Healthcare workers who have children under age 5 are twice as likely as other parents to plan to vaccinate their children against COVID-19, according to a new poll conducted by the HERO Registry, which is coordinated by the Duke Clinical Research Institute.

The poll included more than 4,000 healthcare workers from across the United States who are participating in the HERO Registry to help gauge the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the front line. It was conducted in November 2021, prior to the Omicron surge and the FDA’s consideration of emergency use authorization for vaccines among this age group.

“We have polled our registry members twice in 2021 and the trend stays the same: people working in health care are the first in line to vaccinate,” said Emily O’Brien, PhD, principal investigator of the HERO Registry and associate professor and member of the Duke Clinical Research Institute.

“Many people look to the example of health care workers in their communities, so the choices they make about vaccines are likely to have a ripple effect,” O’Brien said.

Among parents of children aged 5 and under, 57% of those working in healthcare said they were likely to vaccinate their children as soon as a vaccine is approved, compared to 26% of parents in the poll who were not working in healthcare. The survey found that 83% of doctors and 74% of advanced practice clinicians said they would vaccinate their preschool children immediately. Fewer than 50% of paramedics, first responders, and nurses said they would vaccinate their children under 5 right away.

Source: Duke Clinical Research Institute