PERSPECTIVES

The PERSPECTIVE project is a study conducted by the Institue of Public Health (IPH) of Università della Svizzera italiana and the Competence Centre for Healthcare Practices and Policies of the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI), supported by the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH). Its goal is to explore perspectives on vaccine and vaccination among school staff in Switzerland.

Children have a lower risk of developing a severe form of COVID-19 than adolescents and adults, but they pose a potential risk of transmission. Schools have been closed in many countries and regions of the world to reduce the spread of infection, and distance learning has been adopted. Such a measure entails a massive cost for children and families, and society as a whole. For this reason, Switzerland believes that schools in attendance should be a priority, with the hope that teachers of all ages vaccinate against COVID-19. However, there is little data on vaccine acceptance among the teaching staff in Switzerland and even less on the reasons for or against the vaccine.

The PERSPECTIVES study adopts mixed research methods to measure and explore opinions and perspectives regarding COVID-19 vaccination and vaccines among the staff of kindergartens, preschools, elementary schools, and after-school programmes all over Switzerland. The study results will help understand people's different perspectives on COVID-19 vaccination so that communication and health policies can best respond to these realities.

The project launched on 1 September 2021 and will run for nine months.

The study leaders are Professor Dr L. Suzanne Suggs, full professor at the Institute of Communication and Public Policy (ICPP) and the Institute of Public Health (IPH) of USI Faculty of Communication Sciences, Culture and Society, Professor Dr Maria Caiata-Zufferey, Head of the Competence Centre for Health Practices and Policies of the Department of Business Economics, Health and Social Care of the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI), and Dr Marta Fadda, researcher and professor at USI Faculty of Biomedical Sciences. Guenda Bernegger (SUPSI), Kleona Bezani and Ilaria Falvo also work at the study as research assistants.