Abstract
Objective: The COVID-19 damage must be decreased, and widespread vaccine coverage is a key strategy for reestablishing universities' normalcy. Thus, our study aimed to ascertain if Pakistani university students intended to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Methods: As soon as free COVID-19 vaccinations became available in Pakistan in 2021, a cross-sectional online survey was carryout from July 25 and August 25, 2021; 418 medical college students aged 18 and above were polled in the Abbottabad area of KP, Pakistan. A simple sample approach was used to obtain data utilizing online structured questionnaires. The questions were divided into sociodemographics, knowledge, and COVID-19 attitudes. Results: There were 450 research participants, but 418 completed the survey with a response rate of 92.88%. Most of the participants in the study were men (366 (87.56%) and (388 (80.86%) between the ages of 18-22, and 358 (85.65%) lived in an urban area. Around 408(97.61%) have heard about the COVID-19 vaccine, and 186(44.5%) answered that social media were the main source of their information. Around 266(63.63%) of the participants agreed that they would take the COVID-19 vaccine without delay, while 136(32.54%) participants thought that COVID-19 infection would reduce taking the vaccine. Approximately half of the participants, 202(48.33%), agree. In addition, 102 (24.4%) say they will recommend the COVID-19 vaccine to their family and friends. According to this study, 35.42% of medical students hesitated to the COVID-19 vaccine. Conclusions: Vaccination against COVID-19 was perceived positively by most participants in the current study. Fear of long-term effects, and a lack of confidence in the vaccine's safety profile, there were many reasons for refusing the vaccine, including a lack of information about it and the long development time. All stakeholders are encouraged to raise these factors to increase vaccination awareness, acceptance, and positive attitudes.
