ABSTRACT
Introduction: The development of COVID-19 vaccines has brought considerable hope for the control of the pandemic. With a view to promoting good vaccine coverage, this study aimed to measure vaccine intention against COVID-19 and to understand the factors that promote it. Method: In April 2021, we conducted a cross-sectional and analytical study at the national level through a telephone survey of Beninese aged 18 years or older. We used a marginal quota sampling method (n = 865) according to age, gender, and department. We constructed the questionnaire using a theoretical framework of health intention. We determined the factors associated with intention to vaccinate against COVID-19 in Benin using a multinomial logistic regression at the 5 % significance level. Results: The intention to vaccinate was 64.7 %; 10.9 % of the population were hesitant, and 24.4 % did not want to vaccinate. Thinking that it was important to get vaccinated (AOR = 0.274; CI = 0.118-0.638) or that getting vaccinated will help protect loved ones from the virus (AOR = 0.399; CI = 0.205-0.775) increased the intention to vaccinate. Having a high level of education (AOR = 1.988; CI = 1.134-3.484), thinking that the vaccine could put one's health at risk (AOR = 2.259; CI = 1.114-4.578), and hearing something negative about the vaccine (AOR = 1.765; CI = 1.059-2.941) reduced intention to vaccinate. In addition, believing that the creators of the vaccine had ensured its safety (AOR = 0.209; CI = 0.101-0.430), and believing that it was unlikely to be infected after vaccination (AOR = 0.359; CI = 0.183-0.703) decreased hesitancy in favour of the intention to vaccinate. Conclusion: In April 2021, vaccine intention was high, but maintaining this high rate requires building confidence in the vaccine and combating misinformation about the vaccine.
ABSTRACT
The outbreak of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) in December 2019 prompted a response from health systems of countries across the globe. The first case of COVID-19 in Guinea was notified on 12 March 2020;however, from January 2020 preparations at policy and implementation preparedness levels had already begun. This study aimed to assess the response triggered in Guinea between 27th January 2020 and 1st November 2021 and lessons for future pandemic preparedness and response. We conducted a scoping review using three main data sources: policy documents, research papers and media content. For each of these data sources, a specific search strategy was applied, respectively national websites, PubMed and the Factiva media database. A content analysis was conducted to assess the information found. We found that between January 2020 and November 2021, the response to the COVID-19 pandemic can be divided into five phases: (1) anticipation of the response, (2) a sudden boost of political actions with the implementation of strict restrictive measures, (3) alleviation of restrictive measures, (4) multiple epidemics period and (5) the COVID-19 variants phase, including the strengthening of vaccination activities. This study provides several learning points for countries with similar contexts including: (1) the necessity of setting up, in the pre-epidemic period, an epidemic governance framework that is articulated with the country's health system and epidemiological contexts;(2) the importance of mobilizing, during pre-epidemic period, emergency funds for a rapid health system response whenever epidemics hit;(3) each epidemic is a new experience as previous exposure to similar ones does not necessarily guarantee population and health system resilience;(4) epidemics generate social distress because of the restrictive measures they require for their control, but their excessive securitization is counterproductive. Finally, from a political point of view, decision-making for epidemic control is not always disinterested;it is sometimes rooted in political computations, and health system actors should learn to cope with it while, at the same time, safeguarding trusted and efficient health system responses. We conclude that health system actors anticipated the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and (re-) adapted response strategies as the pandemic evolved in the country. There is a need to rethink epidemics governance and funding mechanisms in Guinea to improve the health system response to epidemics.
ABSTRACT
It is very exceptional that a new disease becomes a true pandemic. Since its emergence in Wuhan, China, in late 2019, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes COVID-19, has spread to nearly all countries of the world in only a few months. However, in different countries, the COVID-19 epidemic takes variable shapes and forms in how it affects communities. Until now, the insights gained on COVID-19 have been largely dominated by the COVID-19 epidemics and the lockdowns in China, Europe and the USA. But this variety of global trajectories is little described, analysed or understood. In only a few months, an enormous amount of scientific evidence on SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 has been uncovered (knowns). But important knowledge gaps remain (unknowns). Learning from the variety of ways the COVID-19 epidemic is unfolding across the globe can potentially contribute to solving the COVID-19 puzzle. This paper tries to make sense of this variability-by exploring the important role that context plays in these different COVID-19 epidemics; by comparing COVID-19 epidemics with other respiratory diseases, including other coronaviruses that circulate continuously; and by highlighting the critical unknowns and uncertainties that remain. These unknowns and uncertainties require a deeper understanding of the variable trajectories of COVID-19. Unravelling them will be important for discerning potential future scenarios, such as the first wave in virgin territories still untouched by COVID-19 and for future waves elsewhere.