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Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine hesitancy among physicians, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and nurses in two academic hospitals in Philadelphia

Part of: SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 September 2021

Safa K. Browne Open the ORCID record for Safa K. Browne [Opens in a new window] ,
Kristen A. Feemster ,
Angela K. Shen ,
Judith Green-McKenzie ,
Florence M. Momplaisir ,
Walter Faig ,
Paul A. Offit  and
Barbara J. Kuter
Safa K. Browne*
Affiliation:
Vaccine Education Center, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Kristen A. Feemster
Affiliation:
Vaccine Education Center, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Angela K. Shen
Affiliation:
Vaccine Education Center, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy, Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Judith Green-McKenzie
Affiliation:
Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Florence M. Momplaisir
Affiliation:
Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Walter Faig
Affiliation:
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Paul A. Offit
Affiliation:
Vaccine Education Center, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Barbara J. Kuter
Affiliation:
Vaccine Education Center, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
*
Author for correspondence: Safa K. Browne, E-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

Objective:

To evaluate coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine hesitancy among healthcare personnel (HCP) with significant clinical exposure to COVID-19 at 2 large, academic hospitals in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Design, setting, and participants:

HCP were surveyed in November–December 2020 about their intention to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

Methods:

The survey measured the intent among HCP to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, timing of vaccination, and reasons for or against vaccination. Among patient-facing HCP, multivariate regression evaluated the associations between healthcare positions (medical doctor, nurse practitioner or physician assistant, and registered nurse) and vaccine hesitancy (intending to decline, delay, or were unsure about vaccination), adjusting for demographic characteristics, reasons why or why not to receive the vaccine, and prior receipt of routine vaccines.

Results:

Among 5,929 HCP (2,253 medical doctors [MDs] and doctors of osteopathy [DOs], 582 nurse practitioners [NPs], 158 physician assistants [PAs], and 2,936 nurses), a higher proportion of nurses (47.3%) were COVID-vaccine hesitant compared with 30.0% of PAs and NPs and 13.1% of MDs and DOs. The most common reasons for vaccine hesitancy included concerns about side effects, the newness of the vaccines, and lack of vaccine knowledge. Regardless of position, Black HCP were more hesitant than White HCP (odds ratio [OR], ∼5) and females were more hesitant than males (OR, ∼2).

Conclusions:

Although most clinical HCP intended to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, intention varied by healthcare position. Consistent with other studies, hesitancy was also significantly associated with race or ethnicity across all positions. These results highlight the importance of understanding and effectively addressing reasons for hesitancy, especially among frontline HCP who are at increased risk of COVID exposure and play a critical role in recommending vaccines to patients.

Type
Original Article
Information
Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology , Volume 43 , Issue 10 , October 2022 , pp. 1424 - 1432
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America

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