FACTORS AFFECTING COVID-19 VACCINATION AMONG CHILDREN: PARENTS’ PERSPECTIVE ON CHILDREN’S HEALTH
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46827/ejphs.v9i2.272Keywords:
COVID-19 vaccination, parents’ perspective, children’s health, vaccine hesitancy, public healthAbstract
The COVID-19 pandemic greatly affected public health systems, economies, and communities across the world. Vaccination became one of the primary strategies used to reduce the spread of the virus and prevent severe complications. Despite the availability of COVID-19 vaccines for children, many parents remained hesitant because of concerns regarding vaccine safety, effectiveness, and possible side effects. This study aimed to determine the factors affecting COVID-19 vaccination among children from the perspective of parents. Specifically, the study examined the respondents’ demographic profile, the factors influencing parents’ decisions regarding vaccination, the perceived implications of vaccination, and the relationship between these variables. The study utilized a quantitative descriptive-correlational research design. Thirty parents with children aged 5–11 years old from Asingan, Pangasinan, Philippines participated in the study through purposive sampling. A self-made questionnaire validated by experts and tested for reliability using Cronbach’s Alpha served as the primary data-gathering instrument. Statistical tools such as percentage, weighted mean, standard deviation, and Pearson Product-Moment Correlation were used to analyze the collected data. Findings revealed that parents generally agreed that COVID-19 vaccination is important in protecting children from severe illness, reducing virus transmission, and strengthening the immune system. Parents also believed that vaccination helps protect children’s health and contributes to saving lives. However, the study found no significant relationship between the factors affecting vaccination decisions and the perceived implications of vaccination. The study concludes that while parents recognize the importance of vaccination, their decisions may still be influenced by external factors such as misinformation, personal beliefs, and access to reliable health information. The study recommends strengthening public health education programs and promoting accurate vaccine information to improve parental awareness and acceptance of COVID-19 vaccination for children.References
Ajzen I, 1991. The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes 50(2): 179–211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-5978(91)90020-T
Alfieri NL, Kusma JD, Heard-Garris N, Davis MM, Golbeck E, Barrera L, Macy ML, 2020. Parental vaccine hesitancy and childhood vaccination coverage. Pediatrics 146(3). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-021-11725-5
Creswell JW, Creswell JD, 2018. Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches, 5th edn. Sage Publications. Retrieved from https://books.google.ro/books/about/Research_Design.html?id=KGNADwAAQBAJ&redir_esc=y
Etikan I, Musa SA, Alkassim RS, 2016. Comparison of convenience sampling and purposive sampling. American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Statistics 5(1): 1–4. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/359634247_Comparison_of_Convenience_Sampling_and_Purposive_Sampling
Goldman RD, Yan TD, Seiler M, Cotanda CP, Brown JC, Klein EJ, et al., 2021. Caregiver willingness to vaccinate their children against COVID-19. Vaccine 39(48): 7209–7215. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2020.09.084
Kampmann B, Okomo U, 2021. COVID-19 vaccines for children: Current perspectives. The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health 5(6): 379–381. doi:10.1016/S2352-4642(21)00167-4
Kozlov M, 2021. COVID-19 vaccines are working effectively worldwide. Nature. doi:10.1038/d41586-021-00385-1
Loomba S, de Figueiredo A, Piatek S, de Graaf K, Larson HJ, 2021. Measuring the impact of COVID-19 vaccine misinformation on vaccination intent in the UK and USA. Nature Human Behaviour 5: 337–348. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-021-01056-1
Polack FP, Thomas SJ, Kitchin N, et al., 2020. Safety and efficacy of the BNT162b2 mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. New England Journal of Medicine 383(27): 2603–2615. https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmoa2034577
Rudan I, Adeloye D, Katikireddi SV, Murray J, Simpson C, Robertson C, 2021. COVID-19: Vaccines, efficacy and effects on transmission. Journal of Global Health 11. https://doi.org/10.7189/jogh.15.04250
Szilagyi PG, Shah MD, Delgado JR, et al., 2021. Parents’ intentions and perceptions about COVID-19 vaccination for their children. Pediatrics 148(4). https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2021-052335
Troiano G, Nardi A, 2021. Vaccine hesitancy in the era of COVID-19. Public Health 194: 245–251. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.puhe.2021.02.025
World Health Organization, 2023. Immunization coverage. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/immunization-coverage
Zhou F, Yu T, Du R, et al., 2022. Impact of vaccination on COVID-19 transmission and severe disease. The Lancet Public Health. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physa.2021.126717
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
