[Influenza vaccination in healthcare workers. Why are some vaccinated whereas others are not]

Abstract

Background and objective: Influenza vaccination is indicated in health professionals. Nevertheless, vaccination coverage in healthcare workers tends to be low. This paper determines the reasons why some workers are vaccinated whereas others are not and investigates what type of intervention can modify the latter attitude.

Method: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study using a questionnaire survey.

Setting: workers at Hospital General Universitario de Alicante (Alicante, Spain). Absolute frequencies and relative frequencies expressed in percentages were calculated for each of the variables studied. Results were analyzed considering the professional categories of the persons involved and the departments where they worked.

Results: The reasons for influenza vaccination stated by hospital workers were to protect their health (65.6%), the belief that vaccination is beneficial (45.7%), and to avoid transmitting influenza to their patients (42.5%), and to their own families (39.8%). The main reasons for not undergoing vaccination were to avoid medication (17.9%), confidence in their own defenses (17%), or fear of the secondary effects of the vaccine (16.8%).

Conclusion: The main reason given by hospital personnel for undergoing vaccination was to protect their own health and that of their family and patients. The reasons most frequently given for not undergoing vaccination were based on possible side effects of the vaccine, the conviction of not being part of a high-risk group, and doubts about the effectiveness of the vaccine as a protective agent. Many of the reasons given for not undergoing vaccination were based on erroneous beliefs and should be taken into account when designing strategies to increase influenza vaccination coverage among health personnel.