERT and GraphBERT are utilized to encode the textual and network structure information. The proposed approach thus integrates multiple data representations, utilizing the advances in both transformer based deep learning as well as multimodal learning. Experimental results demonstrates the efficacy of proposed approach over state of the art approaches. Aggregated feature representations from multiple modalities embed additional information that improves the classification results. The findings of the proposed model has been further utilized to perform a study on the dynamics of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is important to distinguish between apprehensions that lead to vaccine rejection and those that do not. In this study, we (1) identifed latent classes of individuals by vaccination attitudes, and (2) compared classes of individuals by sociodemographic characteristics COVID-19 vaccination, and risk reduction behaviors. The COVID-19 Coping Study is a longitudinal cohort of US adults aged ≥ 55 years (n = 2358). We categorized individuals into three classes based on the adult Vaccine Hesitancy Scale using latent class analysis (LCA). The associations between class membership and sociodemographic characteristics, COVID-19 vaccination, and other behaviors were assessed using chi-square tests. In total, 88.9% were Vaccine Acceptors, 8.6% were Vaccine Ambivalent, and 2.5% Vaccine Rejectors. At the end, 90.7% of Acceptors, 62.4% of the Ambivalent, and 30.7% of the Rejectors had been vaccinated. The Ambivalent were more likely to be Black or Hispanic, and adopted social distancing and mask wearing behaviors intermediate to that of the Acceptors and Rejectors. Targeting the Vaccine Ambivalent may be an efficient way of increasing vaccination coverage. Controlling the spread of disease during a pandemic requires tailoring vaccine messaging to their concerns, e.g., through working with trusted community leaders, while promoting other risk reduction behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vaccine hesitancy has taken a toll on COVID-19 immunization globally. This study aims to characterize three COVID-19-related health concerns (i.e., vaccine hesitancy, anticipated stigma, and risk perception) in Canada and how they differ based on im/migration status and other social determinants. Data were obtained from a nationwide probability sample of the Canadian Perspective Survey Series 3 (June 15 to 21, 2020). Multivariable binary logistic regression analysis was performed to investigate the association between each COVID-19 concern and nativity status, while controlling for socio-demographics. Of 3522 participants aged ≥ 25 years, the estimated overall prevalence of vaccine hesitancy was 16.9%, with im/migrants being greater than non-immigrants (21.5% vs. 15.5%, p < 0.001). After controlling for all covariates, im/migrants had around two-fold greater odds of all three health concerns, including risk perception of accessing care (aOR 2.44, 95% CI 1.89–3.15), anticipated stigma of being targeted (aOR 2.24, 95% CI 1.81, 2.78) and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy (aOR 1.99, 95% CI 1.57–2.52), compared to their Canadian-born peers. Among vaccine-hesitant individuals (n = 596), im/migrants reported higher concerns, than non-immigrants, on vaccine safety (71.3% vs. 49.5%), side effects (66.4% vs 47.3%) and mistrust in vaccinations (12.5% vs 6.6%) as possible reasons of vaccine refusal. For migrant justice, health authorities should ensure equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines and other health-enhancing resources for im/migrants to mitigate their heightened fear, stigma, and mistrust of new vaccines amidst turbulent times. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Covid-19 vaccine hesitancy among young adults is a current public health issue that needs to be addressed considering the seasonally driven waves of disease and the administration of vaccine boosters. As a prevention measure, the EU Covid certificate had been implemented to increase vaccine uptake, but its application was controversial. Our study investigated students' opinions and attitudes towards Covid-19 vaccination and the EU Covid certificate through a mixed-methods design. An 18-item questionnaire was administered to 200 students during a vaccination campaign in September 2021 at the University of Bordeaux, France. Simultaneously, 30 students attended a semi-structured interview. Collected data were analyzed separately then discussed together through a parallel and convergent approach. Results showed that vaccine hesitancy was high among students, mostly from fear of short-term side effects. However, respondents decided to get vaccinated to obtain the EU Covid certificate, even if they considered it as a violation of their freedom. Straightforward communication about Covid-19 vaccination did not reach students, although this was a strong expectation from governmental and health institutions. Findings suggest that key health personnel should provide evidence-based information about vaccines in efforts of building trust with young people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Disparities in vaccine confidence and uptake among racial and ethnic minorities have resulted in a disproportionate burden of COVID-19 in these populations. Social media campaigns have shown promise