About this Research Topic

Background

The importance of vaccines, as well as of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs), for infectious risks’ prevention is well known, to protect patients and healthcare workers (HCW) at occupational risk. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted some issues related to the attitudes and perceptions towards these preventive measures, especially vaccinations: the infodemic spread several non-scientifically based information e.g. on vaccines' safety, undermining proper public health risk communication campaigns. Many persons, including HCW, showed some resistances to promptly accept these interventions. HCW are supposed to have acquired an appropriate scientific background, following specific trainings, being able to understand the indications of health policy when recommending a preventive measure. Nevertheless, unfortunately this was not always the case for HCWs' perceptions e.g. towards vaccines' safety and effectiveness, and the pandemic highlighted an issue that already emerged in previous years for other infectious risks (e.g. for anti-flu vaccines, for which the adherence rates among HCW are largely insufficient).

This Research Topic aims to provide new perspectives on the prevention of occupational infectious risk of HCW and health professions students (HPS), through implementation of specific vaccination campaigns and NPIs.

The first goal is to deepen and widen the knowledge on the current status of recommended vaccines and NPIs for HCW in different countries, highlighting possible issues e.g. on the expected vs. the actual adherence rates to vaccination campaigns.

Considering vaccines and infectious agents, novel studies on the acceptance of SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations among HCW and HPS will be particularly welcomed. Furthermore, other vaccines will be considered, including e.g. seasonal flu, MMR and MenACWY vaccines (NB: non-comprehensive list).

The final goal is to recognize and understand the main factors associated with possible issues in NPIs’ application as well as with poor vaccination habits among HCW and HPS. Studies investigating the effectiveness of vaccines, personal protective equipment and health polices for the prevention of the infectious risk, as well as the risk perception of HCW and HPS, will be particularly welcomed. These data will allow the identification of the most important points to be stressed within trainings, aimed at achieving adequate attitudes of HCW and HPS towards recommended vaccines and NPIs.

Considering these goals, the aims of this Research Topic are to collect original and review manuscripts providing:

1) Investigation of possible issues in the adherence to various vaccination campaigns and to NPIs of HCW and/or HPS, highlighting differences in adherence rates among various groups of HCW and/or medical departments, and possible socio-demographic correlates.

2) New epidemiological data on the associations between specific occupational infectious hazards and the attitudes of the health personnel and students towards the related recommended vaccines and NPIs.

3) Novel data on the effectiveness of vaccinations’ campaigns and NPIs for the prevention of the occupational infectious risk of health personnel.

4) Data investigating the risk perception of HCW and health professions students on recommended vaccinations and NPIs, highlighting critical issues to be addressed in future preventive interventions.

Keywords: non-pharmaceutical interventions, vaccines, vaccinations, infectious, risk perception, SARS CoV 2, COVID 19, prevention, influenza, healthcare workers, students

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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