Factors impacting influenza vaccination of urban low-income Latino children under nine years requiring two doses in the 2010-2011 season

Text Message Reminders for the Second Dose of Influenza Vaccine for Children: An RCT

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Among children requiring 2 influenza doses in a given season, second dose receipt nearly halves the odds of influenza. Nationally, many children do not receive both needed doses. This study sought to compare the effectiveness of text message reminders with embedded interactive educational information versus usual care on receipt and timeliness of the second dose of influenza vaccine.

METHODS

This trial took place over the 2017 to 2018 and 2018 to 2019 influenza seasons among 50 pediatric primary care offices across 24 states primarily from the American Academy of Pediatrics' Pediatric Research in Office Settings practice-based research network. Caregiver-child dyads of children 6 months to 8 years in need of a second influenza vaccination that season were individually randomized 1:1 into intervention versus usual care, stratified by age and language within each practice. Intervention caregivers received automated, personalized text messages, including educational information. Second dose receipt by April 30 (season end) and by day 42 (2 weeks after second dose due date) were assessed using Mantel Haenszel methods by practice and language. Analyses were intention to treat.

RESULTS

Among 2086 dyads enrolled, most children were 6 to 23 months and half publicly insured. Intervention children were more likely to receive a second dose by season end (83.8% versus 80.9%; adjusted risk difference (ARD) 3.8%; 95% confidence interval [0.1 to 7.5]) and day 42 (62.4% versus 55.7%; ARD 8.3% [3.6 to 13.0]).

CONCLUSIONS

In this large-scale trial of primary care pediatric practices across the United States, text message reminders were effective in promoting increased and timelier second dose influenza vaccine receipt.

Parental Vaccine Hesitancy and Risk of Pediatric Influenza Under-Vaccination in a Safety-Net Health Care System

OBJECTIVE

To measure the risk of influenza under-vaccination in children of vaccine-hesitant parents, referent to children of nonhesitant parents, in a sample of disadvantaged families in one influenza season.

STUDY DESIGN

A prospective observational cohort study of English- and Spanish-speaking parents of 2-year-olds presenting at random for well, sick, or specialty visit care from August 1, 2019 to February 28, 2020. Parents answered demographic questions and the Parent Attitudes about Childhood Vaccines survey. We followed children until season's end, extracting vaccination data on April 30, 2020. We dichotomized vaccination status as unvaccinated or partially/fully vaccinated, analyzing data with multivariable Poisson regression; in secondary analyses, we conducted adjusted time-to-event analyses.

RESULTS

Overall, 263 parents consented (response rate: 90%); our final sample included 255 dyads. Thirty-three (13%) parents were vaccine hesitant. In adjusted analyses, children of hesitant parents (n = 33) had a 195% increased risk (adjusted Risk Ratio 2.95; 95% confidence interval 1.91, 4.56) of being unvaccinated at season's end, referent to children of nonhesitant parents (n = 222). In time-to-event analyses, children of vaccine-hesitant parents were also more likely to be unvaccinated before influenza activity peaked (P = .02).

CONCLUSIONS

Parental vaccine hesitancy tripled the risk of pediatric influenza nonvaccination in a sample of poor and minority families during the 2019 to 2020 influenza season. As parental vaccine hesitancy appears to exacerbate pediatric influenza vaccination disparities, future work should explore parental hesitancy with poor and minority stakeholders and tailor evidence-based interventions to benefit children from these communities who receive care at all practice sites.

ORGANIZATIONAL ASPECTS AND A SCHEDULE FOR ACCESS TO VACCINATION FROM USERS’ PERSPECTIVE

ABSTRACT Objective to understand access to vaccination and its organizational aspects in the daily routine of Primary Health Care from users’s point of view. Method a holistic-qualitative multiple case study based on Comprehensive Sociology of Everyday Life, with 74 users from four sanitary microregions of the West Minas Gerais Extended Health Region, Brazil. As evidence data sources, we used the open and intensive individual interview, guided by a semi-structured script and technical visit to the vaccine rooms. Data were collected between June 2016 and April 2017. Data analysis was based on thematic content analysis. Results proved to be obstacles that compromise access to immunization services such as: the establishment of specific days for the performance of certain vaccines; the opening hours of vaccine rooms; lack of immunobiological; lack of guidance on the part of health professionals. It was evidenced that direct contact and insertion of users in other actions and services of the unit favor access to vaccination. A schedule for better access was suggested by users, who recommended: the reorganization of the days and times available for vaccination; vaccine card computerization; implementation of dissemination strategies to expand search for immunization; vaccination room structural adequacy; expansion of human resources in health units. Conclusion it is emphasized the importance of services identifying their weaknesses and adopting strategies that enable user-centered care, promoting access to health services and, consequently, immunization.

