Willingness of Older Adults with Chronic Diseases to Receive a Booster Dose of Inactivated Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccine: A Cross-Sectional Study in Taizhou, China

Abstract

Vaccination is an important measure to control the spread of COVID-19 among elderly high-risk groups; however, the propensity to receive COVID-19 vaccine boosters has not been evaluated in these populations. Here, we aimed to investigate the willingness to receive a COVID-19 vaccine booster among the elderly chronic disease population in Taizhou, China. A cross-sectional, hospital-based survey was conducted in the outpatient department of a tertiary care hospital between 6 July and 11 August 2021 in Taizhou, China, and the data were uploaded to Wen-Juan-Xing, one of the largest online platforms used to collect survey data in China. The targeted population was non-oncology chronic disease patients aged 60 years and above. The minimum sample size was 229, determined by the G*Power software (v3.1.9.2, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany). A total of 254 patients with valid data were enrolled in this study, with a response rate of 82.5% (254/308). Chi-square tests and one-way binary regression were used to compare the proportions and the degree of influence of categorical factors. The magnitude of the effect for the comparisons was measured by Gramer’s V. A multivariate binary logistic regression model was used to correct for confounders and to identify factors. All data were analyzed using SPSS v24.0 (IBM Corporation, Armonk, NY, USA). A total of 198 respondents (77.9%) were willing to receive a COVID-19 vaccine booster dose, and 77.6% of respondents were willing to receive the primary dose. Age < 70 years (OR 2.82), stable disease control (OR 2.79), confidence in the effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine (OR 3.11), and vaccine recipient (OR 5.02) were significantly associated with the willingness to receive a COVID-19 vaccine booster dose. Promoting primary dose vaccination is essential for advancing booster vaccination, and it is important to focus on elderly patients’ confidence in the vaccine, in addition to strengthening health management and promoting disease stability. Follow-up studies should focus on elderly patients who belong to specific disease groups.