Vaccination Attitudes and Health Promotion Behaviors of Individuals Over 65 Years of Age in the COVID-19 Pandemic

Authors : Şengül Akdeniz, Mehtap Pekesen
Pages : 214-226
Doi:10.47141/geriatrik.1640383
View : 131 | Download : 207
Publication Date : 2025-12-31
Article Type : Research Paper
Abstract :Aim: This study was conducted to determine the attitudes of individuals aged 65 years and over towards vaccination and geriatric health promotion behaviors during the development of a protective vaccine against pandemic and Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) worldwide. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted as a descriptive study. The sample of the study consisted of 1,646 elderly individuals. Research data were collected by the researchers and surveyors between September 15 and October 23, 2020 after ethics committee approval was obtained. Data collection tools personal information form and “Scale for the Promotion of Geriatric Health” were used. Data analysis was obtained with SPSS-23 package program. Results: Of the research participants, 55.5% were female and 71.7% were between the ages of 65-74. It was found that 72.2 % of the participants had a chronic disease. The study revealed that only 21.8% of participants received vaccinations for in-fectious diseases in the past year, with most not receiving the annual flu vaccine regularly. Additionally, 62.1% of participants reported planning to receive the recommended old-age vaccines from their family physician, following the global emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study found that participants’ willingness to be vaccinated was significantly influenced by their fear of the COVID-19 pandemic, with an impact of 89%. Conclusion: The results of this study show that attitudes towards vaccination and health promotion behaviours of individuals aged 65 years and over increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, it was determined that the pandemic created awareness of vaccination awareness and health promotion in old age in this age group and had positive effects.
Keywords : Yaşlı Yetişkin, COVID-19 Aşısı, Sağlığı Geliştirme Davranışı

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