Acceptance of COVID-19 vaccination among parents of children with autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders in Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

Abstract Background: Acceptance of COVID-19 vaccination may be less common among parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other neurodevelopmental disorders. This study aimed to explore the beliefs and willingness of parents of children with neurodevelopmental disorders about COVID-19 vaccine and understand how certain factors influencing the vaccine decision-making process differ between them and other parents’ groups. Methods: A cross-sectional qualitative study was conducted between August to November 2021. 400 parents from all 6 major regions in Saudi Arabia participated in an Arabic online survey and shared their beliefs about the new COVID-19 vaccination for their children. Results: The Cronbach alpha for Arabic version score was 0.71. 381 participants were eligible to answer the survey (95.2%) from 400 participants. The total number of parents of children with neurodevelopmental disorder was 158 (41.5%). 85 (53.8%) of them were ready to vaccinate their children with COVID-19 vaccine. While 36 (22.8%) were hesitant, the rest 37 (23.4%) did not want to vaccinate their children at all. Only a small number 16 (10.1%) have beliefs of vaccines as a cause of their child’s neurodevelopmental disorder. A total of 79 out of 131 responses were received from both parents’ groups. Fear of long-term side-effects was the most common reason reported by 41 responders out of 64 (64.06%) from parents of healthy children and 38 responders out of 67 (56.71%) from parents of diagnosed children. Another reason reported by parents of younger children in both groups was the child’s age. Having a healthcare relative worker was significantly associated with the vaccine decision making (p < .001). Conclusion: Although the majority of the respondents were willing to vaccinate their children against COVID-19, there are a number of parents around 45.14% who strongly refuse vaccination or are undecided about it yet. More information about the importance and safety of the vaccine should be accessible to those parents.