The Impact of Belief System, Anxiety, and Attitude of Healthcare Providers towards Post-COVID-19 Vaccines in Keffi, Nasarawa State, Nigeria

Post-COVID-19 pandemic disposition of healthcare professionals regarding vaccination is influenced by fear and anxiety, beliefs concerning vaccine safety and side-effects, and confidence in governmental measures. This study examined the belief system, anxiety, and attitude towards post-COVID-19 vaccines among healthcare providers in Keffi Local Government Area of Nasarawa State, Nigeria. A total of one hundred and forty (140) randomly selected male and female healthcare workers, comprising twenty-four (24) medical doctors and one hundred and sixteen (116) nurses providing COVID-19 healthcare services in Federal Medical Center, Keffi, Nasarawa State, were used for the study. Three standardized instruments: (the Modified MERS-CoV Health Belief Model Scale-HBMS with Cronbach’s alpha coefficients of 0.83, COVID-19 Anxiety Scale-CAS with Cronbach’s alpha coefficients of .08, and Attitude towards COVID-19 Scale with Cronbach's Alpha reliability of 0.85) were used for data collection. Statistical analysis involved the use of Pearson Correlation and independent t-test to analyze the data collected at significant level of .05. Findings of first and second hypothesis show that independently belief system (r=0.205**, df=140, p<.0001) and anxiety (r=.308**, df=140, p<.0001) has a statistically significant relationship with the attitude of healthcare workers toward COVID-19 vaccine in Federal Medical Center, Keffi, Nasarawa State, Nigeria. This suggests that socio-cultural factors, including societal values, perceptions, and cultural beliefs, have a significant influence on the healthcare provider's attitude toward the COVID-19 vaccine. Also, worry and fear of COVID-19 side effects increase the level of anxiety and attitude of healthcare providers toward the COVID-19 vaccine. The finding of the third hypothesis reveals that there was a statistically significant difference in the attitude of male and female healthcare providers towards the COVID-19 vaccine in Federal Medical Center, Keffi, Nasarawa State, Nigeria (Cal.t=3.462, df=138, P<.025). Based on the findings, it was recommended that there is a need to reduce and redistribute individual workloads, recruit new staff, provide sufficient personal protective equipment, offer financial and psychological support, and shorten shift lengths among healthcare workers.

attitude, anxiety, belief system, COVID-19 vaccine, healthcare provider

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