Submission ID 118484
| Issue/Objective | To determine the prevalence, drivers, and psychosocial correlates of COVID-19 vaccine booster hesitancy among students at Sheffield Hallam University and assess their willingness to engage in periodic immunization practices. |
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| Methodology/Approach | A cross-sectional survey (n=105) was conducted between December 2022 and January 2023 using a modified, validated questionnaire based on WHO-SAGE recommendations. Quantitative analysis included descriptive statistics and logistic regression using SPSS v26 to identify predictors of hesitancy. |
| Results | Booster hesitancy prevalence was 18.4%. Key predictors included prior vaccination status, age, vaccine brand received, and perceived infection severity. The strongest psychosocial barrier was fear regarding vaccine safety. Notably, 43% expressed willingness to accept routine booster vaccinations, while demographic differences (e.g., age, gender, and field of study) significantly impacted hesitancy. |
| Discussion/Conclusion | University students represent a critical demographic in curbing future pandemics. Hesitancy in this group, if unaddressed, poses a significant risk to achieving global vaccination targets and herd immunity. These findings highlight the need for enhanced public trust strategies, misinformation countermeasures, and targeted youth-focused vaccine literacy initiatives to strengthen pandemic resilience and health systems preparedness globally. |
| Presenters and affiliations | Yusuf Alhaji Surakat Masaryk University, Brno Yusuf Alhaji Surakat Masaryk University, Brno |