in public health promotion and behavioral interventions. In January 2022, an academic-community partnership launched #Vax4Community, a 6-month social media campaign centered around the use of digital storytelling videos. The campaign purpose was to decrease vaccine hesitancy, combat vaccine misinformation and disinformation, and increase vaccine confidence within three distinct target communities: the justice-involved population, South Asian residents, and public housing youth in the metropolitan area of New York City (NYC). Our approach included the production and dissemination of digital storytelling videos featuring personal vaccine experiences from target populations. We evaluated key performance indicators (KPIs) of the campaign, including post impressions, reach and engagement across social media platforms, and shares from partner organizations. Overall, we received 1,910,662 post impressions, 699,722 unique users reached, and 2,880 post engagements across Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter, and 147 shares from 48 partner organizations. Social media campaigns require strategic design in branding, messaging and outreach channels and could serve as an important tool to disseminate emotionally relatable content and trusted information to prime target populations to respond more optimally to public health interventions. The purpose of this paper is to describe the process of creating and disseminating these digital stories and the KPIs of the social media campaign. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This literature review explores the impact of COVID-19 upon the residential aged care (RAC) workforce during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, including the workforce from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds. It also considers COVID-19 related interventions for the RAC workforce. The databases ProQuest, PubMed, Cumulated Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Google Scholar and Cochrane Central were searched in April and May 2022. Twenty-six studies were identified which were related to the impact of COVID-19 on the RAC workforce, including four studies on the CALD workforce. Many studies highlighted the impact of COVID-19 upon workforce shortages, workplace demands, worker wellbeing, and intention to quit the profession. The importance of workplace communication and support strategies during the COVID-19 pandemic were also underlined. Issues pertinent to the CALD workforce included understanding dementia, vaccine hesitancy and the impact of aged care, migration and labour market policies on the workforce. Workforce factors, including poor working conditions (and lack of paid leave) had a significant impact upon COVID-19 morbidity and mortality. Conversely, responding to COVID-19 impacted workforce mental health. There is a need for workforce support policies and research which consider organisational communication, work-life balance, and specific training and support needs of workers from CALD backgrounds, who comprise a significant proportion of the aged care workforce in Australia and many other countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To end the HIV epidemic, there is need for targeted strategies to reduce HIV incidence for those most vulnerable, including an HIV vaccine. This study seeks to understand the perceptions that non-PrEP using gay and bisexual men and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM) have about a potential HIV vaccine, while contextualizing their perspectives within the context of heightened vaccine hesitancy that has emerged since the COVID-19 pandemic. Between March and May of 2022, GBMSM (N = 20) participated in in-depth interviews, which assessed their perceptions about an HIV vaccine. Interviews were analysed using a codebook approach to thematic analysis. We oversampled for those unvaccinated against COVID-19 as a proxy for vaccine hesitation. Participants expressed a range of enthusiastic support, cautious optimism and skepticism when presented with the possibility of an HIV vaccine. Factors that drove willingness to receive an HIV vaccine included community-oriented altruism, individualized risk-benefit assessment, and/or the perception that a vaccine could provide a beneficial shift in sexual experiences. Participants also expressed hesitations about receiving an HIV vaccine, including concerns about potential side-effects and efficacy, as well as mistrust in the vaccine development process. Notably, participants often evaluated the vaccine in comparison to PrEP and condoms. Participants offered specific insights into information they would like to receive about an HIV and where/how they would like to receive it. Our findings can help inform future HIV vaccine implementation efforts by offering insights into the factors that motivate and deter GBMSM to receive an HIV vaccine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dear Editor, Mass vaccination campaigns against COVID-19 started in early 2021 and its efficacy has been clearly demonstrated. Vaccine hesitancy was not different in ASIA patients compared to patients with vasculitis (16.6% versus 10.6%) ( I p i = 0.79). [Extracted from the article]

