Knowledge, Attitudes and Behaviors of Parents of Healthcare Workers Towards Rotavirus Vaccination in Turkey

Abstract

Background/Aims:: This study's main goal was to find out what parents of children under the age of five who work in healthcare in Turkey know and think about the rotavirus (RV) vaccine, RV infection, and RV vaccination rates. Methods: The 'Demographic Characteristics Questionnaire' and the 'The RV Information/Vaccination Status Survey' both online surveys, were the two main tools used in this descriptive study, which involved 1317 willing participants who were parents of healthcare workers and was conducted between December 1, 2021, and May 1, 2022. The first focused on gathering crucial demographic information, while the second examined participant knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors related to rotavirus and its vaccination. Results: The mean age of participants was 33.76 ± 5.28 years. Of the participants, 70.3% were women, 47.3% were doctors, and 90.9% had a university or higher education level. 91.% stated that their children do not have any chronic disease and it was determined that 94.2% of them had their children regularly vaccinated with childhood vaccines. The RV vaccination rate was 55.6%, and 60.9% stated that their children had no previous RV infection. Of those who were infected with RV, 38.3% were hospitalized and treated. 85.2% of those with RV-infected children had no RV vaccine, and the reason why they did not have the vaccine was its high cost. Conclusions: This finding emphasizes how crucial it is to remove financial obstacles and improve accessibility to guarantee broader access to necessary vaccines, including the RV vaccine, to protect public health.

Keywords

• Rotavirus
• Gastroenteritis
• Children
• Vaccine
• Parents

Ethical Statement

The current study was approved by Ethics Committee of Bitlis Eren University (date: 10.11.2021, session no: 21/13-1, decision no: E.1342). This study was conducted in line with the international ethical standards of Declaration of Helsinki.

Türkiye'de Sağlık Çalışanı Ebeveynlerin Rotavirüs Aşılamasına Yönelik Bilgi, Tutum ve Davranışları

Abstract

Amaç: Bu çalışmanın amacı, Türkiye'de sağlık hizmetlerinde çalışan beş yaş altı çocuğu olan ebeveynlerin rotavirüs (RV) aşısı, RV enfeksiyonu ve RV aşılama oranları hakkında ne bildiklerini, ne düşündüklerin ve nasıl bir tutum ve davranış içerisinde olduklarını ortaya çıkarmaktır. Gereç ve Yöntem: Her ikisi de çevrimiçi anket olan 'Demografik Özellikler Anketi' ve 'RV Bilgi/Aşı Durum Anketi', sağlık çalışanlarının ebeveynleri olan 1317 gönüllü katılımcının dahil edildiği bu tanımlayıcı çalışmada iki ana veri toplama aracı olarak kullanıldı. Çalışma 1 Aralık 2021 ile 1 Mayıs 2022 arasında yürütüldü. İlki önemli demografik bilgilerin toplanmasına odaklanırken, ikincisi katılımcıların rotavirüs ve aşısına ilişkin bilgi, tutum ve davranışlarını inceledi. Bulgular: Katılımcıların yaş ortalaması 33,76±5,28 yıl idi. Katılımcıların %70,32'si kadın, %47,29'u doktor ve %90,89'u üniversite ve üzeri eğitim seviyesine sahipti. Katılımcıların %91,05'i çocuklarında herhangi bir kronik hastalığın bulunmadığını belirtirken, %94,22'sinin çocuklarına düzenli olarak çocukluk çağı aşılarını yaptırdıkları belirlendi. RV aşılama oranı %55,58 olup, %60,90'ı çocuklarının daha önce RV enfeksiyonu geçirmediğini belirtmiştir. RV enfeksiyonuna yakalananların %38,27'si hastaneye kaldırılarak tedavi altına alındı. RV enfeksiyonu olan çocukların %85,19'unun RV aşısı olmadığı, aşı yaptırmamalarının nedeni ise maliyetinin yüksek olduğu görüldü. Sonuç: Bu bulgular, halk sağlığını korumak için RV aşısı da dahil olmak üzere gerekli aşılara daha geniş erişimi garanti altına almak için finansal engelleri kaldırmanın ve erişilebilirliği arttırmanın ne kadar önemli olduğunu vurgulamaktadır.

Keywords

• Rotavirus
• mide bağırsak iltihabı
• çocuklar
• aşı
• ebeveynler

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