Determinants of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance in Saudi Arabia: a web-based national survey

Background Vaccine hesitancy is a potential threat to global public health. Since, there is an unprecedented global effort to develop a vaccine against the COVID-19 pandemic, much less is known about its acceptance in the community. Understanding key determinants that influence the preferences and demands of a future vaccine by the community may help to develop strategies for improving the global vaccination program. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of the acceptance of COVID-19 vaccine, and their determinants among people in Saudi Arabia. Methods A web-based, cross-sectional study was conducted using snowball sampling strategy under a highly restricted environment. A bilingual, self-administered anonymous questionnaire was designed and sent to 1000 study participants through social media platforms and email. Study participants were recruited across the country, including the four major cities (Riyadh, Dammam, Jeddah, and Abha) in Saudi Arabia. Associations between COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and sociodemographic profile of the respondents were explored using the chi-squared test. Key determinants that predict vaccine acceptance among respondents were modelled using logistic regression analysis. Results Of the 1000 survey invitees, 992 responded to the survey (response rate, 99.2%). The majority (65.8%) of the study participants were female, 29.53% were in the age group (36–45 years), and 17.9% were non-Saudi. Of the 992 respondents, 642 (64.72%) showed interest to accept the COVID-19 vaccine if it is available. Willingness to accept the future COVID-19 vaccine is relatively high among older age groups (79.2% among 45+ year old), being married (69.3%), participants with education level postgraduate degree or higher (68.8%), non-Saudi (69.1%), employed in government sector (68.9%). In multivariate model, respondents who were above 45 years (aOR: 2.15; 95% CI: 1.08-3.21), and married (aOR: 1.79; 95% CI: 1.28-2.50) were significantly associated with vaccine acceptance (p <.05). Besides, people having trust in the health system were most likely to accept the vaccine (aOR: 3.05; 95% CI: 1.13-4.92), and those having a higher perceived risk of acquiring infection were 2.13 times (95% CI: 1.35-3.85) higher odds of accepting the vaccine. Conclusion Addressing sociodemographic determinants relating to the COVID-19 vaccination may help to increase uptake of the global vaccination program to tackle future pandemics. Targeted health education interventions are needed to increase the uptake of the future COVID-19 vaccine.