Healthcare workers’ compliance with vaccination in condition of high biological risk

Aim. To evaluate the attitude of medical personnel to vaccinations in conditions of high biological risks associated with the new coronavirus infection in order to develop effective technologies for correcting their adherence to vaccination in other emergency situations of an epidemic nature. Materials and methods. The study was conducted in several stages corresponding to the 8 epidemic outbreaks of COVID-19 in 2020−2023. According to multicenter anonymous online surveys of medical staff, their commitment to vaccine prevention has been studied, taking into account strategies for perceiving and overcoming stress. The total number of respondents is 7,800. The study used a set of epidemiological, sociological and statistical methods. Results. The gradual changes in the attitude towards vaccination of medical personnel at different stages of the COVID-19 pandemic are demonstrated, with a dynamic increase in vaccination adherence. The occupational risk category with a negative attitude towards vaccinations was the average medical staff and employees of non-medical specialties, mostly female, who had up to 10 years of work experience. Among the main motives for negative attitudes towards vaccinations, the most common were concerns about possible side effects after vaccination, especially in the long term, skepticism about new immunobiological drugs, insufficient time elapsed since the start of clinical trials of new vaccines, and a lack of information. A study of the psycho-emotional state of workers showed that destructive perception of stress factors increased the risk of not receiving vaccination by 1.6 times, and destructive stress management programs by 2.6 times. Conclusion. The results obtained expand the understanding of the mechanisms of forming the attitude of medical personnel to vaccinations against new infectious diseases and provide a basis for developing programs to increase their commitment to vaccination in conditions of high biological risks, based on a competence-based approach that includes the formation and development of professional and supra-professional competencies in immunoprophylaxis.

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