COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among medical and nonmedical undergraduate students: A cross-sectional study

Abstract Vaccine hesitancy poses a threat to not only one’s life but also others surrounding them. Vaccine hesitancy is indirectly related to vaccine coverage, and it is therefore important to reduce it by finding out its prevalence and root cause. The objective was to compare the burden and reasons for vaccine hesitancy among medical and nonmedical students. A cross-sectional study was conducted. Data were collected using Google Forms forwarded to medical and nonmedical students through various social media platforms over 3 months. COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy was 33.51% in medical students compared to 66.48% in nonmedical students. About 5.67% of medical and 18.64% of non-medical students who refused vaccine was due to their fears on the effectiveness of the vaccine. We conclude that nonmedical students exhibited greater vaccine hesitancy compared to medical students. A primary concern was about vaccine’s impact on genetics and doubts about its effectiveness, stemming from perceptions of rushed trials.