Side Effect Profile of COVID-19 Vaccine among Health Workers in a Tertiary Health Institution in South-South Nigeria

Background: Side effect following vaccination usually ranges from mild to moderate and occasionally severe in a small proportion of people. Covid-19 vaccine is no exception as side effects have been reported which are mostly mild to moderate and transient. The chances of any of these side effect following vaccination differ according to the specific COVID-19 vaccine. Objective: To determine the side effect profile of the Health workers that received the COVID-19 vaccination in the Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, Nigeria. Materials and Method: This study was a descriptive cross-sectional study. It was carried out between 15th and 30th April 2021 among 151 health workers that received COVID-19 vaccination in the Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, Nigeria. The data were collected with a predesigned questionnaire and were analysed using IBM SPSS 23.0 version. Results: About 52.3% were female health workers, 49.0% were aged between 36–45 years. Side effects were reported in 9 of every 10 health workers who received the vaccine. Most side effects (53.0%) started on the day of vaccination. The most common side effect was pain at the injection site, and it was reported by 104 recipients of the vaccine (68.9%). Fever, headache, tiredness and chills were reported in 57.0%, 49.0%, 47.7% and 43.7%, respectively. Conclusion: As with medications and other vaccines, COVID-19 vaccines have side effects. Protective immunity against COVID-19 is developed following vaccination. In the face of a still rapidly evolving situation, what seems obvious is that vaccination currently remains the best route to achieving herd immunity.