Evaluation of vaccine labor and COVID-19 risk perceptions of university students during the pandemic period

Objective: In our study, we aimed to evaluate the COVID-19 risk perceptions of the students at Başkent University and to investigate vaccine hesitancy among the students and the factors that may contribute to vaccine hesitancy. Materials and Methods: Our study involves students at Başkent University who agreed to participate in the study between 1 May 2022 and 1 August 2022. 384 participants completed questionnaires about their sociodemographic characteristics, COVID-19 histories, vaccination status, including COVID-19 Phobia Scale (C19P-S) and General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28). Results: The mean age of the participants was 21.59±1.65 (18-28 years). 50.5% of the participants were female and 56% were in health-related programs. Vaccine hesitancy of those studying in health-related programs was significantly lower than those who studied in other departments (p<0.01). 31.8% of the participants affirmed that they complied with the pandemic rules. Those who followed the pandemic rules had significantly lower vaccine hesitancy than those who did not (p<0.05). 52.1% of the participants stated that they had a COVID-19 infection and 96% experienced symptoms. The most common symptoms of the participants who had Covid-19 infection were sore throat (66.1%) and fever (65.6%). 65.8% of the participants responded that they were hesitant about receiving the Covid-19 vaccine. Among the reasons for the participants who were hesitant to receive the Covid-19 vaccine were the possible side effects of the vaccine (43.2%), low vaccine effectiveness (30%), not trusting the authorities (21.6%), belief in natural immunity (12.8%), distrusting the vaccine (46.8%), not seeing oneself at risk (19.2%). 76.6% of the participants voluntarily received the first vaccine. Vaccine hesitancy was significantly lower in the participants who volunteered to receive the vaccine than those from whom PCR testing was required (p<0.01). Conclusion: Vaccination indecision was found to be significantly less in those studying in health departments, those who did not have an unvaccinated family member, those who were vaccinated when it was their turn. Knowing the causes of vaccine hesitancy will guide the fight against vaccine-preventable diseases. Keywords: COVID-19 Vaccines, Vaccine Hesitancy, Preventive Medicine