Regional Differences in COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy in December 2020 : A Natural Experiment in the French Working-Age Population

Funding: Online survey experiments were funded by Santé publique France. This research was funded by Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR-21-CO16-0006-01). Acknowledgments: The Department of methodology and innovation in prevention (SSMIP) of the teaching hospital of Bordeaux is partially funded by Agence Régionale de Santé (ARS) NouvelleAquitaine, France. Health Economics Research Unit (HERU) is funded by the Chief Scientist Office (CSO) of the Scottish Government Health and Social Care Directorates. Centre de Calcul Intensif d’Aix-Marseille is acknowledged for granting access to its high performance computing resources. The CoVaMax Study Group includes: François Alla, Angela Baron, Coline Bourreau, Léo Donzel Godinot, Michaël Schwarzinger, Fanny Velardo (Department of methodology and innovation in prevention, Bordeaux university hospital, 33000 Bordeaux, France); Marcela Benavides, Linda Cambon, Laurence Kotobi, Elodie Richard (University of Bordeaux, Inserm UMR 1219-Bordeaux Population Health, 33000 Bordeaux, France); Pierre Arwidson, Isabelle Bonmarin, Stéphanie Vandentorren (Santé Publique France, 94410 Saint Maurice, France); Stéphane Luchini (Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS, EHESS, Centrale Marseille, AMSE, 13001 Marseille, France); Verity Watson (Health Economics Research Unit (HERU), University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen AB25 2ZD, UK).Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Determinants of COVID-19 Vaccination Intention among Health Care Workers in France: A Qualitative Study

COVID-19 vaccines are one of the best tools to limit the spread of the virus. However, vaccine hesitancy is increasing worldwide, and France is one of the most hesitant countries. From the beginning of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign, health care workers (HCW) have been prioritized in the vaccination strategy but were also hesitant. This study was conducted to identify and understand the determinants of COVID-19 vaccination intention in the French context, with a view to promoting HCW vaccination. A qualitative study using individual semi-structured interviews of HCWs was carried out at the beginning of the vaccination campaign (January to April 2021) in a French university hospital. Interviews indicated that the vaccination intention of HCWs was influenced by confidence in the proposed vaccines, past experience with vaccines and disease, the opinions and vaccination status of others, and media handling of information related to COVID-19 vaccination. Improving HCW vaccination intention regarding COVID-19 vaccines could be achieved through the dissemination of clear, reassuring, scientific information. Information should be disseminated by HCWs and vaccination experts and adapted to local contexts. To improve the level of confidence and vaccination uptake through a compliance effect, it would be useful to promote positive COVID-19 vaccination experiences and increased rates of immunization.Etude des leviers permettant de maximiser la vaccination contre la Covid-19 dans la population adulte âgée de 18 à 64 ans à faible risque d'infection sévèr