Abstract
Introduction: Effective and safe vaccines against COVID-19 are essential to achieve global control of the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). Using faith centres may offer a promising route for promoting higher vaccine uptake from certain minority ethnic groups known to be more likely to be vaccine hesitant. Methods: This cross-sectional study explored attendees’ perceptions, experiences of being offered, and receiving COVID-19 vaccination in a local mosque in Woking, Surrey, UK. About 199 attendees completed a brief questionnaire on experiences, views, motivations about attending the mosque and vaccination on site. Results: The most common ethnic groups reported were White British (39.2%) and Pakistani (22.6%); 36.2% identified as Christian, 23.6% as Muslim, 5.5% as Hindu, and 17.1% had no religion. Genders was relatively equal with 90 men (45.2%) and 98 women (49.2%), and 35–44-year-olds represented the most common age group (28.1%). Views and experiences around receiving vaccinations at the mosque were predominantly positive. Primary reasons for getting vaccinated at the mosque included convenience, accessibility, positive aspects of the venue’s intercultural relations, and intentions to protect oneself against COVID-19, regardless of venue type. Negative views and experiences in regards to receiving the vaccination at the mosque were less common (7% expressed no intention of recommending the centre to others), and disliked aspects mostly referred to the travel distance and long waiting times. Conclusions: Offering COVID-19 vaccination in faith centres appears acceptable for different faith groups, ensuring convenient access for communities from all religions and ethnic backgrounds.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 751-759 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | Postgraduate Medical Journal |
| Volume | 100 |
| Issue number | 1188 |
| Early online date | 3 May 2024 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Oct 2024 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Fellowship of Postgraduate Medicine. All rights reserved.
Data Availability Statement
Data are available upon reasonable request. Data are available on request from [email protected].Acknowledgements
We are thankful to Louise Stead Chief Executive Royal Surrey NHS Trust in supporting the COVID-19 community vaccination programme, Linda Honey, Interim Director of Pharmacy, Surrey Heartlands Health and Professor Clare Fuller, Chief Executive Surrey Heartlands Integrated Care System, and multiple stakeholders for the guidance they and their organisations, who provided the volunteers and staff from the Shah Jahan Mosque venue that participated in this work.Funding
Authors (A.A., S.S., R.A., L.F., J.A., O.D.) acknowledge the receipt of an National Institute for Health Care Research/UKRI MRC grant (DHSC/UKRI COVID-19 Rapid Response Initiative, Developing, and Delivering targeted SARS-CoV-2(COVID-19) health interventions to Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities living in the UK, grant number: COV0143). H.W., C.H., R.A., and D.W. were funded by the National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit (NIHR HPRU) in Emergency Preparedness and Response (grant number NIHR 200890), a partnership between Public Health England, King’s College London, and the University of East Anglia. H.W., R.A., and D.W. are also funded by the NIHR HPRU in Behaviour Change and Evaluation, a partnership between Public Health England and the University of Bristol (grant number NIHR200877). JA receives funding from the NIHR Applied Research Collaboration Kent, Surrey, Sussex (grant number NIHR 200179). The views expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the National Institute for Health Research or the Department of Health and Social Care or the University of Surrey.
Keywords
- COVID-19
- epidemiology
- infectious diseases
- public health
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Medicine
