Özet:

OBJECTIVE: The key component of preventive health care is adult immunization. The aim of this study was to assess the patients’ knowledge about adult vaccination and the vaccination rates of patients admitted to the family medicine outpatient clinics. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 442 patients were included in the study. Patient demographic and clinic characteristics were evaluated. Patients' vaccination status with influenza, pneumococcal vaccine, herpes zoster, and tetanus and their knowledge levels about adult vaccines were questioned. RESULTS: The median age of the patients was 42 (min-max: 18-97) and 227 (51.4%) of them were female. Vaccination rates were found 32.6% for tetanus, 21.7% for influenza, 3.6% for pneumococcal, and 2.5% for herpes zoster. Patients with co-morbidities vaccination rates were found to be very low. The pneumococcal vaccination rate was 2.8%, the tetanus vaccination rate was 19.7% , and the influenza vaccination rate was 33.8% in geriatric patients. No patient older than 65 has ever received the zona vaccination. The rate of patients who had herpes zoster, pneumococcal vaccine, and tetanus vaccine was higher among university graduates. Fear of side effects (20%), difficulty in accessing the vaccine (6%), high vaccination prices (1%) were among the reasons why patients did not have vaccinated, and 16% of the patients stated that they did not believe in the benefits of vaccine. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, we are still far below the desired levels of adult vaccination in our study population, and it is important to increase patients awareness of adult immunizations.

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