Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1 Senior Resident at The Department of Community Medicine, GMC, Baramulla, Jammu and Kashmir, India
2 Senior Resident at The Department of Community Medicine, SKIMS Soura, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India
3 Post‑graduate Student at the Department of Orthopaedics SKIMS Medical College, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India
Abstract
BACKGROUND: India is all set to begin vaccination against COVID‑19. A good number of people
are falling prey to anti‑vaccination campaigns, and therefore, some amount of vaccine hesitancy
must have developed. The primary objective of the study was to find the level of potential COVID‑19
vaccine hesitancy in Kashmiri population.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a cross‑sectional study conducted in the valley of Kashmir.
A predesigned questionnaire was shared online. The participation of respondents was voluntary.
Exclusions were made on account of residence outside Kashmir valley, duplicate forms, and wrong
information. The data were entered into Microsoft Excel 2010 and analyzed using SPSS version 23.
RESULTS: A total of 487 respondents were included. About 67% of the participants were in the age
group of ≤30 years, 55% female, 54% rural, and 16% had ever been COVID‑19 positive. About
14% of the participants were completely hesitant about receiving the COVID‑19 vaccine, whereas
40% were unsure if they will accept the vaccination. The main reason for the total nonacceptance of
the vaccine was the doubts about the safety of COVID‑19 vaccines (67%). Urban people were more
likely to be hesitant to the vaccine than rural people (odds ratio [OR] 1.845, confidence interval CI
1.022 to 3.333). Those who were ever COVID‑19 positive were 3.3 times more likely to say “no” to
COVID‑19 vaccination than those who were never positive.
CONCLUSION: Strategic steps must be taken to minimize the vaccine hesitancy associated with
COVID‑19 vaccination. Authorities should direct efforts toward vaccine education, creating awareness
among people about the importance of COVID‑19 vaccination.
Keywords
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