To assess factors influencing acceptability of COVID-19 vaccine in a population of predominantly indigent, minority, pregnant and non-pregnant people of reproductive age. Cross-sectional survey using a modified Health Belief model administered between January 2021 and January 2022 at four hospitals in Brooklyn. Participants included English-speaking reproductive aged persons attending clinics at the participating sites. Descriptive and univariate data analyses were used for analysis. 283 eligible reproductive persons were approached of whom 272 completed the survey (96%). Three quarters said they would take the vaccine under certain circumstances ("as soon as it is ready" [28.6%], "when my doctor recommends it" [21.3%] or "when enough people have received it to know if it works" [25%]), while 25% said they would never take the vaccine. When comparing persons that would take it under certain circumstances to those that never would, the "never" group was significantly more likely to note that, "they would not trust any COVID vaccine" (71.4% vs. 28.5%; p ≤ 0.0001). This greater level of distrust extended to greater distrust of doctors, government, family, newspapers, and media. However, 36% said they would be influenced by their doctor's recommendation. Pregnant participants were significantly more likely to wait until their doctor recommended it (17.6% of pregnant persons compared to 3.7% of non-pregnant p < 0.0001). Despite mistrust and other discouraging factors, many persons, under appropriate circumstances (e.g., reassurance about vaccine safety) may be motivated to take the vaccine. Even those who claimed that they wouldn't take the vaccine under any circumstance may be influenced by their health care providers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Lack of trust in biomedical research, government, and health care systems, especially among racial/ethnic minorities and under-resourced communities, is a longstanding issue rooted in social injustice. The COVID-19 pandemic has further highlighted existing health and socioeconomic inequities and increased the urgency for solutions to provide access to timely, culturally, and linguistically appropriate evidence-based information about COVID-19; and ultimately to promote vaccine uptake. California's statewide alliance STOP COVID-19 CA (comprising eleven sites), leverages long standing community partnerships to better understand concerns, misinformation, and address racial/ethnic inequities in vaccine hesitancy and uptake. Using data from the California CEAL Communication Working Group, we demonstrate the wide range of strategies, communication methods, languages, and trusted messengers that have been effective in reaching diverse communities across the state. We also showcase challenges and lessons learned, such as the importance of including trusted community partners to share information or provide vaccines. These approaches, rooted in community engagement, are crucial for addressing inequities and responding to future public health emergencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aims: Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and underrepresented minorities (URMs) historically have below average vaccination rates. URMs have increased morbidity and mortality from COVID-19. We surveyed IBD patients to assess COVID vaccination attitudes, particularly among URMs. Methods: In May and June 2021, all 822 adult patients with IBD, medically homed at a tertiary IBD referral center and safety net hospital, and with access to the electronic patient portal, were sent an electronic survey assessing their attitudes regarding COVID-19 vaccination. An additional 115 without access to the patient portal were contacted by phone. Demographic and clinical data were recorded. The primary outcome was vaccination hesitancy, defined as: likely will become vaccinated later this year, but not immediately; unsure if they will get the vaccine; or do not want the vaccine. Multivariable logistic regression was used to calculate adjusted odds ratios (aOR) of factors associated with vaccination intent. Results: The mean age was 46.6 years (SD 15.1). 210/1029 patients responded to the survey: 150/822 (18.2%) electronically and 60/115 (52.2%) by phone. Overall vaccine hesitancy rate was 11.9%, significantly higher in younger (aOR for 10-year increments, 0.64; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.46–0.90, p = 0.011), Hispanic (aOR, 7.67; 95% CI, 2.99–21.3, p < 0.0002), and Black patients (aOR, 3.52; 95% CI 1.11–11.1, p = 0.050). Safety concerns were the most cited reasons for vaccine hesitancy. Conclusions: URM patients were more vaccine hesitant. Future studies should further explore factors leading to lower vaccination rates among these groups and strategies to improve COVID-19 vaccination rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Even with vaccine mandates, COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy remains a concern among healthcare workers, in part due to their role in promoting vaccination among patients and communities. To examine COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy, acceptance, and promotion among healthcare workers, we conducted a mixed-methods analysis of (1) survey responses about COVID-19 vaccination and (2) Twitter messages (i.e., tweets) relevant to COVID-19 vaccination and healthcare. A total of 540 hospital employees completed the survey. Those that completed less than 80% of the survey or did not endorse employment at the hospital