COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy and Uptake among Nursing Staff during an Active Vaccine Rollout

Abstract

Even with the availability of COVID-19 vaccines, factors associated with vaccine hesitancy and uptake among nurses are unknown. This study evaluated COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and uptake of nursing staff during one of the first COVID-19 vaccine rollouts in the United States. A cross-sectional survey was conducted during February 2021 among nursing staff working in a large medical center in central United States. There were 276 respondents; 81.9% of participants were willing to receive the vaccine during the initial rollout, 11.2% were hesitant, and only 5.1% were unwilling. The hesitant group was likely to report having inadequate information to make an informed decision about whether to receive the vaccine (45.2%) and about vaccine expectations (32.3%). The majority (83.3%) received at least one dose of the vaccine. Having greater than 10 years’ work experience (OR 3.0, 95% CI 1.16–7.9) and confidence in vaccine safety (OR 7.78, 95% CI 4.49–13.5) were significantly associated with vaccine uptake. While our study indicates higher vaccine uptake among nursing staff during an active vaccine rollout, there remains sustained hesitancy and unwillingness to uptake. For those hesitant to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, public health efforts to provide more data on side effects and efficacy may help increase vaccine uptake.