COVID-19 Vaccination: An Exploratory Study of the Motivations and Concerns Detailed in the Medical Records of a Regional Australian Population

Hamilton EM., Oversby S., Ratsch A., Kitchener S.

Understanding motivations and concerns surrounding COVID-19 vaccine uptake is important to reduce vaccine hesitancy and inform strategies to mitigate concerns and increase vaccine uptake. This study aimed to explore motivations and concerns associated with COVID-19 vaccination among adults seeking their first COVID-19 vaccine in a regional Australian community with low prevalence of COVID-19, who received a medical consult prior to vaccination. Medical records from consults were audited and the modified Framework Method was used to conduct qualitative content analysis of data, generating themes and overall core concepts related to motivations for COVID-19 vaccination and associated concerns. There were 102 people included in the study, 81% of whom were aged ≥60 years. Concerns surrounding COVID-19 vaccination included five core concepts: 1. Perceived vaccine risks, 2. Perceived vaccine performance, 3. Uncertainty, 4. Autonomy, and 5. Fairness in access; and a further five core concepts were generated from motivations to seek vaccination: 1. Protection, 2. Occupational or facility responsibility or requirement, 3. Trust in primary healthcare physician, 4. Autonomy, and 5. Civic duty. These motivating factors and concerns can be used to inform strategies and education to increase vaccine uptake in ongoing and future vaccine rollouts.

DOI

10.3390/vaccines10050657

Type

Journal article

Journal

Vaccines

Publisher

MDPI AG

Publication Date

21/04/2022

Volume

10

Pages

657 - 657

Permalink Original publication