People with psychiatric disorders, especially severe mental illness, have increased morbidity and mortality from COVID-19 infection; therefore, vaccination against COVID-19 should be prioritised for this vulnerable group,1 which has been done in several countries (eg, Denmark, Germany, The Netherlands, and the UK).2 There are growing concerns surrounding COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in the general population.3 Vaccine hesitancy might also affect people with psychiatric disorders; however, a study showed only slightly lower COVID-19 vaccination willingness in people with psychiatric disorders (84·8%) compared with the general population (89·5%).4
In a large university psychiatric hospital in Belgium, we assessed how many people accepted an offer to be vaccinated against COVID-19 in a targeted vaccination programme. From March 30, 2021, to July 19, 2021, patients older than 18 years admitted to or already residing in the hospital (including patients in daycare) were invited to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Participants were directly invited by the hospital staff or were already enrolled in the governmental vaccination programme to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. We recorded vaccine acceptance, vaccine type, and whether they were fully or partly vaccinated on July 19, 2021. In addition, we compared these results with the national vaccination uptake rates at the end of the same period.1151 patients were offered COVID-19 vaccination, of whom 1070 (93%) accepted (table ). Logistic regression did not show any effect of diagnosis on vaccination status. In the general population, by July 19, 2021, 88·9% of the adult population in Flanders, Belgium, had recieived their first vaccine dose, and 61·6% were fully vaccinated.
Table.
Participant characteristics and vaccine information
| Patients | ||
|---|---|---|
| Mean age, years (SD) | 49·31 (21·19) | |
| Sex | ||
| Female | 676/1151 (58·7%) | |
| Male | 475/1151 (41·3%) | |
| Diagnosis | ||
| Cognitive disorder | 113/1151 (9·8%) | |
| Psychotic disorder | 243/1151 (21·1%) | |
| Bipolar disorder | 77/1151 (6·7%) | |
| Depressive disorder | 159/1151 (13·8%) | |
| Developmental disorder | 17/1151 (1·5%) | |
| Anxiety disorder | 94/1151 (8·2%) | |
| Personality disorder | 134/1151 (11·6%) | |
| Substance use disorder | 62/1151 (5·4%) | |
| Eating disorder | 45/1151 (3·9%) | |
| Adjustment disorder | 142/1151 (12·3%) | |
| Other | 65/1151 (5·6%) | |
| Vaccine status | ||
| Fully | 936/1151 (81·3%) | |
| Partly | 134/1151 (11·6%) | |
| Refused | 81/1151 (7·0%) | |
| Vaccine type | ||
| mRNA-1273 (Moderna) | 590/1070 (55·1%) | |
| BNT162b2 (Pfizer–BioNTech) | 371/1070 (34·7%) | |
| ChAdOx1 (Oxford–AstraZeneca) | 94/1070 (8·8%) | |
| Ad26.COV2.S (Johnson & Johnson) | 14/1070 (1·3%) | |
Data are n/N (%), unless otherwise stated.
People with psychiatric disorders often receive less preventive health care. However, our findings suggest that COVID-19 vaccination rates in people with mental disorders admitted to or residing in a psychiatric hospital are just as high as in the general population with a targeted prevention programme. Our results corroborate those of previous studies showing that people with psychiatric disorders are just as willing to receive vaccination and that vaccination rates in this population can be increased by targeted prevention programmes.4 Limitations of this study are the restriction to patients from a single residential setting and the generally high willingness for vaccination in Belgium. Vaccination willingness has been shown to be highly variable between countries.5In conclusion, vaccination rates in people with psychiatric disorders admitted to the hospital are high and they should therefore be offered the chance for COVID-19 vaccination.
We declare no competing interests.
References
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