Adebisi, Yusuff Adebayo, Alaran, Aishat Jumoke, Bolarinwa, Obasanjo ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9208-6408, Akande-Sholabi, Wuraola and Lucero-Prisno III, Don Eliseo (2020) When it is available, will we take it? Public perception of hypothetical COVID-19 vaccine in Nigeria. MedRxiv.

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Abstract

Introduction COVID-19 pandemic is a global public health threat facing mankind. There is no specific antiviral treatment for COVID-19, and no vaccine is currently available. This study aimed to understand the perception of the public towards a hypothetical COVID-19 vaccine in Nigeria.

Method We conducted a cross-sectional survey in August 2020 across the 36 states of Nigeria using an online questionnaire. The questionnaire includes sections on the demographic characteristics of the respondents and their perception regarding a hypothetical COVID-19 vaccine. A total of 517 respondents completed and returned the informed consent along with the questionnaire electronically. Data were coded and abstracted into the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet and loaded into the STATA 14 software for final analysis.

Results The results showed that more than half of the respondents were male 294 (56.9%). Most of the respondents (385, 74.5%) intend to take the COVID-19 vaccine when it becomes available. Among the 132 respondents that would not take the COVID-19 vaccine, the major reason for non-acceptance was unreliability of the clinical trials 49 (37.1%), followed by the belief that their immune system was sufficient to combat the virus 36 (27.3%). There were significant association between the age of the respondents and the COVID-19 vaccine acceptance (P-value=0.00) as well as geographical location and COVID-19 vaccine acceptance (P-value=0.02).

Conclusion It was observed that most of the respondents were willing to take the COVID-19 vaccine. Our findings reiterate the need to reassure the public that any vaccine that becomes available will be safe and effective. In addition, there is a need for the national health authorities to ensure the public trust is earned and all communities, including the marginalized populations, are engaged properly to ensure an optimal COVID-19 vaccine acceptance.

Item Type:	Article
Status:	Published
DOI:	10.1101/2020.09.24.20200436
School/Department:	London Campus
URI:	https://ray.yorksj.ac.uk/id/eprint/8461

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