Osama Abdulaziz*

Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Taif University, Taif, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

*Corresponding Author: Osama Abdulaziz, Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Taif University, Taif, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Received: September 02, 2022; Published: September 16, 2022

Abstract

Background: The aim of the study is to assess public knowledge, attitudes, awareness, and practices about seasonal flu and influenza vaccine in Taif City. The most effective way to avoid catching the flu and its complications is to be vaccinated. The study aims to evaluate public awareness of the benefits of influenza vaccinations and look into any barriers that may prevent people from getting the shot.

Objective: To investigate the beliefs, attitudes, sources of knowledge, level of awareness about seasonal influenza vaccine in people living in Taif- Saudi Arabia.

Methods: We used a questionnaire that was circulated online through social media to adult males and females in Taif to conduct a community-based cross-sectional study. Google forum was used, and data were collected and analysed using Microsoft excel.

Results: The study included 1053 participants; only 51.5% of the participants had received the flu vaccine. Out of them, 32.5% take the vaccine annually and 72.9% don’t have any side effects or immune reactions. Only 26.7% of then got influenza after the vaccine, whereas 44.1% said that the social media are the best way to raise awareness about the flu vaccine. Only 11.2% had allergy from the food mainly from the egg. Around half of them know that the vaccine changed every year due to mutation of the virus.

Conclusion: This study showed a low percentage of influenza vaccination, despite the fact that the majority of respondents claimed they were worried about influenza and thought the vaccine was effective. Additional initiatives are required to raise public knowledge of the benefits of influenza vaccination.

Keywords: Influenza; Influenza Vaccine; Public Awareness

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Citation

Citation: Osama Abdulaziz. “Awareness, Knowledge, Attitude and Practice among Taif City Residents about Seasonal Influenza and Influenza Vaccine Immunization". Acta Scientific Nutritional Health 6.10 (2022): 03-08.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2022 Osama Abdulaziz. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.