Project description:Cervical cancer can be prevented by human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination. However, parents can have concerns about vaccinating their daughters. Consequently, there is a need to identify prevalence and risk factors for HPV vaccine hesitancy among parents in Kenya. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among parents with children aged 9-14 years attending a leading referral hospital in Kenya. Data on sociodemographic traits, HPV knowledge, beliefs and vaccine hesitancy were collected. Out of 195 participants, 183 (93.5%) were aged >30 years. Thirty-four (46.4%) of males and 39 (35.1%) of females did not know that the vaccine is given to prevent HPV infection. Encouragingly, levels of vaccine acceptance were high (90%) although one-third (37.9%) had a negative perception about the effectiveness of the vaccine, with vaccine hesitancy attributed to safety concerns (76%) and feelings that the child was too young (48%). Positive beliefs and knowledge of the vaccine were positively associated with parental willingness to vaccinate their children. Low levels of parenteral education and a younger age among mothers were negatively associated with willingness to vaccinate. Most parents (59%) would consult their daughters before vaccination, and 77% (n = 150) recommended early sex education. Despite low knowledge levels, there was high parental willingness to have their children vaccinated.
Project description:BackgroundSuboptimal human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination rates persist among adolescents in the United States (U.S.). New Jersey (NJ), among the top, most racially/ethnically diverse states in the U.S., had among the lowest HPV vaccine initiation rates, prior to 2018. This study examined parental HPV vaccine knowledge and adolescent HPV vaccine initiation among multiethnic parents in NJ, where access to language concordant HPV vaccine information and vaccination services may differ, for immigrant parents.MethodsWe surveyed parents of adolescents (ages 11-18) at community events in NJ to examine parental HPV vaccine knowledge and adolescent HPV vaccine uptake. Vaccine knowledge was assessed using an 11-item question stem that covered vaccine efficacy, gender recommendation, vaccine protection, and myths. Multivariable models assessed the association of parent nativity on HPV vaccine knowledge scores and adolescent HPV vaccine initiation, controlling for sociodemographic factors.ResultsOf the 77 parents, most parents (84%) were aware of the HPV vaccine. However, knowledge scores were low and differed by parent nativity. Non-U.S. born parents had significantly lower knowledge scores - 1.7 [- 3.1, - 0.4] and lower odds of adolescent children initiating the HPV vaccine 0.3 [0.1, 0.9] compared to U.S.-born parents after adjusting demographic characteristics.ConclusionsOur findings reveal that parental HPV vaccine knowledge remains low among suburban dwelling, immigrant parents, even though they have higher education and access to health care. Multilevel strategies to reduce missed opportunities for HPV vaccine education among parents and HPV vaccination for adolescents are needed, including for suburban, immigrant communities.
Project description:BACKGROUND:Parental reports are commonly used for adolescent HPV vaccination status but may be subjected to bias. Guided by the Socioecological Framework, our study explores potential multilevel factors influencing the inaccuracy of parental reports of adolescent HPV vaccination status. METHODS:Data from parents of 19,683 adolescents with provider-verified data were analyzed using multilevel modeling. Correlates included adolescent characteristics, parent/household factors, number of providers seen, state-level median income, and state-level HPV vaccine policy. Outcomes included inaccuracy in reporting: vaccine initiation (?1 dose), completion (3 doses), and number of doses. RESULTS:24% and 25% of parents reported initiation and completion inaccurately; 28% under-reported and 11% over-reported number of doses. All adolescent characteristics, parent/household factors, and number of healthcare providers seen were associated with the outcomes. Of note, compared to parents of White adolescents, parents of racial/ethnic minority adolescents were more likely to inaccurately report all outcomes (aOR ranges from 1.43 to 1.76 for initiation, 1.45-1.75 for completion, 1.98-2.05 for under-reporting, and 1.17-1.41 for over-reporting). Households with higher maternal education (aOR?=?0.70, 0.92, 0.79, and 0.80) and income (aOR?=?0.54, 0.62, 0.50, and 0.70) were less likely to inaccurately report initiation, report completion, under-report, and over-report, respectively. Those having seen more providers were less likely to inaccurately report initiation and completion but more likely to over-report number of vaccine doses. DISCUSSION:Being parents of females, older adolescents, and racial/ethnic minority adolescents, having lower material education, and poverty status were associated with higher odds of inaccurately reporting HPV vaccination status. These results have implications for estimates drawn from self-reports. Future research can examine sources of inaccuracies (e.g., social desirability or health literacy); they could also explore solutions (e.g., access to vaccine records) that can help parents accurately report vaccination status. State policy does not appear to have an impact on report accuracy.
Project description:Europe is increasingly described as the region in the world with the least confidence in vaccination, and particularly in the safety of vaccines. The aim of this systematic literature review was to gather and summarise all peer-reviewed and grey literature published about determinants of Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine hesitancy in Europe. Ten thematic categories were identified across the 103 articles which were included in the review. Participants from European studies most commonly reported issues with the quantity and quality of information available about HPV vaccination; followed by concerns about potential side effects of the vaccine; and mistrust of health authorities, healthcare workers, and new vaccines. Comparative analyses indicated that confidence determinants differed by country and population groups. This evidence supports the need to develop context-specific interventions to improve confidence in HPV vaccination and design community engagement strategies aiming to build public trust.
