Aim The frequency of vaccine refusal and hesitation, which is associated with many factors, is increasing worldwide. The purpose of this study is to estimate the frequency of vaccine refusal against COVID‐19 vaccines and to identify the underlying factors for refusal or hesitation. Materials and Methods This is a cross‐sectional study carried out in a district of Istanbul between 25‐30 December 2020. A sample of people between the ages of 20‐85 in the district was selected, and a total of 384 people were enrolled. A questionnaire about the COVID‐19 vaccine was administered to the participants by phone. The questionnaire consisted of questions about the sociodemographic characteristics of participants and their thoughts about possible COVID‐19 vaccines. Results 45.3% of the participants were hesitant about getting the COVID‐19 vaccine, which was declared appropriate by the Ministry of Health. The rate of those who think that the COVID‐19 vaccine will be effective in preventing and controlling the disease was 51.6%. 89.6% of the participants were hesitant about getting their children vaccinated. Those who do not consider COVID‐19 disease as a risk to their health were 22.9%, and 32.8% thought that they would be protected from the disease by natural and traditional ways. The median score of the participants' risk perception was 7 (IQR: 6‐8; Mean: 6.8; SD: 1.7). The median value of risk perception score of those who accept the vaccine was 6 (IQR: 4‐6), while the median value for those who did not accept the vaccine was 4 (IQR: 4‐6) (p <0.01). Factors affecting vaccine acceptance were determined as the perception of risk (OR: 1.26% 95CI 1.03‐1.55) and age (OR: 0.94% 95CI: 0.91‐0.98) in logistic regression analysis. Conclusion Half of the participants were hesitant about the COVID‐19 vaccines. The success of COVID‐19 vaccination programs largely depends on the public willingness to accept the vaccine.

Objectives This study aimed to determine the COVID-19 risk perceptions, vaccination intentions and predictive factors of family physicians and family healthcare staff working in primary care in Üsküdar. Design A cross-sectional study was performed using an online questionnaire to determine the demographic and general characteristics of the participants and their willingness to be vaccinated. Setting An online questionnaire was applied to family physicians and family health workers working in primary care family health centres in Üsküdar between 25 and 29 December 2020. Multivariate analysis was performed to identify independent predictors of the willingness of individuals to be vaccinated. Participants Out of 323 health workers working in 44 family health centres in the district, a total of 276 health workers were reached, including 126 physicians (n=158, 79.7%) and 150 midwives/nurses (n=165, 90.9%) (response rate 85.4%). Results 50.4% (n=139) of the healthcare workers were willing to have the COVID-19 vaccine, 29% (n=80) were undecided and 20.7% (n=57) refused the vaccine. The rate of acceptance to be vaccinated was higher in physicians, in men and in those who had not received a seasonal influenza vaccination regularly each year. Conclusions Half of the primary healthcare workers, one of the high-risk groups in the pandemic, were hesitant or refused to be vaccinated for COVID-19. Knowing the factors affecting the vaccine acceptance rates of healthcare professionals can be considered one of the most strategic moves in reaching the target of high community vaccination rates. For evidence-based planning in vaccination studies, there is a need to investigate the reasons for COVID-19 vaccine acceptance by healthcare workers at all levels.

Amaç: Bu çalışmada, COVID-19 pandemisi döneminde görev yapan sağlık çalışanlarının anksiyete ve uykusuzluk düzeyleri incelenmiştir. Yöntem: Kesitsel türde olan bu çalışmanın evrenini bir ilçe sağlık müdürlüğünde görevli sağlık çalışanları oluşturmaktadır. Veriler yüz yüze görüşme yoluyla uygulanan anket formlarıyla toplanmıştır. Üç bölümden oluşan anket formunda katılımcıların tanımlayıcı özelliklerine yönelik sorular, Yaygın Anksiyete Bozukluğu-7 Testi ve Uykusuzluk Şiddeti İndeksi yer almaktadır. Bulgular: Çalışma evreninin %85.6’sına (n=149) ulaşılmıştır. Yaş ortalaması 35.70±9.27 olup %71.5’i kadındır. %82.3’ü üniversite mezunu, %10.8’i hekimdir. Halk sağlığı hizmetleri biriminde görev yapanlar tüm personelin %31.5’ini; ağız ve diş sağlığı merkezinde görev yapanlar ise %24.6’sını oluşturmaktadır. Katılımcıların %33.1’i pandemi döneminde de aynı görevine devam ederken, %27.7’si vaka filyasyonu, %16.9’u ise Halk Sağlığı Yönetim Sistemi işlemlerinde görev yapmaktadır. COVID-19 tanısı alanların oranı %19.2’dir. Çalışanların %52.3’ünde yaygın anksiyete bozukluğu, %53.1’inde uykusuzluk mevcuttur. Hem yaygın anksiyete bozukluğu hem de uykusuzluk olanların oranı %36.9’dur. Öğrenim durumuna göre, lise mezunları anksiyete bozukluğu ve uykusuzluğun en az olduğu gruptur (sırasıyla p=0.029; p=0.031). Sonuç: Pandemiyle mücadelede ön safta görev yapan ilçe sağlık müdürlüğü personelinde yaygın anksiyete bozukluğu ve uykusuzluk sık görülmektedir. Çalışanların korunması pandemi döneminde alınması gereken önlemlerin önemli bir parçasıdır. Hem çalışanların iyilik halinin sürdürülmesi hem de sağlık hizmetlerinin yürütülmesinde yeterli insan kaynağını sağlayabilmek için sağlık çalışanlarının ruh sağlığı sorunlarına önem verilmelidir. Bu sayede hem çalışanların sağlıkları korunacak hem de topluma sundukları sağlık hizmeti aksamadan devam edecektir.

