AWARENESS OF THE RISK PERCEPTIONS ATTITUDE ABOUT SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF THE VACCINATION AGAINST COVID-19

Asmaa Ali Sayis¹, Doaa Mohammad Filmban¹, Abeer Abdulrhman Basmih¹, Lina Saleh Alahmadi¹, Norah Abdulrahman Telmisani¹, Abdulrahman Saleh Alaql², Ghadeer Sameer Aldoobi³, Arwa Hussin Dawaje^4*

ABSTRACT

A new variant of the Coronaviridae family is the main reason for the contagious Coronavirus disease (COVID-19). COVID-19 mainly spreads by direct contact with the virus through contact with a COVID-19's patient, coughing, sneezing, or touching surfaces contaminated with the virus. The Ministry of Health (MOH) has made the audience conscious of the virus infectious styles and the value of quarantine, curfew and vaccination versus COVID-19. Despite strict measures taken, the awareness of people towards vaccination against COVID-19 and symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19 the most important factor in limiting the widespread of diseases. To assess the awareness of risk the perceptions attitude about signs and Symptoms of the Vaccination against COVID-19 and communication practices of Vaccination about COVID-19 among the Adult Saudi Population. This cross-sectional study was conducted online among Saudi Arabia adults population in a primary health care center in Makkah Al-Mukarramah. The questionnaire collected socio-demographic characteristics, attitudes about symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19, and practices of vaccination about COVID-19. A self-managed survey was proposed and has been sent to the study entrants during social media platforms and email. Our total entrants were (350). During the pandemic interval, a strong request for and high acceptance of COVID-19 inoculation has been cleared among the Saudi Arabia population, many adults are willing to get a COVID-19 vaccine, though acceptability should be monitored as vaccine development continues, while concerns exist about symptoms of vaccination against COVID-19. To expand vaccination coverage, programs should be designed about symptoms.

Keywords: Awareness, Symptoms, Vaccination, COVID-19, Saudi, Population

Introduction

The Spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has prompted the lamentable loss of numerous humans living and is the burden of enormous financial and social disturbance across the world [1-3]. Alongside defensive measures, for example, social separating and isolating, a viable immunization, will be the best system for moderating the spread of COVD-19 and advancing positive clinical and financial results [4]. 

Consciousness, behavior, and practice have been about signs and symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19 and correspondence practices of vaccination about COVID-19 among Adult Saudi Population concentrated in many former epidemics, for example, swine influenza [5], Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) [6] and Dengue fever [7].

The drawn-out accomplishment of the public health reaction to the COVID-19 virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pestilence will rely upon procured resistance to an adequate extent of the populace (crowd invulnerability), which is assessed to be 67% for COVID-19 [8]. Widespread immunization is fundamental for overseeing COVID-19 transmission, even though questions stay about the degree and period of prevention that will be provided from COVID-19 vaccines [3, 9].

With more than 4,000,000 confirmed (COVID-19) cases and more than 150,000 passing's, the United States keeps on engaging the general public health emergency emerging from the pandemic spread of the SARS-CoV-2 infection (COVID-19 Dashboard, 2020). All around the world, starting on 25 December 2020, there have been 77,920,564 affirmed instances of COVID-19, including 1,731,901 deaths, reported to WHO [10].

COVID-19 vaccination will help shield you from getting COVID-19. You may have a few signs and indications, which are ordinary signs that your body is building assurance. These results may influence your capacity to do daily activities, yet they should disappear in a couple of days. A few groups have no signs and symptoms [11].

Additionally, the signs and symptoms after your subsequent dose might be more extraordinary than the ones you encountered after your first dose. These results are typical signs that your body is building assurance and should disappear within a couple of days [12].

Literature Review

WHO and MOH have proposed a few practices that can help tallness the mindfulness about practices of manifestations of the vaccination about COVID-19 at an individual level and grown-up Saudi Population [13].

On Feb. 2021, in request to end the progressing pestilence, the COVID-19 immunization has been outlined as the ideal arrangement. In Bangladesh, the public authority has effectively begun the COVID-19 inoculation [14]. The information concerning signs and symptoms of COVID-19 immunizations was low among the greater part of the populace. In this examination, information was essentially connected with training, family type, month-to-month pay of a family, and past antibody take-up experience. Nonetheless, perspectives were considerably related to only sex and previously vaccine management experience organization experience [15].

