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Thesis Defence: Understanding COVID-19 Vaccine Perceptions During Parenthood in British Columbia
March 14 at 9:30 am - 1:30 pm
Alex Halonen, supervised by Dr. Marie Tarrant, will defend their thesis titled “Understanding COVID-19 Vaccine Perceptions During Parenthood in British Columbia” in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Nursing.
An abstract for Alex Halonen’s thesis is included below.
Defences are open to all members of the campus community as well as the general public.
Registration is not required for in person defences.
ABSTRACT
The Coronavirus Disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic highlighted challenges of implementing mass immunization programs for a novel vaccine. COVID-19 vaccine uptake in British Columbia (B.C.) is significantly lower in populations of children under 12 when compared with adults. Vaccine hesitancy, an emerging public health threat, has been identified as a potential key contributor to the challenges faced in COVID-19 vaccine uptake. The World Health Organization (WHO) Vaccine Hesitancy Scale (VHS) was modified for pediatric COVID-19 vaccines. An online cross-sectional survey was conducted in B.C. from October to December 2021 to understand COVID-19 vaccine intentions and perceptions of parents of children under the age of 12. We used logistic regression models to assess factors associated with parental vaccine hesitancy and to explore the relationship between a parent’s intention to vaccinate their child with a COVID-19 vaccine and their level of vaccine hesitancy. Findings suggest about one-half of parents included in the study were vaccine hesitant. Parent age, healthcare provider (HCP) vaccine recommendation, parent COVID-19 vaccine status, and child influenza immunization history were identified as significant predictors of vaccine hesitancy. A statistically significant relationship between parents’ intentions to vaccinate their child and vaccine hesitancy was found, indicating application of the scale could be of clinical significance. The findings from this study identify target parent groups with increased vaccine hesitancy for the pediatric COVID-19 vaccine. The factors influencing vaccine decision making identified in this study could provide avenues for ongoing COVID-19 vaccine promotion among parents or for a future public health crisis requiring an emergent introduction of a novel pediatric vaccine. The findings from this study also support the use of the VHS as a clinical tool to screen for vaccine hesitancy, allowing for a more strategic implementation of vaccine-promotion resources.
