Perception and Knowledge of Medical Doctors and Dentist in Bharatpur towards COVID-19 Vaccination and Vaccine

Abstract

Introduction: COVID-19 vaccination has begun in many countries in the world and in Nepal too. However, many doctors and dentists have been reported missing in the vaccination program. Moreover, many those vaccinated had reported with several adverse effects along with being tested COVID-19 positive. This study aimed to assess the knowledge and perception of medical doctors and dentists towards COVID-19 vaccination program in Bharatpur. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using self-administered questionnaire survey among Nepal medical council registered Doctors and Dentist in Bharatpur during July 15, 2021 to September 15, 2021. The collected data was entered into Statistical package for social science (SPSS) version 26, and analyzed using descriptive statistical tool (frequency, percentages). Results: The majority of the participants 160 (88.9%) were of age 25-30 years. Most of them 176 (97.8%) participants were vaccinated against COVID-19, among which 152 (84.4 %) received both the doses of vaccine. Majority of them 144 (77.8%) received AstraZeneca vaccine while 101 (56.1) experienced adverse symptoms. Among the participants, 121 (67.2%) participants replied that Covishield vaccine was developed on non-replicating vector platforms. Conclusions: Majority of the participants of the study had taken COVID-19 vaccine which shows the negative hesitancy towards this deadly virus and importance vaccine for themselves and their patients too. The medical doctors and dentists need to be updated with the COVID-19 vaccine information.