Research Information System
Trakya Üniversiteler Birliği IV. Uluslararası Sağlık Bilimleri Kongresi (UTUC 2021), Online, Turkey, 11 November 2021
Aim: In this study, it was aimed to evaluate whether the COVID-19 pandemic process affected
the attitude of people living in our society to vaccines, and if so, in what way.
Methods: In this descriptive cross-sectional study, a questionnaire form and the Single-Item
Health Literacy Screening Question (SILS) were used to determine the views on vaccination
practices.
Results: The mean age is 45.28±17.14 (min:18, Max:83). When all vaccines are considered,
313 of the participants (83%) thought that vaccination should be administered, 10 (2.7%) should
not, while 54 (14.3%) were undecided. While 273 (72.4%) people stated that they could get the
COVID-19 vaccine, it was 295 (78.2%) who could get another vaccine other than COVID-19.
After the COVID-19 pandemic, 103 (27.3%) people had a change in the opinion of vaccination
compared to before, and 274 (72.7%) people did not change. It was found that the positive
change (63.1%) in the opinion of vaccination was higher than the negative change.
It was determined that 65% (n=245) of the participants had difficulty in reading written health
materials (SILS+). It was found that 34.1% (n=45) of those with SILS(-) and 23.7% (n=58) of
those with SILS(+) had a change in their opinion of getting vaccinated after the COVID 19
pandemic compared to before. (x
2=4.688, p=0.03).
Conclusions: The risks posed by the epidemic have caused both positive and negative changes
in vaccination opinion. However, the positive change is more than the negative change. The
pandemic process can be considered as an opportunity to turn it into an advantage in
vaccination.
Keywords: Covid-19, pandemic, vaccination.