Vaccine Literacy and Hesitancy Relating to Child Routine Vaccination among Jordanian Parents Post COVID-19

Sumaia AlWaraqy; Muntaha Gharaibeh; Rabia Allari

doi:10.54133/ajms.v11i1.3013

Authors

Sumaia AlWaraqy Faculty of Nursing, Al-Ahliyya Amman University, Amman19328, Jordan; Ministry of Public Health, Primary Health Care, Doha, Qatar
Muntaha Gharaibeh Faculty of Nursing, Al-Ahliyya Amman University, Amman 19328, Jordan; Faculty of Nursing, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, Jordan https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7213-9613
Rabia Allari Faculty of Nursing, Al-Ahliyya Amman University, Amman 19328, Jordan https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0892-346X

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54133/ajms.v11i1.3013

Keywords:

Jordanian parents, Post-COVID-19, Routine childhood vaccinations, Vaccine hesitancy, Vaccine literacy

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has created a debate about routine vaccination, mainly among parents, resulting in decreased immunization rates in some countries. Objective: To identify child routine vaccine hesitancy and health literacy post-COVID-19 pandemic among Jordanian parents and to investigate the factors predicting vaccine hesitancy. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted using the Parental Attitudes Towards Childhood Vaccines Scale and the Health Literacy Scale with 327 Jordanian parents recruited from maternal and child health centers from July to August 2024. Results: Vaccine hesitancy was reported by 51 parents who scored ≥ 50 out of 100, and 276 parents scored < 50 out of 100, indicating that the majority of parents were not hesitant. Parents had a moderate level of vaccine literacy (2.54±0.42), with a significant difference in the participants' functional vaccine literacy based on their educational level (p=0.001). Furthermore, functional vaccine literacy, number of children, and parents who received the COVID-19 vaccine were significant predictors of vaccine hesitancy (p<0.05). Conclusions: About 51% of parents were not hesitant, with moderate vaccine literacy and high vaccine trust. Functional vaccine literacy was a predictor of vaccine hesitancy. Policymakers and healthcare providers in the public and private sectors need to work together on this issue to be equipped with sufficient information to combat future health emergencies similar to those of COVID-19.

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