In July 2020, a cross-sectional study in Indonesia was directed to survey perceptions attitudes about symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19 and practices of vaccination. They found that among 1,359 respondents, 93.3% might want to be inoculated for a 95% successful vaccine, but this approval diminished to 67.0% for a vaccine with half viability. They inferred that approval of a COVID-19 immunization was profoundly affected by the pattern viability of the vaccine. Preparing the general inhabitants to admit a vaccine with comparatively low performance may be difficult [16].

The severity of features was demonstrated to be more in elderlies, alongside those with the basic persistent medical issue because of pneumonia, cytokine storm, and multi-organ failure [11].

Vaccines are the main audience health measures and the best methodology to shield the populace from COVID-19 since SARS-CoV-2 is profoundly infectious and influences populaces broadly and universally [17].

Research evaluating perceptions, attitudes, and practices about symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19 in Australia was done in June 2020 in the wake of directing an online study of 4362 Australians matured 18 years and more established in Australia and when likely passing's and health framework capacity were still of great concern. Lacking health proficiency and lower schooling level were altogether connected with a hesitance to be immunized against both flu and COVID-19. Outstandingly, a high extent, in general, was certain about the state and federal government's reaction. In Australia, attitudes towards a COVID-19 vaccine appear, by all accounts, to be more sure than announced in France in late March 4 [18].

Rationale

This investigation aimed to estimate the awareness of the risk of the observations and attitudes about signs and symptoms of the Vaccinate against COVID-19 and communication practices of Vaccinate about COVID-19 among the adult Saudi population and their association with the rate of vaccination.

Aim of the Study

To assess the awareness of risk, perceptions, and attitude about signs and symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19 and communication practices of vaccination about COVID-19 among the adult Saudi population

Objectives

To assess the attitudes and practices toward symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19 to increase COVID-19 vaccination rates

To evaluate factors affecting attitudes and practices toward symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19 for adults in Saudi Arabia

Materials and Methods

Study Design

This cross-sectional survey has been carried out among people in the city of Makkah Al-Mukarramah. The study was carried for 25 days, from the 1^st till the 25^th of February 2021, among the adult Saudi population who attended the PHC centers in Makkah; with participants aged between 18 and 65 years old.

Study Setting / Study Area

Study participants have been recruited on Makkah including PHC centers under the supervision of the Directorate of Health Affairs of Makkah Al-Mukarramah in Saudi Arabia. The study has been conducted in the city of Makkah Al-Mukarramah whose population of Makkah is about 1.578 million.

Study Population

The study has been conducted among Patients in the PHC centers in the Makkah Al-Mukarramah at Saudi Arabia, including Al-Ka’akya, Al-Adl, Al-Zahir primary healthcare centers.

Inclusion Criteria

The study participants that all were Saudi people above 18 years of age have been recruited from Makkah Al-Mukarramah and got vaccinated.

Exclusion Criteria

Saudi people younger than 18

Participants who did not approve to share in the investigation, and/or did not reply to the questions of the investigation

Patients with language barriers

Study Sample

The sample size has been calculated by applying Raosoft sample size calculator and is 300 adult Saudi Population attending PHC and adding 10 more to reduce the margin of error. After adding 5% oversampling, the minimum calculated sample has been 350. A computer-generated simple random sampling technique was used to select the study participants.

Sampling Technique

Systematic random sampling technique is adopted.

Data Collection Methods

The self-managed reconnaissance is proposed based on former studies and frameworks to evaluate the awareness of attitude and practices about symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19 among Adult Saudi Population

The questionnaire was developed in English and was then translated into Arabic. The questions were first pre-tested and reviewed and completed after pilot testing. Before completing the survey, participants were required to indicate their consent using a forced response question followed by the survey questionnaires. The survey is assessed to take 5 min to complete.  

To collect the information, a set of questions were constructed and developed.

The reconnaissance is composed of two major divisions; the first division focuses on socio-demographic and background information about age, education level, outcome, and gender of the participants; Attitude about signs and Symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19; and practices of vaccination about COVID-19 among adult Saudi population.

