Willingness to pay for rabies pre-exposure vaccination among veterinary students and staff in Ibadan, Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Rabies pre-exposure vaccination coverage among veterinarians and students has significantly reduced because of the financial constrain created by the university administration, it is, therefore, necessary to develop an alternative financing scheme to ensure access to rabies vaccination to protect these occupational risk groups. The objective was to determine willingness to pay for rabies pre-exposure vaccination and determining factors.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out at the faculty of veterinary medicine, University of Ibadan using a structured questionnaire. Cluster sampling method was used to select an average of 44 students from each level of study and an average of 14 staff from each department. The direct customer survey technique was used to determine the amounts respondents are willing to pay. Data was collected and analyzed using SPSS 16.0.

Results: Half of the veterinary staff sampled were clinicians and had received pre-exposure vaccination. Pre-exposure vaccination coverage was higher among staff than students and the difference was statistically significant. 86.3% of the respondents were willing to accept pre-exposure vaccination out of which 73.6% were willing to pay should the University administration recommends. Gender, bite history, attitude, awareness, and willingness to accept vaccination were all associated with willingness to pay and were statistically significant. Gender and willingness to accept vaccination were the predictors of willingness to pay. The average amount respondents were willing to pay was $12.8+ $6.3.

Conclusion: A policy should be formulated, either to include the cost of rabies vaccination in students’ school fees at a subsidized rate, solicit for external donors to bear the cost, or make pre-exposure vaccination certificate requirement for matriculation into veterinary colleges.