[Motivation and perception of vaccine accessibility among people vaccinated against COVID-19 in Makokou, Gabon, in...

Vaccination is one of the responses to the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic. However, it has also sparked controversy, hesitation, and infodemics worldwide. Gabon began vaccinating its population in July 2021. Our study aims to describe the motivations, knowledge, and levels of acceptance of volunteers.

We conducted a descriptive, cross-sectional, "knowledge, attitudes, and practices" study from May 2021 to January 2022 (eight months) at the only COVID-19 vaccination center in Makokou, in Gabon's Eastern Health Region. Volunteers were included during the vaccination process and responded to a questionnaire during a face-to-face interview. We studied their sociodemographic profile, knowledge of the disease and the vaccine, and perceptions and experiences of accessibility.

A total of 303 people between 18 and 71 years old, were included in the study. Subjects aged 30 to 40 years old represented 39.6% (n = 120) of those included. The sex ratio was 2.7. Eighty-six point seven percent of participants were of Gabonese nationality, and the median length of stay in the city of Makokou was six years (IQR: 2-15). The most represented professions were health workers (17.8%, n = 54), followed by defense and security forces (15.8%, n = 48), who were the main targets of the program. Forty-two point five percent (n = 129) of participants reported being influenced in their decision to get vaccinated. Globally, 72.6% (n = 220) thought that vaccination was a constraint, either for health reasons (n = 128, 58.2%) or for greater freedom of movement (n = 109, 49.5%). The main sources of information were the media (n = 237, 78.2%) and medical personnel (n = 168, 55.4%). Motivation was associated with compulsion (OR = 2.2), knowledge of certain symptoms (OR = 0.4), perception of the disease as serious (OR = 0.2), and positive media influence (OR = 0.4). Accessibility was associated with previous infection (OR = 11) or employer coercion (OR = 0.2).

The decision to get vaccinated against COVID-19 was greatly influenced by the media and socio-professional constraints. Given that access to the vaccine was considered easy, motivation should have been the pursuit of better health.