Vaccine Acceptance During a Novel Student-led Emergency Department COVID-19 Vaccination Program
Introduction: The coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic not only exacerbated barriers to healthcare but has also highlighted the trend toward increased vaccine hesitancy. Our goal was to improve COVID-19 vaccine uptake through a student-led, emergency department-based (ED) vaccination program. Method...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
eScholarship Publishing, University of California
2023-05-01
|
| Series: | Western Journal of Emergency Medicine |
| Online Access: | https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0vp4b9z6 |
| _version_ | 1797798222856454144 |
|---|---|
| author | Carly Eastin Brendan Moore Aaron Moulton Luke Lefler Fuad Haydar Morgan Sweere Gavin Jones Crystal Sparks Austin Porter III M. Kathryn Allison Travis Eastin |
| author_facet | Carly Eastin Brendan Moore Aaron Moulton Luke Lefler Fuad Haydar Morgan Sweere Gavin Jones Crystal Sparks Austin Porter III M. Kathryn Allison Travis Eastin |
| author_sort | Carly Eastin |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Introduction: The coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic not only exacerbated barriers to healthcare but has also highlighted the trend toward increased vaccine hesitancy. Our goal was to improve COVID-19 vaccine uptake through a student-led, emergency department-based (ED) vaccination program. Methods: This prospective, quality-improvement pilot program used medical and pharmacy student volunteers as COVID-19 vaccine screeners in a southern, urban, academic ED. Patients eligible for vaccination were offered either the Janssen-Johnson & Johnson or the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine and were educated about vaccine concerns. Vaccine acceptance rates were recorded, as well as reasons for vaccine hesitancy, vaccine brand preferences, and demographics. The primary and secondary quantitative outcomes were overall vaccine acceptance and change in vaccine acceptance after student-provided education, respectively. We performed logistic regression to identify potential variables that correlated with vaccine acceptance. Guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, focus group interviews with four key stakeholder groups explored implementation facilitators and barriers. Results: We screened 406 patients for COVID-19 vaccination eligibility and current vaccine status, the majority of whom were unvaccinated. Of unvaccinated or partially vaccinated patients, vaccine acceptance before education was 28.3% (81/286), and vaccine acceptance after education was 31.5% (90/286) (% difference, 3.1% [95% CI 0.3%–5.9%], P=0.03). The most common hesitancy factors cited were concerns about side effects and safety. Results from the regression analysis indicated that increasing age and Black race were associated with an increased odds of vaccine acceptance. Focus groups revealed implementation barriers, including patient resistance and workflow issues, and facilitators, including student involvement and public health promotion. Conclusion: Using medical and pharmacy student volunteers as COVID-19 vaccine screeners was successful, and brief education provided by the students led to a modest increase in vaccine acceptance, with overall acceptance of 31.5%. Numerous educational benefits are described. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-13T04:00:16Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ac402d5e61ea432489dc2cdbba176c0e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1936-9018 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-13T04:00:16Z |
| publishDate | 2023-05-01 |
| publisher | eScholarship Publishing, University of California |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Western Journal of Emergency Medicine |
| spelling | doaj.art-ac402d5e61ea432489dc2cdbba176c0e2023-06-21T18:00:40ZengeScholarship Publishing, University of CaliforniaWestern Journal of Emergency Medicine1936-90182023-05-0124310.5811/westjem.58728wjem-24-436Vaccine Acceptance During a Novel Student-led Emergency Department COVID-19 Vaccination ProgramCarly Eastin0Brendan Moore1Aaron Moulton2Luke Lefler3Fuad Haydar4Morgan Sweere5Gavin Jones6Crystal Sparks7Austin Porter III8M. Kathryn Allison9Travis Eastin10University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Little Rock, ArkansasUniversity of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Little Rock, ArkansasUniversity of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Little Rock, ArkansasUniversity of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Little Rock, ArkansasUniversity of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Little Rock, ArkansasUniversity of Florida, College of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Jacksonville, FloridaUniversity of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Department of Pharmacy and Therapeutics, and College of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Little Rock, ArkansasUniversity