COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy Among Patients Attending the General Outpatient Clinic in a Tertiary Hospital in Southern Nigeria

Abstract

Background As most of the available studies on acceptance of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine were done prior to the development of a vaccine, this study aimed to determine the current willingness to receive the available COVID-19 vaccines in Nigeria and ascertain factors influencing its acceptance. Methodology A cross-sectional descriptive study using a paper-based questionnaire was conducted among patients aged 18 years and above, attending the General Outpatient Clinic of Federal Medical Centre, Asaba, Delta State, Nigeria (n= 366). Data were analyzed using SPSS version 26 (Armonk, NY: IBM Corp.). Univariate and bivariate analyses were conducted at an alpha level of significance set at p<0.05. Results This study comprised 366 participants, of which 56.28% were willing to take a COVID-19 vaccine if it was made available to them. Generally, it was found that participants aged <40 years (56.90%), females (56.88%), singles (57.32%), and unemployed respondents (67.44%) were more willing to receive the vaccine than others. Those who agreed that COVID-19 was not an invention by man (p=0.031; OR=1.64; 95% CI=1.05, 2.58) were more likely to receive a vaccine. Suspicion of the government's intentions about COVID-19 was a perceived barrier by participants to accepting a vaccine. Conclusion Our findings represent one of the few estimates of the acceptability of the COVID-19 vaccine in Nigeria. They can be used to guide the planning and development of future public health efforts, increasing the awareness of the COVID-19 vaccine, its acceptability, and its uptake.