Project description:Background and objectives HPV vaccination coverage is lower than that of other adolescent vaccines in the southern US. This study sought to characterize caregiver attitudes associated with adolescent HPV vaccination in the southern US and to inform interventions to promote HPV vaccination.MethodsFrom December 2019 - January 2020, caregivers of adolescents (ages 9-17 years) living in thirteen southern US states were recruited from a nationally-representative online survey panel. Caregivers (N = 1,105) completed a cross-sectional survey that assessed general adolescent vaccine attitudes as well as those associated with the HPV vaccine and HPV vaccination decision-making. The primary study outcome was adolescents' receipt of at least one dose of the HPV vaccine.ResultsCaregivers with vaccinated adolescents had greater positive attitudes towards adolescent vaccines compared to caregivers of unvaccinated adolescents. Top three areas of concern among caregivers were related to vaccine ingredients, perceptions that adolescents receive too many vaccines, and worry about vaccine side effects. In multivariable regression models, positive attitudes towards the HPV vaccine and HPV vaccination decision-making strongly associated with HPV vaccination in addition to general adolescent vaccination attitudes. Caregivers' reported discomfort with discussing the topic of sex was predictive of lower vaccination uptake for older adolescents.ConclusionsPublic health messaging in the southern US should be tailored to reduce concerns about vaccine safety and to communicate the importance of timely HPV vaccination. Campaigns that deliver information specific to the HPV vaccine and to support vaccination decision-making may be more effective than those delivering only general adolescent vaccination information at promoting on-time HPV vaccination.
Project description:OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the effect of vaccine hesitancy screening on childhood vaccine uptake. METHODS:We conducted a cluster randomized controlled trial in pediatric primary care clinics in Washington state. Vaccine-hesitant parents (VHPs) with a healthy newborn receiving health supervision at participating clinics were eligible. VHPs were identified by using a 4-item version of the validated Parent Attitudes About Childhood Vaccines Survey (PACV). Before their child's 2- and 6-month health supervision visits, VHPs at intervention clinics completed the 15-item PACV embedded in a survey containing placebo items. Intervention providers received a summary of parents' 15-item PACV responses and interpretation of their PACV score; discretion was given to providers regarding how they acted on this information. VHPs at control clinics completed only the placebo survey items, and their child's provider received a summary of their responses; control providers remained blinded to parent VHP status. Our outcome was child immunization status at 8 months of age expressed as percent of days underimmunized. We compared outcomes in control and intervention participants using t test and linear mixed-effects regression. RESULTS:We enrolled 24 clinics (12 in each arm) and 156 parents (65 in the intervention arm). Parent characteristics were similar across arms except more intervention (versus control) parents had a first-born child (60.9% vs 44%; P = .04). No significant difference in outcome was detected between arms (25.2% [95% confidence interval: 16.0% to 34.5%] vs 19.1% [95% confidence interval: 12.0% to 26.3%] mean days underimmunized in the intervention and control arms, respectively). CONCLUSION:Vaccine hesitancy screening was not significantly associated with days underimmunized.
Project description:PurposeThis study assessed parental vaccine hesitancy in a metropolitan area of the United States. The study aimed to determine what characteristics and contributing factors influenced parental vaccine hesitancy and concerns regarding COVID-19.Design and methodsAn online survey was used to recruit 93 parents to answer demographic and vaccine hesitancy information. Vaccine hesitancy was measured using the Parent Attitudes about Childhood Vaccines survey. The study was conducted between June 2020 and September 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.ResultsThe rate of vaccine hesitancy was 15%. One hundred percent of vaccine hesitant parents were mothers, at least 30 years of age, married, and had completed at least some college. When characteristics of vaccine hesitant parents were compared to non-hesitant parents, the hesitant parents reported having more children, with 93% reporting two or more children compared to only 74% of non-hesitant parents (p = 0.046). Fifty percent of hesitant parents reported no concerns regarding COVID-19 compared to only 20% of non-hesitant parents (p = 0.006), and significantly less hesitant parents reported willingness to have their children receive a safe, effective COVID-19 vaccine if it were available compared to non-hesitant parents (p < 0.001).ConclusionsOur findings indicate that older mothers with two or more children are more likely to be vaccine hesitant and this hesitancy extends to the current COVID-19 pandemic.Practice implicationsHealthcare providers can use the results of this study to identify parents at risk for vaccine hesitancy and initiate individualized education to promote on-time childhood vaccination.
