COMMUNITY HEALTH

Background: The global coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) is a new strain of coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 which has been a cause of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) on a global scale. Despite the burden of the disease, there has not been any known treatment against SARS-COV-2. Vaccination is considered a crucial measure for controlling the spread of the virus and this subsequently led to the development of several vaccines. Despite the efforts made to achieve successful COVID-19 vaccine use, a major hindrance was related to vaccine hesitancy of the approved vaccine. Objectives: To determine the acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccine and its associated factors among residents in Benin City in order to make recommendations to key stakeholders to ensure improved uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine. Methodology: A descriptive cross-sectional study design was carried out among residents in Egor, Ovia North-East, and Oredo Local Government Areas of Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. It was conducted from March 2021 to May 2023. Six hundred and ten residents were selected using a multi-stage sampling technique. Data was collected from the respondents using an interviewer-administered questionnaire. The data obtained were analyzed with IBM SPSS version 25. The level of significance of all statistical associations was set at p < 0.05. Results: From the 610 respondents interviewed, males 328 (53.8%) and females 282 (46.2%) with an average age of 33.8± 13.4years. The majority of them were Christians 533 (87.43%) and 367 (60.2%) were single. Three hundred and ninety-nine (65.4%) respondents had a
tertiary level of education. The mean household income was ₦52,244 ± 87091 and about two-third of them earned < ₦100,000. From the responses, 358 (58.7%) and 233 (38.2%) had good knowledge of the COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccines respectively while 252 (41.3%) xv and 377 (61.8%) of the respondents had poor knowledge of the COVID-19 and COVID-19 vaccine respectively. Four hundred and twenty-three respondents (69.3%) had a poor perception of risk while 187 (30.7%) had a good perception of the risk of COVID-19 (63.4%) had a good perception of COVID-19 vaccine and 223 (36.6%) had a poor perception of
COVID-19 vaccine. A total of 415 (68%) respondents were willing to take up the COVID-19 vaccine if offered. Two hundred and forty-nine respondents (40.8%) have received the COVID-19 vaccine. The factors found to affect the uptake of the vaccine were age, skill level, level of education, knowledge of COVID-19, and willingness to take the COVID-19 vaccination. Conclusion: The study showed that the majority of the respondents had good knowledge and poor knowledge of COVID-19 and COVID-19 respectively. Over three- quarter of respondents had a poor perception risk of COVID-19. About two-third were willing to take
up the vaccine if offered. The government should provide accurate, up-to-date information about the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines. They should work with appropriate stakeholders to create awareness campaigns that address vaccine hesitancy.

Background: The coronavirus disease was declared a pandemic on March 11, 2020. Due to the rapid spread of the virus, various governments implemented major restrictions to control its transmission. These restrictions included an economic lockdown and restrictions on movement. The aftermath of this had effects such as a reduction in income, panic, and hunger. The COVID- 19 pandemic has disproportionately affected vulnerable populations, including children, women, and the elderly, who are more susceptible to the virus due to their pre-existing health conditions and other factors. More than 7.5 million children die globally each year, partly due to the poor health-seeking behaviour and health beliefs of mothers. Methodology: This study utilized a descriptive cross-sectional design. A total of 624 mothers of children under the age of 5 in the Oluku community were selected using a multistage sampling technique. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was used for this study. The data was
analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25, with a significance level set at p<0.05. Results: A higher proportion of respondents (73.2%) were between the ages of 25 and 39, with a mean age of 30.7 ± 6.3 years. Out of the 624 respondents, 79.4% identified as Christians, 27.9% identified as being of Benin ethnicity, 50% had completed secondary education, 77.9% had a particular skill, 81.1% had an average income between ₦30,000 and ₦150,000, and 63.3% belonged to the middle socioeconomic status. Just over a quarter, 26.1% of individuals had xiii harmful health beliefs, while more than 55% exhibited good health-seeking behaviour. Age, religion, level of education, average monthly income, skill level, and socioeconomic status were found to have a statistically significant relationship with the impact of COVID-19 on health beliefs. Meanwhile, marital status, level of education, and socioeconomic status were found to have a statistically significant relationship with the impact of COVID-19 on health-seeking behaviour.