Children and COVID-19 Research Library

The COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted 2SLGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness. Little is known about vaccine attitudes and uptake among this population. To address this, the objectives of this study were to explore this group’s COVID-19 vaccine attitudes, and facilitators and barriers impacting vaccine uptake. 2SLGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness in the Greater Toronto Area were recruited to participate in online surveys assessing demographic characteristics, mental health, health service use, and COVID-19 vaccine attitudes. Descriptive statistics and statistical tests were used to analyze survey data to explore variables associated with vaccine confidence. Additionally, a select group of youth and frontline workers from youth serving organizations were invited to participate in online one-on-one interviews. An iterative thematic content approach was used to analyze interview data. Quantitative and qualitative data were merged for interpretation by use of a convergent parallel analytical design.

Controlling the spread of COVID-19 will rely on increasing vaccination rates in an equitable manner. The main reasons for under-vaccination are varied among different segments of the population and include vaccine hesitancy and lack of access. While vaccine hesitancy is a complicated problem that requires long-term solutions, enhancing access can be achieved through evidenced-based delivery strategies that augment traditional approaches. Hospital-based COVID-19 vaccination programs hold particular promise for reaching populations with decreased vaccine access and those at higher risk for adverse outcomes from COVID-19 infection. Hospitals have the necessary equipment and storage capabilities to maintain cold chain requirements, a common challenge in the primary care setting, and can serve as a central distribution point for delivering vaccines to patients in diverse hospital locations, including inpatient units, emergency departments, urgent care centers, perioperative areas, and subspecialty clinics. They also have the capacity for mass vaccination programs and other targeted outreach efforts. Hospital-based vaccination programs can leverage existing infrastructure such as electronic health record tools that have been successful approaches for influenza and other routine vaccinations. With the possibility of COVID-19 becoming endemic, much like seasonal influenza, these programs will require flexibility as well as planning for long-term sustainability. The goal of this review is to highlight existing vaccine delivery to children in hospital-based settings, including key advantages and important challenges, and outline how these systems could be expanded to include COVID-19 vaccine delivery.

This study retrieved candidate studies and updates to living evidence syntheses on vaccine effectiveness using the following mechanisms: 1) PubMed via COVID-19+ Evidence Alerts; 2) systematic scanning of pre-print servers; 3) updates to the COVID-END inventory of best evidence syntheses; and 4) cross-check with updates from the VESPa team. It included studies and updates to living evidence syntheses identified up to two days before the version release date.

This study aimed to determine the differences in attitudes and views towards influenza and pneumococcal vaccines in parents of children with asthma during the COVID-19 pandemic. Asthmatic children in the 6–18 age group who were admitted to the pediatric allergy clinic of our hospital between October 1, 2020 and February 31, 2021 were included in the study. The parents were given a questionnaire asking about their demographics and medical history. Their attitudes and thoughts towards these two vaccines, both before and during the pandemic, and their COVID-19 stories were questioned.

COVID-19 vaccines are advised for pregnant women in the United Kingdom (UK) however COVID-19 vaccine uptake among pregnant women is inadequate. An online survey and semi-structured interviews were used to investigate pregnant women’s views on COVID-19 vaccine acceptability for themselves when pregnant, not pregnant and for their babies. One thousand one hundred eighty-one women, aged over 16 years, who had been pregnant since 23rd March 2020, were surveyed between 3rd August–11th October 2020. Ten women were interviewed.

Inspired by The Little Jab Book, this playbook uncovers underlying reasons for vaccine hesitancy in Nepal and includes localized, behavioral science-informed solutions to increase uptake of COVID-19 vaccines. The Busara Center for Behavioral Economics, Common Thread, Save the Children Nepal, and Save the Children’s Center for Utilizing Behavioral Insights for Children (CUBIC) collaborated to conduct quantitative and qualitative research in Province 2 to uncover barriers and enablers to vaccination, and then co-created potential solutions with local and national stakeholders; this research project resulted in 9 behavioral science interventions for parents and health workers in Nepal.

