Virtual town halls addressing vaccine hesitancy among racial/ethnic minorities: Preliminary findings

Authors

Eric F. Wagner, Robert Stempel College of Public Health & Social Work, Research Center in a Minority Institution; Community-Based Research Institute; Florida International University
Robbert J. Langwerden, Research Center in a Minority Institution, Florida International University; Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen
Staci Leon Morris, Robert Stempel College of Public Health & Social Work, Community-Based Research Institute; Research Center in a Minority Institution; Florida International University
Melissa K. Ward, Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work, Department of Epidemiology; Research Center in a Minority Institution; Florida International University

Date of this Version

11-10-2021

Document Type

Article

Rights

default

Abstract

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic remains a public health priority, and vaccination is important for ending the pandemic. Racial and ethnic minorities are disproportionally affected by COVID-19 yet report high levels of vaccination hesitancy. Objective: We conducted virtual town halls to address vaccine hesitancy among racial and ethnic minorities in South Florida. Methods: Our approach used social influence and persuasion models. In a formative phase, we gathered meeting preferences from our communities and developed and tested our approach. In an implementation phase, we conducted 6 virtual town halls in partnership with minority community-based organizations. Results: The town halls reached 383 participants (mean age 37.5 years; 63.4% female, 33.9% male, 2.7% nonbinary; 59% racial/ethnic minority) who completed pre- and postmeeting as-sessments. Among nonvaccinated participants, at the prepoll, 58% reported a high likelihood of seeking vaccination, rising to 63% at the postassessment. Unvaccinated non-hesitant and hesitant groups were compared on trusted information sources and reasons and barriers for vaccination. Nonhesitant participants reported significantly greater trust in the COVID-19 Task Force (97.3% vs. 83.3%) as a source of vaccine information than did hesitant participants. Nonhesitant participants were significantly more likely to endorse family safety (82.5% vs. 63.2%), community safety (72.5% vs. 26.3%), personal safety (85% vs. 36.8%), and wanting to return to a normal life (70% vs. 31.6%) as reasons for vaccination than were hesitant participants. Hesitant participants were significantly more likely to endorse concerns about vaccine safety doubts (63.2% vs. 17.5%) and not believing the pandemic is as bad as people say it is (21.1% vs. 5%) as barriers to vaccination than were nonhesitant participants. Qualitative data revealed high consumer satisfaction with the town halls. Conclusion: This study supports the feasibility, acceptability, and potential impact of virtual town halls for addressing vaccine hesitancy among racial/ethnic minorities; however, our approach was resource intensive, required an extensive community-university collaborative infrastructure, and yielded a small effect. (C) 2022 American Pharmacists Association (R). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Recommended Citation

Wagner, Eric F.; Langwerden, Robbert J.; Morris, Staci Leon; and Ward, Melissa K., "Virtual town halls addressing vaccine hesitancy among racial/ethnic minorities: Preliminary findings" (2021). Coronavirus Research at FIU. 160.
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/covid-19_research/160