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Saran Thanapluetiwong,1 Sirintorn Chansirikarnjana,1 Orapitchaya Sriwannopas,1 Taweevat Assavapokee,1 Pichai Ittasakul2 1Division of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand; 2Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, ThailandCorrespondence: Pichai IttasakulDepartment of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, 270 Rama VI Road, Ratchathewi, Bangkok, 10400, ThailandTel +66 2-201-1235Fax +66 2-354-7299Email pichai118@gmail.comObjective: Older people are the most vulnerable group for developing SARS-CoV-2 infection. Although vaccination against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) reduces infection, hospitalization, and mortality rates, some older people have refused to get vaccinated. Our study aimed to evaluate factors associated with COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among Thai seniors.Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional telephone survey on vaccine hesitancy in a geriatric clinic at Ramathibodi Hospital in Bangkok, Thailand. Patients aged ≥ 60 years were contacted and interviewed by trained interviewers between June 20 and July 25, 2021.Results: In total, we interviewed 282 participants aged 60– 93 years (mean age 73.0± 7.5 years). We found that 44.3% of participants were hesitant to get a COVID-19 vaccination. Factors associated with high vaccine hesitancy were low education, lack of confidence in the healthcare system’s ability to treat patients with COVID-19, vaccine manufacturers, being offered a vaccine from an unexpected manufacturer, and a low number of new COVID-19 cases per day.Conclusion: The prevalence of COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among Thai seniors is relatively high, and is associated with specific factors. These findings will help in promoting COVID-19 vaccination among Thailand’s senior citizens.Keywords: vaccine acceptance, vaccine refusal, elderly, older adult, SARS-CoV-2 |