Considering the concerns regarding the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) vaccine safety among pediatric patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD) due to a lack of data, an urgent need for studies evaluating safety profiles of vaccines emerged. Among participants vaccinated by CoronaVac inactive SARS-CoV-2 or BNT162b2 messenger RNA (mRNA) COVID-19 (Pfizer-BioNTech) vaccine, healthy children under 18 and patients under 21 with an at least 1-year follow-up period in our department for a childhood-onset rheumatic disease were included into this cross-sectional study.

Children vaccination is a key intervention for their survival, especially among refugees. Yet, children vaccination registration is done manually in refugees camps and there is no possibility to send reminders to parents to come back on time. This study aimed to boost the parental registration of children’s vaccination records on a Children Immunization app (CIMA) while also availing the parents with useful parenting skills under COVID-19-related stress. It incorporated United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Parenting Skills under COVID-19 information material, through CIMA in Arabic and English languages. 1100 children were recruited in February–March 2021, through a community health promotion dissemination approach. A team of two nurses from the local population and two volunteers (one trained nurse and one trained social worker), from the camp, was formed. They promoted the CIMA app at two clinics and through households visits in Zaatari refugee camp. Qualitative data on impressions and observations of the interactions with the Zaatari camp community were also collected.

On 29 October 2021, the U.S. FDA authorized the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccine for emergency use in children ages 5–11 years. Racial/ethnic minorities have born the greatest burden of pediatric COVID-19 infection and hospitalization. Research indicates high prevalence of parental vaccine hesitancy among the general population, underscoring the urgency of understanding how race/ethnicity may influence parents’ decision to vaccinate their children. Two weeks prior to FDA approval, 400 Hispanic and non-Hispanic Asian, Black, and White parents of children 5–10 years participated in an online survey assessing determinants of COVID-19 pediatric vaccine hesitancy. Compared to 31% Black, 45% Hispanic, and 25% White parents, 62% of Asian parents planned to vaccinate their child. Bivariate and multivariate ordinal logistic regression demonstrated race/ethnicity, parental vaccine status, education, financial security, perceived childhood COVID-19 susceptibility and severity, vaccine safety and efficacy concerns, community support, and FDA and physician recommendations accounted for 70.3% of variance for vaccine hesitancy.

This study examined what affects parents' thoughts about vaccinating their children. It explored whether parents' attitudes towards the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine and their perception of control of COVID-19 were related to their thoughts about vaccinating their children. The sample of this descriptive study consisted of parents (n = 274) with children between the ages of 0–12. To collect data on parents’ thoughts and opinions participants completed the Attitudes Towards COVID-19 Vaccine Scale and the Perception of Control of COVID-19 Scale.

This paper aims to explore the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on caregivers’ willingness to vaccinate their children against influenza in 2021 in Saudi Arabia and the factors influencing this decision. An online survey of 2501 caregivers in Saudi Arabia with children aged 6 months– 18 years was conducted between July 15, 2021, and August 2, 2021. A convenience sample of participants that met the inclusion criteria was used as the study sample. Social Science Package Statistical (SPSS) was used for the statistical analysis. Categorical variables were reported as frequencies and percentages. The Chi-square test was used for categorical variables to assess the difference between the variables and the parents’ willingness to vaccinate their children against seasonal influenza after the COVID-19 pandemic.

Widespread vaccination in pursuit of herd immunity has been recognized as the most promising approach to ending the global pandemic of coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19). The vaccination of children and adolescents has been extensively debated and the first COVID-19 vaccine is now approved in European countries for children aged > 12 years of age. This study investigates vaccination hesitancy in a cohort of German secondary school students. It assessed 903 students between age 9 and 20 in the period between 17 May 2021 and 30 June 2021. 68.3% (n = 617) reported intention to undergo COVID-19 vaccination, while 7% (n = 62) did not want to receive the vaccine and 15% (n = 135) were not yet certain. Age and parental level of education influenced COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. Children under the age of 16 as well as students whose parents had lower education levels showed significantly higher vaccine hesitancy.