Modelling the COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake Rates in a Geographical and Socioeconomic Context: A Case Study of England

The global Covid-19 pandemic has posed unprecedented social and economic challenges to many countries, including the United Kingdom. One of the key strategies to contain the pandemic is mass vaccination. The Covid-19 vaccine uptake rate of a population group depends on a range of geographical and socio-economic factors, including accessibility to vaccination, ethnic composition, deprivation levels, etc. However, limited research has been conducted to obtain a quantitative understanding of how these factors are associated with the Covid-19 vaccine uptake rates. This study fills this gap by proposing a beta regression model for the small-area Covid-19 vaccine uptake rates in England. The findings have important implications for the practice and policymaking of advocating vaccination programmes and other healthcare services

Understanding the spatial heterogeneity of COVID-19 vaccination uptake in England

Abstract Background Mass vaccination has been a key strategy in effectively containing global COVID-19 pandemic that posed unprecedented social and economic challenges to many countries. However, vaccination rates vary across space and socio-economic factors, and are likely to depend on the accessibility to vaccination services, which is under-researched in literature. This study aims to empirically identify the spatially heterogeneous relationship between COVID-19 vaccination rates and socio-economic factors in England. Methods We investigated the percentage of over-18 fully vaccinated people at the small-area level across England up to 18 November 2021. We used multiscale geographically weighted regression (MGWR) to model the spatially heterogeneous relationship between vaccination rates and socio-economic determinants, including ethnic, age, economic, and accessibility factors. Results This study indicates that the selected MGWR model can explain 83.2% of the total variance of vaccination rates. The variables exhibiting a positive association with vaccination rates in most areas include proportion of population over 40, car ownership, average household income, and spatial accessibility to vaccination. In contrast, population under 40, less deprived population, and black or mixed ethnicity are negatively associated with the vaccination rates. Conclusions Our findings indicate the importance of improving the spatial accessibility to vaccinations in developing regions and among specific population groups in order to promote COVID-19 vaccination