Half of healthcare workers say no to swine flu jab
26 August 2009
Just over half of healthcare workers would say no to a swine flu jab, research suggests.
Although the study was conducted among healthcare workers in Hong Kong, the findings echo a Healthcare Republic poll which revealed that up to 60% of GPs may chose not to be vaccinated against swine flu.
For this latest study, researchers from the Chinese University of Hong Kong surveyed over 8,500 doctors, nurses and allied health professionals working in Hong Kong.
Overall, they found that only 47.9% of respondents said that they would be willing to be vaccinated against swine flu.
In an accompanying editorial, Dr Rachel Jordan from the University of Birmingham and Dr Andrew Hayward from University College London, highlight the importance of vaccination for healthcare workers.
They warn that education and promotional campaigns alone have not been enough to encourage healthcare workers to get vaccinated
They suggest that the use of opt-out systems, where healthcare workers indicate reasons for not accepting the jab, could help to improve uptake.
* Editor's blog: Do GPs and nurses have a responsibility to get swine flu jabs?
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