of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Little Rock, ArkansasUniversity of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, College of Public Health, Department of Health Policy and Management; Arkansas Department of Health, Little Rock, ArkansasUniversity of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, College of Public Health, Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, Little Rock, ArkansasUniversity of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, Little Rock, ArkansasIntroduction: The coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic not only exacerbated barriers to healthcare but has also highlighted the trend toward increased vaccine hesitancy. Our goal was to improve COVID-19 vaccine uptake through a student-led, emergency department-based (ED) vaccination program. Methods: This prospective, quality-improvement pilot program used medical and pharmacy student volunteers as COVID-19 vaccine screeners in a southern, urban, academic ED. Patients eligible for vaccination were offered either the Janssen-Johnson & Johnson or the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine and were educated about vaccine concerns. Vaccine acceptance rates were recorded, as well as reasons for vaccine hesitancy, vaccine brand preferences, and demographics. The primary and secondary quantitative outcomes were overall vaccine acceptance and change in vaccine acceptance after student-provided education, respectively. We performed logistic regression to identify potential variables that correlated with vaccine acceptance. Guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, focus group interviews with four key stakeholder groups explored implementation facilitators and barriers. Results: We screened 406 patients for COVID-19 vaccination eligibility and current vaccine status, the majority of whom were unvaccinated. Of unvaccinated or partially vaccinated patients, vaccine acceptance before education was 28.3% (81/286), and vaccine acceptance after education was 31.5% (90/286) (% difference, 3.1% [95% CI 0.3%–5.9%], P=0.03). The most common hesitancy factors cited were concerns about side effects and safety. Results from the regression analysis indicated that increasing age and Black race were associated with an increased odds of vaccine acceptance. Focus groups revealed implementation barriers, including patient resistance and workflow issues, and facilitators, including student involvement and public health promotion. Conclusion: Using medical and pharmacy student volunteers as COVID-19 vaccine screeners was successful, and brief education provided by the students led to a modest increase in vaccine acceptance, with overall acceptance of 31.5%. Numerous educational benefits are described.https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0vp4b9z6 |
| spellingShingle | Carly Eastin Brendan Moore Aaron Moulton Luke Lefler Fuad Haydar Morgan Sweere Gavin Jones Crystal Sparks Austin Porter III M. Kathryn Allison Travis Eastin Vaccine Acceptance During a Novel Student-led Emergency Department COVID-19 Vaccination Program Western Journal of Emergency Medicine |
| title | Vaccine Acceptance During a Novel Student-led Emergency Department COVID-19 Vaccination Program |
| title_full | Vaccine Acceptance During a Novel Student-led Emergency Department COVID-19 Vaccination Program |
| title_fullStr | Vaccine Acceptance During a Novel Student-led Emergency Department COVID-19 Vaccination Program |
| title_full_unstemmed | Vaccine Acceptance During a Novel Student-led Emergency Department COVID-19 Vaccination Program |
| title_short | Vaccine Acceptance During a Novel Student-led Emergency Department COVID-19 Vaccination Program |
| title_sort | vaccine acceptance during a novel student led emergency department covid 19 vaccination program |
| url | https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0vp4b9z6 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT carlyeastin vaccineacceptanceduringanovelstudentledemergencydepartmentcovid19vaccinationprogram AT brendanmoore vaccineacceptanceduringanovelstudentledemergencydepartmentcovid19vaccinationprogram AT aaronmoulton vaccineacceptanceduringanovelstudentledemergencydepartmentcovid19vaccinationprogram AT lukelefler vaccineacceptanceduringanovelstudentledemergencydepartmentcovid19vaccinationprogram AT fuadhaydar vaccineacceptanceduringanovelstudentledemergencydepartmentcovid19vaccinationprogram AT morgansweere vaccineacceptanceduringanovelstudentledemergencydepartmentcovid19vaccinationprogram AT gavinjones vaccineacceptanceduringanovelstudentledemergencydepartmentcovid19vaccinationprogram AT crystalsparks vaccineacceptanceduringanovelstudentledemergencydepartmentcovid19vaccinationprogram AT austinporteriii vaccineacceptanceduringanovelstudentledemergencydepartmentcovid19vaccinationprogram AT mkathrynallison vaccineacceptanceduringanovelstudentledemergencydepartmentcovid19vaccinationprogram AT traviseastin vaccineacceptanceduringanovelstudentledemergencydepartmentcovid19vaccinationprogram |