Abstract
Vaccinations for the prevention of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) are important to control the ongoing pandemic. A much-discussed strategy to increase vaccination coverage is mandatory vaccination; however, its legitimacy and effectiveness as a measure are doubtful. This study aims to investigate the attitudes of the general population of Cyprus towards COVID-19 mandatory vaccination and to identify the factors influencing individuals’ attitudes towards such policy. An online cross-sectional study was conducted, using a self-administered, anonymous questionnaire to collect information on sociodemographic and health-related characteristics, trust, and satisfaction about the healthcare system and utilization of preventive healthcare services, COVID-19 vaccination information, general vaccination knowledge, and attitudes towards mandatory vaccination. A total of 2140 participants completed the survey, with 27.8% being in favor of mandatory vaccination. We found that as the age increases by one year, the odds of supporting mandatory vaccination increase by 1.04 units (OR 1.04, 95% CI: 1.02–1.05). In addition, those who reported increased trust in national healthcare authorities’ guidelines and recommendations (OR 3.74, 95% CI: 3.11–4.49) and those satisfied with the healthcare system (OR 1.38, 95% CI: 1.16–1.65) and follow doctor’s instructions (OR 1.29, 95% CI: 1.03–1.61), were significantly more likely to support mandatory vaccination while those who had underage children living in the household were significantly less likely to support mandatory vaccination (OR 0.69, 95% CI: 0.50–0.94). Public health authorities need to develop well-organized vaccination campaigns in which accurate evidence-based information would be disseminated with respect to individuals’ autonomy.
Highlights
At the end of December 2019, Chinese public health authorities reported several cases of acute respiratory syndrome in Wuhan City, China
When vaccination knowledge score was added in the model (Model 2), we found that the association for age (p < 0.001), being a student (p = 0.007), and having underage children living in the household (p < 0.001) with mandatory vaccination remained statistically significant
The strongest predictors of mandatory vaccination support were older age, underage children resided in the household, general vaccination-related knowledge score, increased trust in official healthcare authorities’ guidelines, satisfaction with the healthcare system, and medical adherence
Summary
At the end of December 2019, Chinese public health authorities reported several cases of acute respiratory syndrome in Wuhan City, China. The first COVID-19 vaccines were based on a novel mRNA-based technology [6] (e.g., PfizerBioNTech’s mRNA BNT162b2 (Pfizer-BioNTech, Pfizer Inc., New York City, NY, USA, and BioNTech SE, Mainz, Germany) and Moderna’s mRNA-1273 (Moderna, Cambridge, MA, USA)) and next-generation viral vector technology [7] (e.g., Oxford-AstraZeneca’s ChAdOx1/AZD1222 (Oxford/AstraZeneca, Oxford, UK)) Following these early vaccines, several more have been licensed using similar (e.g., Johnson & Johnson’s INJ7843735/Ad26.COV2.s ((Janssen/Johnson & Johnson, Beerse/ New Brunswick, NJ, Belgium/USA), Gamaleya’s Sputnik V (Gamaleya Research Institute, Moscow, Russia)) or other technologies (e.g., Whole-Pathogen Inactivated virus technology such as SinoVac’s CoronaVac (Sinovac Biotech, Beijing, China), and Protein Subunit technology, such as Novavax’s NVX-CoV2373 (Novavax, Gaithersburg, MD, USA)) [8]
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