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Abstract
<p><strong>OBJECTIVE: </strong>To evaluate COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among health care personnel (HCP) with significant clinical exposure to COVID-19 at two large, academic hospitals in Philadelphia.</p>
<p><strong>DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: </strong>HCP were surveyed between November-December 2020 about their intention to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.</p>
<p><strong>METHODS: </strong>The survey measured the intent among HCP to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, timing of vaccination, and reasons for or against vaccination. Among patient-facing HCP, multivariate regression evaluated the associations between healthcare positions (MD, NP/PA, RN) and vaccine hesitancy (intending to decline, delay, or were unsure about vaccination), adjusting for demographic characteristics, reasons why or why not to receive the vaccine, and prior receipt of routine vaccines.</p>
<p><strong>RESULTS: </strong>Among 5,929 HCP (2,253 MDs/DOs, 582 NPs, 158 PAs, and 2,936 nurses), a higher proportion of nurses (47.3%) were COVID-vaccine hesitant compared with 30.0% of PAs/NPs and 13.1% of MDs/DOs. The most common reasons for vaccine hesitancy included concerns about side effects, the newness of the vaccines, and lack of vaccine knowledge. Regardless of position, Black HCP were more hesitant than White HCP (OR∼5) and females were more hesitant than males (OR∼2).</p>
<p><strong>CONCLUSION: </strong>Although a majority of clinical HCP intended to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, intention varied by healthcare position. Consistent with other studies, hesitancy was also significantly associated with race/ethnicity across all positions. These results underline the importance of understanding and effectively addressing reasons for hesitancy, especially among frontline HCP who are at increased risk of COVID exposure and play a critical role in recommending vaccines to patients.</p>