Knowledge and acceptability of COVID-19 vaccine among residents of Jos-south Local Government Area in Nigeria

Abstract

Objective: Major efforts are being made to curtail the spread and adverse effects of the coronavirus pandemic using vaccines. Ever since vaccines have become available, there has been a global effort to attain herd immunity of at least 75% through the administration of vaccines. There is a dire need to assess the knowledge as well as the acceptability of COVID-19 vaccines among residents of Jos South Local Government. This study aims to assess the knowledge and acceptability of the COVID-19 vaccine among residents of Jos South Local Government. Methodology: It was a descriptive cross-sectional study, 318 respondents were selected using a multistage sampling technique, with a 98.7% response rate. Data were collected using an interviewer-administered semi-structured questionnaire and analyzed using IBM SPSS version 25. Frequency tables were drawn from univariate analysis and Chi-square was used to test for association between two categorical variables. The level of significance is set at P<0.05. Result: This study revealed that 50.6% of respondents have good knowledge of the COVID-19 vaccine, while 70.8% have good acceptability of the COVID-19 vaccine, 66.0% were already vaccinated, a significant association was found between age and COVID-19 vaccine acceptability among respondents at (ꭓ2=9.495, p=0.045). Conclusion: The level of acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccine was moderately high among the participants, more than two-thirds of the respondents had good knowledge and acceptability of the COVID-19 vaccine. Therefore, the need for more health-related education among the general populace to alleviate any fears associated with the vaccine is urgently required.