were excluded, resulting in a total of 511 valid responses; 93.2% reported receiving at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Approximately 1/3 of vaccinated individuals indicated they posted about receiving the vaccine on social media. Simultaneously, we analyzed a sample of 3845 tweets; 2299 (60%) were relevant to COVID-19 vaccination and 1863 (81%) were coded as authored by an individual. Of tweets authored by an individual, 6% (n = 106) were authored by a healthcare provider/health sciences student. Among relevant tweets, the most frequent code across all sentiment categories was related to the pharmaceutical industry (n = 529 tweets, 28%; n = 33, 31% of tweets authored by healthcare workers). Triangulation of results found themes including vaccine access, trust, and vaccine safety or negative health impacts. Results suggest that promoting the sharing of COVID-19 vaccine personal narratives on social media, combined with interventions targeting specific reasons for COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and emphasizing freedom from fear once vaccinated could be effective at reducing COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One year after the start of the COVID-19 vaccination programme in England, more than 43 million people older than 12 years old had received at least a first dose. Nevertheless, geographical differences persist, and vaccine hesitancy is still a major public health concern; understanding its determinants is crucial to managing the COVID-19 pandemic and preparing for future ones. In this cross-sectional population-based study we used cumulative data on the first dose of vaccine received by 01-01-2022 at Middle Super Output Area level in England. We used Bayesian hierarchical spatial models and investigated if the geographical differences in vaccination uptake can be explained by a range of community-level characteristics covering socio-demographics, political view, COVID-19 health risk awareness and targeting of high risk groups and accessibility. Deprivation is the covariate most strongly associated with vaccine uptake (Odds Ratio 0.55, 95%CI 0.54-0.57; most versus least deprived areas). The most ethnically diverse areas have a 38% (95%CI 36-40%) lower odds of vaccine uptake compared with those least diverse. Areas with the highest proportion of population between 12 and 24 years old had lower odds of vaccination (0.87, 95%CI 0.85-0.89). Finally increase in vaccine accessibility is associated with COVID-19 vaccine coverage (OR 1.07, 95%CI 1.03-1.12). Our results suggest that one year after the start of the vaccination programme, there is still evidence of inequalities in uptake, affecting particularly minorities and marginalised groups. Strategies including prioritising active outreach across communities and removing practical barriers and factors that make vaccines less accessible are needed to level up the differences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of AIDS & Behavior is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Despite an abundance of scientific evidence supporting the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines, there has been a recent global surge in vaccine hesitancy, primarily driven by the spread of misinformation on social media platforms. It is crucial to address this issue and raise awareness about the importance of vaccination in combating the deadly COVID-19 virus. Predicting community sentiment through social media platforms can provide valuable insights into vaccine hesitancy, aiding health workers and medical professionals in taking necessary precautionary measures. However, the lack of high-quality labeled data presents a challenge for building an effective COVID-19 sentiment classifier. Additionally, the available labeled datasets suffer from severe class imbalance. To address these challenges, this article presents an effective COVID-19 sentiment prediction framework. Firstly, a deep adversarial active learning framework leverages abundant unlabeled data by training autoencoder and discriminator components adversarially to select the most informative unlabeled samples. Secondly, to mitigate the effects of imbalanced labeled datasets, a resampling phase is incorporated into the adversarial training loop. The proposed framework, named Resampling Supported Deep Adversarial Active Learning (RS-DAAL), is rigorously evaluated using two different datasets comprising social media posts from Twitter and Reddit. Various resampling techniques, including undersampling, oversampling, and hybrid methods, are assessed, with oversampling techniques further tested at different levels of resampling. Comparative studies are conducted against a baseline model without any resampling layer and with current state-of-the-art methods as well. Experimental results and statistical analysis demonstrate the superiority of the proposed RS-DAAL method in identifying COVID-19 sentiments on social media platforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the discussion on children experience long COVID, with symptoms including mood changes, fatigue, and sleep disorders. Topics include newness of the vaccines and the speed of vaccine development often mentioned by parents as reasons for not vaccinating their children; and vaccine uptake as dependent variable containing parents' political views in the analysis.

