Abstract:

Introduction: Influenza virus infections and pneumococcal pneumonia are associated with significant increases in hospitalization and mortality rates in patients with cardiovascular diseases (CVD). In Turkey, pneumococcal and flu vaccines are recommended for patients with chronic heart disease, adults aged 65 and older and adults who are at risk of pneumonia. Material and Method: This study was conducted between July 2019 and December 2019 among 240 CVD patients. The survey consisted of 29 questions aimed at evaluating the sociodemographic characteristics of the patients, the history of influenza and pneumococcal vaccines, and their knowledge and attitudes towards vaccines. Results: Vaccination rates were low in CVD patients. Last year, only 10% of the participants had been previously vaccinated with the pneumococcal vaccine and 27.75% with the influenza vaccine. While the percentage of vaccination influenza vaccine among university graduates was significantly higher than all other groups, this high was not detected for pneumococcal vaccine. Eighty percent of the participants visited their family physicians regularly in the previous year, while only 61.6% received information about the vaccination from the doctor or nurse. Influenza vaccine (39.2%) was recommended at a higher rate than pneumococcal pneumonia (12.1%) by the physicians or nurses of the participants during the visits. (p <0.05) Conclusion: Our results suggest that training programs on adult vaccination are needed for both healthcare professionals and patients at risk to achieve higher vaccination rates.

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