| Popis: |
Background When the COVID-19 vaccines arrived in Uganda in early March of 2021, there was a lack of information on the vaccine acceptance in the population due to many factors, mainly misinformation and disinformation circulating in the Ugandan social and mainstream media. This study aimed to determine factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among the adult population in northern Uganda. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study among the 723-adult population in northern Uganda. Participants were selected randomly from the nine districts of the Acholi sub-region. Ethical approval was obtained from a local IRB, and SPSS version 20.0 was used for data analysis at a multivariable logistic regression. A p-value less than 0.05 was considered significant. Results The most significant finding was that COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among the adult population in northern Uganda was at 580/723(80.22%) and was significantly associated with those with comorbidities AoR = 0.397, 95%CI: 0.233,0.674; p = 0.001; those who agreed that vaccines in health facilities in northern Uganda were safe AoR = 0.724, 95%CI:0.597,0.878;p = 0.001; graduates AoR = 2.781,95%CI:1.278,6.052;p = 0.010; females AoR = 0.616, 95%CI:0.396,0.957; p = 0.031; Catholics AoR = 1.703,95%CI:1.048,2.765;p = 0.032; Baganda tribe AoR = 3.829,95%CI:1.170,7.790;p = 0.026; non-smokers AoR = 7.349,95%CI:1.767,30.566;p = 0.006; ex-smokers AoR = 8.687,95%CI:1.052,71.734;p = 0.045; Agago district AoR = 2.950,95%CI: 1.118,7.789; p = 0.029, and Lamwo district AoR = 2.781, 95%CI:1.278,6.052; p = 0.010. Conclusion COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among the study population was encouragingly high despite the disinformation and misinformation in the Ugandan media. The independent determinants of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance were among females, those who agreed that vaccines in health facilities were safe, those with comorbidities, graduates, Catholics, Baganda tribe, ex-smokers and non-smokers, and participants from Agago and Lamwo districts. The fear of contracting the coronavirus and the fear of death if not vaccinated contributed significantly to the COVID-19 vaccine acceptance in northern Uganda. There is a need for health managers to engage, sensitize and mobilize the population on the COVID-19 vaccine and vaccination using the VHTs and the catholic church structures, which remain critically important for the vaccination campaign if the high COVID-19 vaccine acceptance in the sub-region is to be maintained or improved. |