The COVID-19 virus appeared in Wuhan, China in 2019 and spread rapidly all over the world. Vaccination guidelines have recommended pregnant women to get vaccinated against COVID-19 to prevent disease. This study aimed to understand the willingness of pregnant women to vaccinate and the factors associated with their hesitation and resistance. This cross-sectional study was conducted between March and April 2022. The sample size was not calculated and tried to reach all pregnant women who did not have any COVID-19 vaccine. In the first part of the questionnaire, socio-demographic questions, and in the last part, the short form of the 12-item anti-vaccine scale, which was prepared as a 5-point Likert scale, were applied. The study was completed with 561 pregnant women. The mean score of the pregnant women who participated in this study from the vaccine hesitancy scale was found to be 33.40 ± 6.07. It was found that as the income of pregnant women decreased, the vaccine hesitancy scores decreased. Vaccine hesitancy scores of those who stated no one gave advice were significantly higher. The vaccination of pregnant women will bring significant success to the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic when implemented as part of the public health policies of countries.

This study aimed to determine the factors that cause individuals between the ages of 65 and 75 to not receive the third dose of a COVID-19 vaccination, to advise those who are hesitant, and to learn their thoughts about taking the third dose. (1) Material and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted between April and May 2022 among 2383 older adults aged between 65–75 who had never received a COVID-19 booster vaccination, according to the records of the District Health Directorate in the Sultanbeyli district of Istanbul. A three-part questionnaire prepared by researchers was given to the older adults via telephone. For statistical analysis of the data, the Chi-square test was used to compare variables; p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. (2) Results: This research was completed with 1075 participants, reaching 45% of people aged 65–75 who did not receive the third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in the region. In total, 64.2% of the participants were female and 35.8% were male, and the mean age was 69.33 ± 2.88. Those who had previously received an influenza vaccine were 1.9 times (95% CI 1.22–2.99) more likely to seek vaccination. Educational status also played a role, as older adults who were uneducated were 0.5 times (95% CI 0.42–0.76) less likely to seek vaccination. In addition, those who stated that lack of time was the reason for not vaccinating were 1.4 times (95% CI 1.01–1.98), and those who did not have it due to forgetting, 5.6 times (95% CI 2.58–12.24), more likely to seek vaccination. (3) Conclusion: This study shows, in detail, the importance of informing older adults, who have not received the third dose of vaccine for COVID-19 and who are in the risk group, as well as those who are not fully vaccinated, about the risks of not being vaccinated. We believe that it is important to vaccinate older patients; further, since immunity conferred by vaccination may decline over time, mortality rates decrease with the administration of additional doses.

Immigrant children are among the groups that are sensitive to problems related to dental health. The aim of this study was to examine the dental caries of Syrian immigrant children. The study is a descriptive and retrospective study. Its population consists of Syrian immigrant children aged 6–12 years who were screened for dental health in the year 2022 in Istanbul. DMF-T (permanent teeth) and dmf-t (milk teeth) indices were used, which are the (t-T) criteria obtained by dividing the sum of caries (d-D), caries extracted (m-M) and caries-filled (f-F) teeth by the number of people examined. Higher dmft and DMFT scores indicate worse dental health. Dental screening was performed on 549 Syrian immigrant children. In total, 27.2% (n = 149) were brushing their teeth once a day and 97.3% of the children (n = 534) had at least one decayed tooth. The dmft score for the 6–7 year age (6.45 ± 3.33) group was significantly higher than the 8–9 year (4.98 ± 2.78) and 10–12 year (3.22 ± 2.02) age groups (p < 0.001). In our study, the dental caries were seen at a very-high frequency among immigrant children and the habit of tooth brushing remains at a low level. Lower age was the relevant factor for dental caries in our study.