Sick leave request following anti-COVID-19 vaccine administration is low among healthcare workers: results from a retrospective cross-sectional monocentric study

A. Schianchi, N. Ughi, G. Cassano, F. Del Gaudio, A. Dicuonzo, F. Scaglione, P.M. Alberti, C. Rossetti, G. Micheloni, L. Zoppini, G. Bellavia, S. Giroldi, M. Moreno, A. Russo, M. Bosio, O.M. Epis

Division of Chemical-Clinical and Microbiological Analyses, Department of Laboratory Medicine, ASST Grande Ospedale Metropolitano Niguarda, Milan, Italy. nicola.ughi@ospedaleniguarda.it

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• Public Health

OBJECTIVE: Anti-COVID-19 vaccines were mainly associated with non-serious adverse events (AEs), whose prevalence was reported to be up to 70% in healthcare workers (HCWs). This may lead to sick leave requests, but this impact has never been quantified. This study aimed to investigate the absence from work among HCWs following anti-COVID-19 vaccination. Its association with age and previous COVID-19 infection was also assessed.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: This is a retrospective observational cross-sectional study on administrative data about sick leave requests after anti-COVID-19 vaccination. All the HCWs employed at the Niguarda Hospital (Milan, Italy) who received the vaccine from December 27, 2020 to February 28, 2021 were included.

RESULTS: In total, 4,088 HCWs received the first dose of the vaccine and 4,043 completed the vaccination cycle. After the first injection, 1.6% of HCWs requested sick leave, while after the second injection, the number of requests significantly increased (+6.1%, p<0.001). A significant increase in sick leave was detected for those who have had SARS-CoV-2 infection after the first injection (+2.3%, p<0.001). After the second dose, a significant increase in sick leave was observed in the 20-30-year-old group compared to >30 years (+3.6%, p=0.017), if HCWs without a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection were considered.

CONCLUSIONS: The requests for sick leave among HCWs following the anti-COVID-19 vaccine were limited and higher after the second injection. This may help the management of the human resources when the large-scale administration of the anti-COVID-19 vaccines will involve other categories of workers.

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