Barriers and Facilitators to COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout among Health Professional Students: A Qualitative Study from an Organizational Stakeholder Perspective

Marion Tower; Peta-Anne Zimmerman; Yingyan Chen; Vanessa Sparke; Roslyn Prichard; Janice Layh; Matt Mason; Frances Lin

doi:10.1017/dmp.2026.10326

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Barriers and Facilitators to COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout among Health Professional Students: A Qualitative Study from an Organizational Stakeholder Perspective

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Barriers and Facilitators to COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout among Health Professional Students: A Qualitative Study from an Organizational Stakeholder Perspective

Marion Tower, Peta-Anne Zimmerman, Yingyan Chen, Vanessa Sparke, Roslyn Prichard, Janice Layh, Matt Mason and Frances Lin

Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, Vol.20, pp.1-5

2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/dmp.2026.10326

PMID: 41873095

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Abstract

Barriers

COVID-19 vaccine rollout

Facilitators

health department

health care workers

health professional students

Objectives To explore barriers and facilitators experienced by Australian organizational stakeholders in implementing COVID-19 vaccine rollout for health professional students. Methods A qualitative study using semi-structured interviews with organizational stakeholders, including senior health department staff, university clinical placement coordinators, and clinical educators across Australia from November 21 to December 20, 2022, via ZOOM. An inductive and then deductive thematic analysis was conducted, guided by the Theoretical Domains Framework. Findings Nineteen participants were interviewed. Five key domains were generated: environmental context and resources, attention, decision-making, and goals, professional role and identity, emotion, and optimism. Barriers included top-down communication, inconsistent messaging, and limited vaccine access, leading to negative emotions. Enablers included teamwork, adaptability, and optimism. Conclusions The findings offer insights into operational challenges and support during the vaccine rollout. These lessons should inform strategies to overcome similar barriers in future large-scale health interventions or emergency responses.

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Title: Barriers and Facilitators to COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout among Health Professional Students: A Qualitative Study from an Organizational Stakeholder Perspective
Authors: Marion Tower (Author) - Griffith University
Peta-Anne Zimmerman (Author) - Griffith University
Yingyan Chen (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Health - Nursing
Vanessa Sparke (Author) - James Cook University
Roslyn Prichard (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Health - Nursing
Janice Layh (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Health - Nursing
Matt Mason (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Health - Nursing
Frances Lin (Corresponding Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Health - Nursing
Publication details: Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness, Vol.20, pp.1-5
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Date published: 2026
DOI: 10.1017/dmp.2026.10326
ISSN: 1935-7893
PMID: 41873095
Copyright note: © The Author(s), 2026. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc. This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution and reproduction, provided the original article is properly cited.
Organisation Unit: Australian Centre for Pacific Islands Research; School of Health; School of Health - Nursing
Language: English
Record Identifier: 991214951902621
Output Type: Journal article

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Collaboration types: Domestic collaboration
Web Of Science research areas: Public, Environmental & Occupational Health