Study Variables

Independent Variables

Socio-demographic criteria such as gender, age, education level, job situation, marital situation, family size, and revenue were considered as descriptive independent variables.

Dependent Variables

Whereas the level of awareness, attitude, and practice were considered as response-dependent variables.

Pilot Study

A pilot study was carried out and the questions were first pre-tested and were reviewed and finalized after it was pilot tested. Before completing the survey, participants were required to indicate their consent using a forced response question followed by the survey questionnaires.

Data Analysis

The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software version 22.0 has been employed for results entry and analysis. A p-value ≤ 0.05 has been considered statistically significant.

Results and Discussion

Table 1 shows that most of the participants were in the age group of 40-50 years; 34.0% were in the age group of 30-40 years, the majority of them were female; In addition, regarding nationality most of the participants were non-Saudi; Regarding the marital stats most of the participants were married; regarding the level of education, and the majority of participants had a university education. 

From the participants' responses, it can be said that you will be infected with the virus once you are vaccinated, and will have symptoms like sore throat, diarrhea, and conjunctivitis (eye infection).

Table 1. Distribution of Demographic Characteristics of the Research Sample (n=350)

Table 2. Description of the Awareness about the Risk Perceptions Attitude about Symptoms of Vaccination Against COVID-19 among Adult Saudi Population

Table 3. Description of the Awareness about Communication Practices of Vaccination about COVID-19 among Adult Saudi Population

Table 4. Distribution of Awareness of the Perceptions Attitude and Practices, about Symptoms of the Vaccination against COVID-19 among Adult Saudi Population

Table 6 show that regarding the age data there is a clear significant correlation between attitude and age. Considering gender no significant relation is seen between the attitude and gender; regarding nationality, a significant relationship exists between the attitude and nationality.

Concerning marital status there is a significant relation between the attitude and marital status; regarding the level of education there is a significant relation between the attitude and level of education; regarding region, there is no significant relation between the attitude and region.

Table 6. Distribution the Relation of Socio-demographic Data (Age, Gender, Nationality, Marital Status, Level of Education and Region) and Attitude about Symptoms of the Vaccination against COVID-19 among Adult Saudi Population

According to Table 7 regarding age, there is a significant correlation between the practices and age; regarding gender, there is no significant relation between the practices and gender; regarding nationality, there is a significant relation between the practices and nationality. regarding marital status, there is a significant relation between the practices and marital status, regarding the level of education there is a significant relation between the practices and level of education; regarding region, there is no significant relation between the practices and region.

Table 7. Distribution the Relation of Socio-demographic Data (Age, Gender, Nationality, Marital Status, Level of Education and Region) and Practices about Symptoms of the Vaccination against COVID-19 among Adult Saudi Population

This investigation aimed to evaluate the awareness of risk the perceptions attitude about signs and symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19 and communication practices of vaccination about COVID-19 among the adult Saudi population.  Socioeconomic criteria of the inhabitance to obtain information that could be employed awareness campaign and to estimate whether people’s knowledge varied based on particular criteria of the target inhabitance. Most of the participants (38.3%) were in the age group 40-50 years, the majority of them were female (64.3%), also regarding the nationality most of the participants non-Saudi were (58.0%) while Saudi were (35.7%); most of the participants were married (56.3%); regarding the level of education, the majority of the participant had a university education (39.7%) while the others had secondary school education (33.1%). Regarding the region, most of the participants were from the southern region (33.7%) (Table 1).

According to the MOH update on the 20th of April 2020, the number of COVID-19 patients increased to 10,484 in Saudi Arabia. Many investigations have recorded the significance of consciousness, perceptions of behavior, and practice about symptoms of the against COVID-19 society to decrease the spreading rate through pestilences and pandemics [19]. Similarly, lack of consciousness participates to undesirable observations of behaviors and practice, about symptoms of the

against COVID-19 caused negative effects on infection control [20].

In this investigation, we found a considerable correlation between consciousness and behavior, indicating that the preferable level of consciousness was reflected in their behavior. The same was also true for the relation between behavior and practice. Results from this investigation noticed a moderate public consciousness level of the COVID-19 vaccine.

