Abstract
Vaccines found to be highly effective will enable uptake than those with low effectiveness. Health care providers in Nigeria aged 18 years and above participated in this study. The study was conducted to assess the enablers and perceived risks of Covid-19 vaccination among healthcare providers in Nigeria. A snowball sampling technique was relied upon in the distribution of the online questionnaires sent in the form of a link through social media outlets such as Whatsapp, Face book and emails within four weeks interval. The analysis was performed using the Statistical Software Package SPSS version 22.0.Four Hundred and forty-five respondents filled the questionnaire from the six geopolitical zones of the country. It was observed that safety of the vaccine, proven efficacy and good knowledge of the vaccine were enablers to the Covid-19 vaccine uptake. This finding shows that a higher proportion of health care providers was in support of the covid-19 vaccine under the presumption that the vaccine was proven effective. 243(54.6%) perceived that a clinical sequalae may result later after they take the Covid-19 vaccine, 207(46.5%) perceived that the clinical trial of the Covid-19 vaccine was inadequate and 187(42.0%) perceived that a new virus strain may emerge and therefore, bring about another vaccine. In addition, 180(40.4%) respondents perceived that the Covid-19 vaccine might worsen their co-morbidities and 61(13.7%) showed concerns as they think the Covid-19 vaccine may affect their immune systems and make them more susceptible to new viral strains. Proven vaccine safety, proven efficacy and good knowledge were identified as enablers of the covid-19 vaccine while clinical sequalae and inadequate trials were noted as the perceived risks of covid-19 vaccine uptake among health care providers.
Highlights
The Corona virus disease 2019 (Covid-19) has become a worldwide pandemic spreading across the globe with millions of people infected and recording hundred thousands of deaths[1][2]
Nigeria is rich in natural resources with crude oil as its main export, the majority still live in poverty with a minimum monthly wage of N30,000.According to the World Bank, Nigeria is classified as a low-income country with a rise in unemployment as the core reason for elevated poverty levels, regional and gender inequalities, and socio-political problems [14]
It was observed that safety of the vaccine, proven efficacy and good knowledge of the vaccine were enablers to the Covid-19 vaccine uptake
Summary
The Corona virus disease 2019 (Covid-19) has become a worldwide pandemic spreading across the globe with millions of people infected and recording hundred thousands of deaths[1][2]. Nigeria is among the vulnerable countries in Africa predicted to experience accelerated spread of the Covid-19 Virus owing largely to the weak state of health infrastructure and health systems [4]. As at 5th March 2021, Nigeria has recorded 158, 042 confirmed cases, 137, 025 discharged cases and 1954 deaths [3]. The world has recorded a dismal landmark of 1.6 Million Covid-19 related deaths, it is evident that herd immunity is still far-fetched [5]. Vaccination will be paramount to achieve a level of population immunity that will help to further prevent the Covid-19 spread [5]. Other vaccines including DNA-based, inactivated, live-attenuated, sub-unit and replicating viral vector-based have been developed [6][7][8]
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