Nurses’ and midwives’ knowledge, attitudes, and acceptance regarding human papillomavirus vaccination in Ghana: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: Nurses and midwives play important roles in educating the public on cervical cancer prevention strategies. AIM: This study sought to assess nurses’ and midwives’ knowledge of, attitudes towards, and acceptance of human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination in relation to their background characteristics. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study using questionnaires was conducted with a convenience sample of 318 female nurses and midwives, ages 20 to 59, at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital in Ghana. The data were summarised using frequencies, percentages, chi-square tests, and Fisher’s exact tests. RESULTS: The results indicated that 41.5% (n = 132) of the participants had high levels of knowledge about cervical cancer risk factors, and 17.6% (n = 56) of the respondents had received at least one dose of the HPV vaccine. Reasons for receiving the HPV vaccination included advice from a colleague (12.9%, n = 41) and perceived threat of cervical cancer (11.7%, n = 37). Of the 262 respondents who had not been vaccinated, 24.45% (n = 78) strongly agreed and 28.0% (n = 89) agreed with the statement that there was limited information on HPV vaccination. Also, there were statistically significant associations between age (X(2) = 23.746, p = 0.001), marital status (X(2) = 14.758, p = 0.005), completed level of education (X(2) = 21.692, p = 0.001), and duration of working at the hospital (X(2) = 8.424, p = 0.038) and acceptance of HPV vaccination. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated gaps in knowledge about cervical cancer risk factors and attitudes towards HPV vaccination, indicating the need for targeted measures to improve knowledge and attitudes. Also, measures to increase acceptance of HPV vaccination among nurses and midwives should consider their sociodemographic characteristics.