During the COVID-19 outbreak, a similar awareness existed about the risk perceptions attitude about symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19 among the Adult Saudi Population [21]. A similar level of consciousness was observed among health care providers in UAE, Vietnam, and Uganda [22], also this study is similar to another study the vaccine, and COVID-19 vaccines can cause side impacts, most of which are mild or moderate and go away within a few days on their own. As it is clear in the data of clinical studies, more severe or long-lasting side impacts are possible. Vaccines are frequently surveyed to detect negative situations [22]. Recorded side impacts of COVID-19 vaccines have mainly been mild to moderate and have lasted no longer than few days. Typical side impacts involve pain at the inoculate site, fever, fatigue, headache, muscle pain, chills, and diarrhea. The chances of any of these side impacts occurring following vaccination vary according to the specific vaccine. COVID-19 vaccines are preserved versus the SARS-CoV-2 virus only, so it is still significant to keep yourself healthy and well [23].

In the current study, awareness of the perceptions attitude and practices, about symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19 among the adult Saudi Population was at the highest level (45.1%) and participants had good awareness about vaccination against COVID-19, like other studies [7, 20]. On the other hand, other trials indicated poor awareness about symptoms of vaccination against COVID-19 [24]. While practices about symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19 average were (71.1%) (Table 4) concerning the level of relation between behavior and practices attitude, show that there is a significant positive correlation between attitude and practices r= 0.788 and p-value =0.001 (Table 5).

A study in China reported that 48% of respondents delayed vaccination before verification of the safety of the vaccine, which demonstrates their doubt regarding vaccine safety. Worryingly, the exceptionally fast pace of vaccine evaluation, the skepticism of definite groups of science and health experts might promote doubt about the COVID-19 vaccine [25].

The participants’ socio-demographic data (Age, gender, nationality, marital status, level of education, and region) and attitude and practices about symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19 among the adult Saudi Population are considerably correlated with participants' consciousness, as evidenced by this study.

Participants’ age data report a significant correlation between the attitude and age were P-value=0.001.  In addition, nationality shows a significant relation between attitude and practices and nationality [26].

In agreement with this investigation, other trials found identical findings, as awareness of the perceptions and attitude towards symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19 was significantly among the level of education people with higher levels of education were more knowledgeable compared with other categories. Moreover, marital status was positively related to better awareness. On another hand, regarding gender and region, there is no significant relation between the attitude and gender; practices also show no significant relation between practices and gender and region in [China, the USA, and Nepal [22, 27]. Participants from business and governmental sections have significantly reported the highest COVID-19 consciousness (Tables 6 and 7) This result is identical to other studies with higher KAP through married peoples [28]. It was thought that married people had a higher level of positive behaviors towards COVID-19 as they cared for close family members, involving young children [3, 29].

Conclusion

COVID-19 disease was pronounced as a pandemic on the 12^th of March 2020. The causative of this disease is highly contagious, therefore, enhancing consciousness is a main of perceptions attitude about signs and symptoms of the vaccination against COVID-19, and practices of vaccination about COVID-19 among the adult Saudi population is very important features to curb the transmission of the COVID-19. The data of this study recognized regions of misconceptions symptoms of the vaccination against and specific groups to be targeted for educational programs regarding vaccination against COVID-19. Many aspects were less knowledgeable through respondents, containing the symptoms of the vaccination against virus mode of transmission, symptoms, incubation period and re-infection and the vulnerable people. It is therefore suggested that a well-planned and structured co-educational program should be undertaken to develop the level of consciousness and participate in better behavior and practice. In this current pandemic, people should follow the ministry of health instructions and evade close contact with others, especially immune compromised personals.

Acknowledgments: The authors would like to express their sincere gratitude to their colleagues for their great help in distributing the survey and collecting the data.

Conflict of interest: None

Financial support: None

Ethics statement: Permission from the family medicine program was obtained.

Permission from the regional Research and Ethical Committee was given to conduct our study.

All the subjects have participated voluntarily in the study.

Privacy of information and confidentiality has been maintained.

A full explanation about the study and its purpose was carried out for the subjects’ participation.

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