We sought to assess COVID-19 vaccination rates, as well as attitudes and beliefs towards the vaccine, of patients in a Spanish-speaking student-run free clinic in Columbus, Ohio. A cross-sectional study was performed. Surveys were distributed to all individuals over 18 years who presented to La Clínica Latina between July, 2022 and September, 2022. A convenience sample was used: patients in the waiting room and their accompanying family members or friends were invited to participate. Subjects were excluded if under the age of 18 or over the age of 75, or if non-Spanish speaking. Of the 158 individuals who agreed to participate in our study, 146 responded to the question regarding vaccination status, revealing 90.4% of respondents had received a COVID-19 vaccination. Most respondents learned about the vaccine from social media (26.4%) or television (22.7%). The majority of participants sought answers to questions surrounding the vaccine by asking their doctor (49.1%). The most common reason among unvaccinated participants for not undergoing vaccination was fear of an adverse reaction to the vaccine (n = 11). We found that a large proportion (90.4%) of individuals seeking care at a Spanish-speaking free clinic were vaccinated against COVID-19. Our study also provides perspective on the means of health knowledge acquisition and behaviors in this predominantly Latinx patient population in central Ohio. We can utilize our results to optimize and tailor clinic services and initiatives for COVID-19 boosters to meet the needs of this community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aims: COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy varies across the USA. Data on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) are lacking. We assessed COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and its associated variables in patients with IBD. Methods: We evaluated voluntary patient survey responses during routine clinical visits to our IBD center. Data collected included demographic and clinical characteristics. Descriptive statistics, univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to evaluate significant associations with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. Results: A total of 239 individuals completed the survey. Over a third of respondents (35.6%) expressed hesitancy toward receiving the COVID-19 vaccine due to vaccine safety concerns (49.4%) and efficacy (23.5%), while others reported non-specific concerns (34.1%). On univariate analysis, Crohn's disease (OR 2.33 CI 1.28–4.25 p = 0.0056), use of biologic medications (OR 1.93 CI 1.16–3.23, p = 0.012), previous self-reported vaccine refusal (OR 8.13 CI 2.90–22.82 p = 0.0001), earlier date of survey administration (OR 2.01 CI 1.17–3.44 p = 0.011), and self-reported COVID infection (OR 2.55 CI 1.16–5.61 p = 0.0056) were more likely to be associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. On multivariate analysis, patient age, previous vaccine refusal and date of survey administration were more likely to be associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. Conclusions: Over one-third of patients with IBD expressed COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. Vaccine safety and efficacy were the most common reasons. Younger age, previous vaccine refusal and earlier date of survey were more likely to be associated with hesitancy. Our findings suggest that there is room for targeted education to improve COVID-19 vaccine uptake in patients with IBD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]