Publication:

Awareness on COVID 19 vaccination among public: a questionnaire surveys

Background Coronavirus disease 2019 or Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by a newly discovered coronavirus, Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2 become the major threat to public health. Several vaccines have been approved for use against coronavirus disease and distributed globally in different regions. Thus, the study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitudes and awareness towards COVID-19 vaccination among the general population in Chengalpet district, Tamil nadu.

Methods A cross sectional study was conducted in the year of 2021 from department of Public Health Dentistry, among 274 participants who are residing in Chengalpet district. Study approval is being obtained from Institutional Scientific Review Board Asan Memorial Dental College and Hospital. People above 18 years of age were included in the study. Self administered validated questionnaire which consists of data on demographic profile followed by assessing COVID-19 related information, acceptance, attitude and awareness on COVID-19 vaccine were assessed.

Results A questionnaire survey was conducted among N=274 adults, aged above 18 years, in the present study, n=142 (51.8%) were male and n=132 (48.2%) were female. The majority of n=225 (82.1%) participants showed good knowledge, awareness and attitude towards covid-19 vaccine and almost n=210 (76.6%) were willing to take the vaccine without hesitation. Although maximum respondents demonstrated a good level of knowledge and acceptance, significant differences were observed across gender.

Conclusions The findings reflect satisfactory knowledge and positive attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccine among the general population. Awareness campaigns, feedback from vaccinated individuals about the safety will encourage the COVID-19 vaccine acceptance.