Search

Introduction: Before the mass vaccination, epidemiological control measures were the only means of containing the COVID-19 epidemic. Their effectiveness determined the consequences of the COVID-19 epidemic. Our study evaluated the impact of sociodemographic, lifestyle, and clinical factors on patient-reported epidemiological control measures. Methods: A nationwide representative sample of 1008 randomly selected adults were interviewed in person between 15 March and 30 May 2021. The prevalence of test-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection was 12.1%, of testing was 33.7%, and of contact tracing among test-confirmed infected subjects was 67.9%. The vaccination coverage was 52.4%. Results: According to the multivariable logistic regression models, the occurrence of infection was not influenced by sociodemographic and lifestyle factors or by the presence of chronic disease. Testing was more frequent among middle-aged adults (aOR = 1.53, 95% CI 1.10–2.13) and employed adults (aOR = 2.06, 95% CI 1.42–3.00), and was more frequent among adults with a higher education (aORsecondary = 1.93, 95% CI 1.20–3.13; aORtertiary = 3.19, 95% CI 1.81–5.63). Contact tracing was more frequently implemented among middle-aged (aOR41-7y = 3.33, 95% CI 1.17–9.45) and employed (aOR = 4.58, 95% CI 1.38–15.22), and those with chronic diseases (aOR = 5.92, 95% CI 1.56–22.47). Positive correlation was observed between age groups and vaccination frequency (aOR41-70y = 2.94, 95% CI 2.09–4.15; aOR71+y = 14.52, 95% CI 7.33–28.77). Higher than primary education (aORsecondary = 1.69, 95% CI 1.08–2.63; aORtertiary = 4.36, 95% CI 2.46–7.73) and the presence of a chronic disease (aOR = 2.58, 95% CI 1.75–3.80) positively impacted vaccination. Regular smoking was inversely correlated with vaccination (aOR = 0.60; 95% CI 0.44–0.83). Conclusions: The survey indicated that testing, contact tracing, and vaccination were seriously influenced by socioeconomic position; less so by chronic disease prevalence and very minimally by lifestyle. The etiological role of socioeconomic inequalities in epidemic measure implementation likely generated socioeconomic inequality in COVID-19-related complication and death rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Szociológiai Szemle is the property of Hungarian Sociological Association 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.)