Project description:Widespread vaccination in pursuit of herd immunity has been recognized as the most promising approach to ending the global pandemic of coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19). The vaccination of children and adolescents has been extensively debated and the first COVID-19 vaccine is now approved in European countries for children aged > 12 years of age. Our study investigates vaccination hesitancy in a cohort of German secondary school students. We assessed 903 students between age 9 and 20 in the period between 17 May 2021 and 30 June 2021. 68.3% (n = 617) reported intention to undergo COVID-19 vaccination, while 7% (n = 62) did not want to receive the vaccine and 15% (n = 135) were not yet certain. Age and parental level of education influenced COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy. Children under the age of 16 as well as students whose parents had lower education levels showed significantly higher vaccine hesitancy. Conclusion: Identifying subsets with higher vaccination hesitancy is important for targeting public information campaigns in support of immunization. What is Known: • The willingness to receive COVID-19 vaccination among adults in Europe is about 70%, but data for children and adolescents is lacking. • The lack of immunization in younger cohorts represents a significant barrier to achieving herd immunity, and also leaves children and adolescents vulnerable to acute and long-term morbidity from natural COVID-19 infections. What is New: • Intention-to-vaccinate among children and adolescents is high (~ 70%); conversely, vaccination hesitancy is low. • Age and parental level of education influenced COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy among children and adolescents.
Project description:In Austria, data on vaccine hesitancy is scarce. Available studies suggest around 1-11% of parents refuse vaccination, while many more are hesitant and consider refraining from some but not all of the recommended vaccinations. However, the key drivers for vaccine hesitancy in Austria are largely unknown. To learn more about vaccination coverage, attitude towards and knowledge around immunization as well as views on mandatory vaccination, we conducted a survey in a rural Austrian lay population including adults and children. Two paper-based questionnaires, one for adults 16 years or older and one for children aged 6-15 years, were developed, then sent to all houses of a rural community in Austria as well as handed out at the local primary and middle school, respectively. Self-reported coverage rates of children and adults were found to be low. Within the surveyed population 3% of children had never been or do not get vaccinated. More than half (57%) of the survey participants had a positive attitude towards vaccines, 21% were without reserves, 16% were found skeptical and 5% had a generally negative attitude. Knowledge about immunization in general was poor. Younger adults and people with secondary education appear to be most skeptical and negative towards vaccination. Children's attitudes were closely linked to those of their parents. The major concern around vaccination in adults was fear of side effects. In adults, 54.2% support mandatory vaccination for Health Care Workers and 20.7% are against it. 39% of adults and 37% of children wanted more information on vaccination, preferably provided by physicians. Knowledge about disease prevention by vaccination should be improved and children could also benefit from an early age-appropriate vaccine education to strengthen health literacy. Physicians are the most trusted source of health information. Medical doctors should be aware of their very important role in transmitting trusted health information. This should include an up-to-date education in communicable disease prevention and immunization during their whole medical career. Furthermore, the curricula of health-care workers may need to be improved and harmonized concerning prevention and vaccination.
Project description:BACKGROUND:Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine hesitancy among parents contributes to low vaccination coverage in adolescents. To improve health care provider communication and vaccine recommendation practices with hesitant parents, it is important to understand how providers perceive parental HPV vaccine hesitancy. OBJECTIVE:This study aimed to characterize perceived reasons for parental HPV vaccine hesitancy and identify factors associated with perceived parental hesitancy among providers at community-based pediatric clinics. METHODS:In 2018, providers in 23 community-based pediatric clinics in Tennessee were invited to complete a Web-based baseline survey as part of a larger quality improvement study focused on HPV vaccine uptake. These survey data were used for a cross-sectional, secondary data analysis. Scale scores ranging from 0 to 100 were calculated for provider self-efficacy (confidence in ability to recommend HPV vaccine), provider outcome expectations (expectations that recommendation will influence parents' decisions), and perceived parental HPV vaccine hesitancy. Provider confidence in HPV vaccine safety and effectiveness were categorized as high versus low. Clinic-level exposures examined were clinic size and rural-urban location. Descriptive analyses were used to characterize perceived parental barriers by provider type. Mixed-effects linear regression models were fit taking one exposure variable at a time, whereas controlling for provider type, age, gender, and race to identify provider- and clinic-level factors associated with perceived parental barriers to HPV vaccination. RESULTS:Of the 187 providers located in the 23 clinics, 137 completed the survey. The majority of physician providers were white and female, with a higher percentage of females among nurse practitioners (NPs) and physician assistants (PAs). The most common parental barriers to HPV vaccination perceived by providers were concerns about HPV vaccine safety (88%), child being too young (78%), low risk of HPV infection for child through sexual activity (70%), and mistrust in vaccines (59%). In adjusted mixed models, perceived parental HPV vaccine hesitancy was significantly associated with several provider-level factors: self-efficacy (P=.001), outcome expectations (P<.001), and confidence in HPV vaccine safety (P=.009). No significant associations were observed between perceived parental HPV vaccine hesitancy and clinic-level factors clinic size nor location. CONCLUSIONS:Researchers developing provider-focused interventions to reduce parental HPV vaccine hesitancy should consider addressing providers' self-efficacy, outcome expectations, and confidence in HPV vaccine safety to help providers communicate more effectively with HPV vaccine hesitant parents.