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. 2023 Feb 2:1-21.
doi: 10.1007/s12062-023-09410-z. Online ahead of print.

Why I Have Not Taken the COVID-19 Vaccine" a Descriptive Qualitative Study of Older Adults' Perceived Views of COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake in Nigeria

Anthony Obinna Iwuagwu  1 , Daniel Rayner  2 , Christopher Ndubuisi Ngwu  1 , Micheal Ebe Kalu  3
Affiliations

Why I Have Not Taken the COVID-19 Vaccine" a Descriptive Qualitative Study of Older Adults' Perceived Views of COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake in Nigeria

Anthony Obinna Iwuagwu et al. J Popul Ageing. .

Abstract

Globally, the COVID-19 vaccine uptake is increasing, but slowly among older adults residing in lower and middle-income countries, including Nigeria. Following this, we explored the perceived views of older adults on the uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine in Nigeria. We adopted a qualitative descriptive study design and purposively selected and interviewed 16 retirees of older adults. Data were analyzed using conventional content analysis. Findings show that older adults' willingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccine was dissuaded by their past experiences with the government, religion, and Western media, including affordability and accessibility problems related to vaccination campaigns. Findings also show that the uncertainty about the COVID-19 virus existence and perceptions about COVID-19 vaccine risks influence older adults' decisions regarding vaccine uptake. Finally, older adults' views on getting vaccinated for COVID-19 were positively influenced by the trust they placed in their physicians and other members of their healthcare system. The government should incentivize healthcare workers to serve as a nudge to increase COVID-19 vaccine uptake among older adults in Nigeria.

Keywords: COVID-19; Nigeria; Older adults; Vaccination uptake.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of InterestThe authors declare no conflict of interest in this study.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
The themes that emerged as older adults’ perception of COVID-19 vaccination. Three themes illustrated progressive factors highlighting reasons regarding if older adults will, may consider, or will not take the COVID-19 vaccine
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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