Abstract A025: HPV and COVID-19 vaccines attitudes and preferred sources of information among adults living in Puerto Rico
Authors: Rivera-Rivera Jessica N. , Díaz-Miranda Olga L. , Medina-Laabes Diana T. , Suárez Erick , Ortiz Ana P. , Colón-López Vivian 
Published: January 2023

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Puerto Rico (PR) had one of the highest Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine rates in the United States. Yet, widespread misleading information about the COVID-19 vaccine might negatively impact HPV vaccine attitudes. This study aims to assess and compare HPV and COVID-19 vaccines attitudes toward school-entry policies among adults living in PR. A convenience sample of 222 adults (≥21 years old) living in PR were recruited through social media and completed an online survey from November 2021 to January 2022. Participants answered questions about HPV and COVID-19 vaccines knowledge (ranging from 0=none to 3=high knowledge), attitudes toward vaccination policies for school-entry, and perceptions of trusted and untrusted sources of information. Descriptive statistics were computed to identify the demographics characteristics of the participants. We also estimated the prevalence ratio (PRadjusted) using a logistic regression model to assess the magnitude of association between COVID-19 vaccination for the school-entry policy and HPV vaccination for school-entry policy agreement, adjusting for different confounders. The mean age of the study sample was 36.73 ± 11.18 years. The majority of the sample were female (87%, n=194), with at least some college of education (92%; n=205) and employed (61%; n=165). One-fifth of the participants reported having children between ages 11 and 16 (n=46). Participants’ perceived knowledge about the HPV vaccine was moderate (mean=1.72; SD=1.12), while for COVID-19 vaccine was moderately high (mean=2.47; SD=.68). The most trusted form of information for HPV and COVID-19 vaccines were health care providers (42% and 17%, respectively), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (35% and 55%, respectively), and the Department of Health (15% and 19%, respectively). The least trusted source of information included social media (40% and 39%, respectively), friends and family (23% n=47, and 17% n=33, respectively), and the Department of Health (15% n=30, and 18% n=36, respectively). More than half of the participants agreed that HPV (76% n=156) and COVID vaccines (69% n=136) should be required for school-entry. Agreement with COVID-19 vaccination for the school-entry policy was significantly associated with HPV vaccination for school-entry policy agreement (PRadjusted:1.96; 95% CI:1.48-2.61) after controlling for age, sex, education, and having children between age 11 and 16. Findings suggest that adults living in PR have an overall positive attitude about mandatory HPV and COVID-19 vaccination school-entry policies, and these attitudes are interrelated. Yet, it is concerning that the Department of Health is identified as one of the least trusted sources of information, as it has a prominent role in implementing HPV and COVID-19 vaccine policies in PR. Further research should elucidate why the Department of Health is considered an untrusted source of information among adults living in PR and evaluate the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on HPV vaccine attitudes and adherence rates.

Citation Format: Jessica N. Rivera-Rivera, Olga L. Díaz-Miranda, Diana T. Medina-Laabes, Erick Suárez, Ana P. Ortiz, Vivian Colón-López. HPV and COVID-19 vaccines attitudes and preferred sources of information among adults living in Puerto Rico [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 15th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2022 Sep 16-19; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2022;31(1 Suppl):Abstract nr A025.