A study to assess myths and concerns regarding COVID-19 vaccination among medical students in a Tertiary Health Centre in Chennai - A Cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: Medical students are likely to be exposed to COVID-19 patients, so achieving high vaccination coverage rates for COVID-19 in this group is mandatory.Willingness to vaccinate against SARS-CoV-2 as soon as possible depends on several factors.Based on this perspective, this study aims to determine vaccine acceptance among undergraduate medical students and study the barriers toCOVID-19 vaccination including various myths and misconceptions among the students. METHODOLOGY: The current cross-sectional study was carried out among 400 undergraduate medical students in a tertiary health centre in Chennai by using simple random sampling method. A semi-structured questionnaire was utilized to obtain information about the socio-demographic data, myths and concerns regarding COVID-19 vaccination. RESULTS:All the students are vaccinated against COVID-19. Above 50% of students are concerned about the serious adverse events from the currently available COVID-19 vaccines. Nearly 60% of students perceive themselvesas not at elevated risk of acquiringCOVID-19infection. Around 40% of students think all age groupsare eligible for COVID-19 vaccination. Only 5.8% of students believevaccine approval alone does not guarantee its safety. CONCLUSION:The undergraduate medical students lack awareness regarding COVID-19 vaccination eligibility, concerns regarding adverse events and the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccine.As future health care providers, medical students' concerns should be prioritized.