The relationship between vaccine hesitancy and health literacy in pregnant women: a cross-sectional study *

Abstract

Background: Pregnancy; It is an important process that directly affects the mother and the fetus, where women benefit more from health services and the need for health-related decision-making and information increases. It is very important to determine and improve the health literacy level of these women. The study determined the relationship between vaccine hesitancy and health literacy in pregnant women. Methods: It is a cross-sectional type of research. The research was carried out in a state hospital. The online form was sent to 230 pregnant women. Ethics committee, institution and scale permissions were obtained for the study. The data of the study were collected online by using the questionnaire prepared by scanning the literature, the Anti-Vaccination Scale and the Health Literacy Scale. Statistical analyzes of the data were performed using the SPSS version 25 program. Results: The Vaccine Hesitancy Scale score of the pregnant women was 55.53 ± 10.15, whereas their Health Literacy Scale score was 98.57 ± 21.48. Health literacy was associated with the sociodemographic and obstetric characteristics of the pregnant women. Educational status, economic status, place of residence, and family structure were associated with vaccine hesitancy. Conclusions: It was determined that there was a negative correlation between the anti-vaccination scale scores of the pregnant women and the health literacy scale scores. As a result, it was determined that the anti-vaccination level of the pregnant women was moderate and the health literacy level was sufficient. It can be recommended to provide appropriate trainings and counseling to target groups, which will increase the health literacy level of pregnant women.