COVID-19 Mental Health Impact and Readiness to Be Vaccinated Among Medical Academic Staff in Non-EU and EU Countries

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the worst public health catastrophe in recent history, impacting people's mental health and increasing concern over vaccinations. Between early May and late June 2021, a web-based survey that included higher education institutions from three countries (Albania, Belgium, and Cyprus) was conducted. The purpose was to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of academic staff, what affects their readiness to get the COVID-19 vaccine, and whether there is a link between the country of residence and readiness to be vaccinated. The short version of the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Score (DASS) questionnaire and a section of questions on vaccination readiness supported by the Health Belief Model were used for data collection. The final study sample was composed of 87 academics, both in Albania (n = 57) and in European Union (EU) countries (n = 30). Females comprised 91.2% of the Albanian participants and 63.3% of the EU countries participants. 89.7% of Albanian participants reported significantly higher proportions of prior COVID-19 (p = 0.001), compared to only 10.3% of EU country participants. Participants from Albania were less likely to vaccinate family members against COVID-19, and there was a significant association between this finding and whether an institution was affiliated with the EU (p = 0.007). In the two study groups, the DASS indicators showed a significant association between stress (p = 0.012) and depression (p = 0.011). The findings indicated that the pandemic affected the academic staff's mental health. When compared to academic staff members working in the EU, Albanian participants exhibited a larger prevalence of moderate-to-extremely severe depression and stress, which had an impact on their intentions to vaccinate against COVID-19. The results are essential to developing mental health coping strategies and approaches for increasing vaccination uptake, especially in developing countries.