6 out of 10 Medical Staff Recommend Influenza Vaccine More Strongly After COVID-19

Siqirus Korea, 'World Immunization Week' Influenza Vaccine Awareness Survey
47% Perceive Existing Vaccines as Insufficiently Effective

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] Seven out of ten medical professionals in South Korea believe that the necessity of influenza vaccination has become even more important following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Siquirus Korea announced the results of a perception survey on "Influenza Vaccination in the COVID-19 Pandemic Environment," conducted in the last week of April to mark "World Immunization Week." The survey targeted 500 internal medicine and family medicine healthcare workers in South Korea.

Among respondents, 69.4% felt that influenza vaccination has become more important after the pandemic, and 94% recommended influenza vaccination to visiting patients. Notably, 66.8% reported that they recommend influenza vaccination more frequently since the COVID-19 outbreak. Additionally, 35.2% recommended vaccination to everyone regardless of age and risk group, while 31.6% especially recommended it to the elderly and high-risk groups.

A significant number of healthcare workers who participated in the survey answered that there are differences in effectiveness and efficacy among different types of influenza vaccines (71%). When asked whether the currently used influenza vaccines are sufficiently effective in preventing disease, 44.2% responded that they are sufficient for all ages and risk groups, but 47% said they are not sufficient, showing divided opinions on the effectiveness of existing influenza vaccines.

The reasons for considering the existing vaccines insufficient included failure to predict circulating virus types (49.2%), insufficient immunogenicity (24.8%), and short duration of immune protection (22.6%). As improvements, respondents pointed to influenza vaccines that provide longer-lasting immunity (47.2%) and vaccines specialized for the elderly and high-risk groups (33.8%).

Yoo Ki-seung, CEO of Siquirus Korea, stated, “Through this survey, we found that domestic medical professionals actively recommend influenza vaccination under current circumstances and recognize the need for vaccines that are specialized for the elderly and high-risk groups with improved immune effects compared to existing influenza vaccines. Siquirus, as one of the world's largest influenza vaccine companies, possesses excellent R&D capabilities and a diversified influenza vaccine portfolio. We will listen carefully to healthcare professionals' opinions and strive to introduce various vaccines domestically to contribute to public health in the Republic of Korea.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.