Hesitancy to receive the novel coronavirus vaccine and potential influences on vaccination among a cohort of healthcare workers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Angelica L Barrall; Nicole A Hoff; Dalau Mukadi Nkamba; Kamy Musene; Nicholas Ida; Anna Bratcher; Camille Dzogang; Sylvia Tangney; Michael Beia; Michel Kabamba Nzaji; David Kampilu; Gloire Mbaka Onya; Christophe Luhata; Adva Gadoth; Elisabeth Mukamba Musenga; Placide Mbala; Didine Kaba; Anne W Rimoin

doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2022.06.077

Hesitancy to receive the novel coronavirus vaccine and potential influences on vaccination among a cohort of healthcare workers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Vaccine. 2022 Aug 12;40(34):4998-5009. doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2022.06.077. Epub 2022 Jul 1.

Authors

Angelica L Barrall¹, Nicole A Hoff², Dalau Mukadi Nkamba³, Kamy Musene⁴, Nicholas Ida², Anna Bratcher², Camille Dzogang⁴, Sylvia Tangney², Michael Beia⁴, Michel Kabamba Nzaji⁵, David Kampilu⁴, Gloire Mbaka Onya⁴, Christophe Luhata⁵, Adva Gadoth², Elisabeth Mukamba Musenga⁵, Placide Mbala⁶, Didine Kaba³, Anne W Rimoin²

Affiliations

¹ UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA. Electronic address: abarrall@ucla.edu.
² UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA.
³ Kinshasa School of Public Health, University of Kinshasa, Kinshasa, DRC.
⁴ UCLA-DRC Health Research and Training Program, Kinshasa, DRC.
⁵ Expanded Programme for Immunization, Minister of Health, Kinshasa, DRC.
⁶ National Institute of Biomedical Research, Kinshasa, DRC.

Abstract

Hesitancy to receive the COVID-19 vaccine among healthcare workers (HCWs) in low-resource settings, such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), is a major global health challenge. This study identifies changes in willingness to receive vaccination among 588 HCWs in the DRC and reported influences on COVID-19 vaccination intentions. Up to 25 repeated measures were collected from participants between August 2020 to August 2021. Among the overall cohort, between August 2020 and mid-March 2021, the proportion of HCWs in each period of data collection reporting COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy ranged from 8.6% (95% CI: 5.97, 11.24) to 24.3% (95% CI: 20.12, 28.55). By early April 2021, the proportion reporting hesitancy more than doubled (52.0%; 95% CI: 46.22, 57.83). While hesitancy in the cohort began to decline by late-June 2021, 22.6% (95% CI: 18.05, 27.18) respondents indicated hesitancy in late-August 2021 which remains greater than the proportion of hesitancy at any time prior to early-March 2021. Patterns in reported influences on COVID-19 vaccination were varied with the proportion reporting some influences (e.g., no serious side effects, country of vaccine production) remaining stable throughout the year and other factors (e.g., recommendation of Ministry of Health, ease of vaccination) falling in popularity among respondents. Agreement that the national vaccination schedule should be followed apart from the COVID-19 vaccine remained high among respondents throughout the study period. This study shows that, among a cohort of HCWs in the DRC who have likely been influenced by regional, national, and global factors, COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy has fluctuated during the pandemic and should not be treated as a static factor. Additional research to determine which factors most influence HCWs' willingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccine offers opportunities to reduce vaccine hesitancy among this important population through tailored public health messaging.

Keywords: COVID-19 vaccine; Healthcare worker; Vaccine hesitancy.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

COVID-19 Vaccines
COVID-19* / prevention & control
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Health Personnel
Humans
SARS-CoV-2
Vaccination
Vaccines*

Substances

COVID-19 Vaccines
Vaccines