COVID-19 vaccine acceptance among pregnant women: a multicentre cross-sectional survey in Port Harcourt, Nigeria.

INTRODUCTION: effective COVID-19 vaccines for the prevention of severe illness have been available for more than one year now. This study was carried out to ascertain vaccine hesitancy and its associations among pregnant women receiving antenatal care in Port Harcourt, a large cosmopolitan town in Nigeria.

METHODS: we conducted a cross-sectional online survey over 2 months among consenting pregnant women receiving antenatal care in the 3 largest obstetric service centers in Port Harcourt to evaluate COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and its associations.

RESULTS: the prevalence of vaccine hesitancy was 669 (72.2%). Of the respondents, 27 (2.9%) had been infected or had a close family member infected with SARS-CoV-2, and 897 (96.8%) of them had heard of the COVID-19 vaccine; however, only 133 (14.4%) had been vaccinated against COVID-19. The safety of the mother in 260 (32.8%) and the safety of the unborn baby in 114 (14.4%) of the respondents were the reasons for vaccine hesitancy. A small proportion of women 7(0.9%) were hesitant on religious grounds. Tertiary education, use of childhood immunization for previous infants delivered, and availability of COVID-19 vaccine in the antenatal clinic at no cost to the women, were statistically significant predictors of vaccine uptake among the respondents.

CONCLUSION: the prevalence of vaccine hesitancy among pregnant women in Port Harcourt was 72.2%. Higher academic achievement and availability of the COVID-19 vaccine in the antenatal clinic were predictors of vaccine uptake, while reasons for hesitancy were mostly due to safety concerns for the mother and unborn baby.