Factors Influencing Moroccans’ Intention to Get the COVID-19 Vaccine: Results From a Cross-Sectional Study

Background During the COVID-19 pandemic, the introduction of the vaccine represented a light of hope. With the vaccine now accessible globally, the focus shifts to encouraging community vaccination to attain herd immunity. This study describes the factors that affect individuals' willingness to get vaccinated in Morocco. Methods From April 9, 2022, to April 27, 2023, a cross-sectional survey was conducted among Moroccan individuals aged 18 and older at primary healthcare centers. The survey was administered through anonymous questionnaires and explored various factors that influence people's intentions regarding COVID-19 vaccination. These factors included sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, perceptions of COVID-19 risk, knowledge about vaccines, and concerns about vaccine safety and efficacy. Chi-square tests or Student's t-tests were used to describe these variables, and significant determinants of vaccine intention were identified using a logistic regression model. Results Among the 453 participants, 77.5% were women. The mean age was 41.4±16.6 years. Among the surveyed group, 51.2% indicated that they did not intend to get vaccinated against COVID-19. Several factors were significantly associated with the willingness to be vaccinated (p<0.05), including having no income (adjusted OR (AOR): 2.7, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.9-5.1, p=0.003), believing that COVID-19 is a serious infection (AOR: 13.1, 95% CI: 7.6-22.3, p<0.001), not having had a COVID-19 infection (AOR: 3.3, 95% CI: 1.7-6.4, p=0.001), having concerns about vaccine side effects (AOR: 8.6, 95% CI: 4.4-16.9, p<0.001), and believing in the benefit of booster doses (AOR: 5.5, 95% CI: 2.4-12.6, p<0.001). Conclusion The low vaccination intent observed in this study presents a major challenge for controlling COVID-19 and potentially other infectious diseases because the determinants of vaccine intent are likely similar. This finding underscores the urgent need for reliable, authoritative information on the risks of disease, the efficacy of the vaccine, and the benefits of vaccination. Additionally, assessing the commitment to completing full vaccination schedules is crucial to enhancing population-wide vaccine uptake.