How do Parents Manage Symptomatic Children? Social-Distancing Insights for COVID-19 and Seasonal Influenza

Strategies for controlling pandemics include social distancing. Using data from a 2016 nation-wide survey pertaining to influenza, (generalized) ordered logit models are developed to identify the factors associated with the relative frequency (never/sometimes/always) a household (a) isolates a sick child from others in the household, (b) keeps the sick child out of school/daycare, (c) stops the child's social activities, (d) has a parent stay home to care for the child, and (e) has another adult care for the child. Marital status is non-significant for isolation practices but is significant in caregiving. Married individuals are 25% more likely to report a parent always staying home with a sick child. Males are more likely to report never isolating a sick child (6%, 3%, and 2% for actions a, b, and c, respectively) and 3% more likely to never have a parent stay home. Individuals knowledgeable about the disease are 10% more likely to always keep a sick child home from school/daycare. Parents are 27% more likely to always stay home with an infant. Individuals who had never worn masks (before the survey) are less likely to isolate a child within the household, but do not act significantly differently with respect to school/daycare.

Resources for assessing parents' vaccine hesitancy: a systematic review of the literature

The concept of Vaccine Hesitancy has begun to appear in the scientific landscape, referring to the reluctance of a growing proportion of people to accept the vaccination offer. A variety of factors were identified as being associated with vaccine hesitancy but there was no universal algorithm and currently there aren’t any established metrics to assess either the presence or impact of vaccine hesitancy. The aim of this study was to systematically review the published questionnaires evaluating parental vaccine hesitancy, to highlight the differences among these surveys and offer a general overview on this matter. This study offers a deeper perspective on the available questionnaires, helping future researches to identify the most suitable one according to their own aim and study setting.

Partnering with parents to remove barriers and improve influenza immunization rates for young children

BACKGROUND

Despite the ongoing public health initiatives to increase pediatric influenza immunization rates to 80%, only a few US health centers have been able to meet this goal. The suboptimal immunity to influenza poses individual and societal risks for vaccine-preventable cases of influenza and its complications.

LOCAL PROBLEM

At a diverse, urban, family health center, its influenza immunization rate of 44% represented the lowest uptake rate compared with all other early childhood vaccines, increasing the risk of morbidity and mortality in young children, including hospitalization and death.

METHODS

To identify key barriers to influenza immunization, the investigators interviewed parents of children aged 6 through 24 months at this urban family health center via randomized sampling using an open-ended telephone survey.

INTERVENTIONS

Based on the concerns parents expressed through the survey, a program was designed and implemented that included reminder calls, parent education, proactive appointment scheduling, and social media reminders.

RESULTS

After implementing a parent-driven quality-improvement program for 6 months during influenza season, the health center's pediatric influenza immunization rates rose to 57% compared with 44% during the year before.

CONCLUSIONS

Childhood immunization is a critical priority to protect the health and wellness of children. Increasing parent engagement in discussions about increasing immunization rates not only promotes awareness surrounding vaccines but also allows primary care providers to learn from parents to create a patient-centered immunization program. Programs that specifically target immunization efforts toward parental concerns have the potential for increased vaccine acceptance and improved health outcomes.

Influenza Vaccination: Effectiveness, Indications, and Limits in the Pediatric Population

Influenza vaccine is considered the most effective way to prevent influenza. Nonetheless, every year vaccine coverage is lower than recommended in the pediatric population. Many factors are supposed to contribute to this phenomenon such as the uncertainty about the indication for vaccination, and the suboptimal vaccine-effectiveness in pediatric age, especially in the youngest children. In this review we discuss the effectiveness, indications, and limits of influenza vaccination in the pediatric population based on the most recent evidences.

Parental-Reported Full Influenza Vaccination Coverage of Children in the U.S

INTRODUCTION

Depending upon influenza vaccination history, children aged 6 months-8 years need one or two doses of influenza vaccine to be considered fully vaccinated. The objectives of this study were to quantify the percentage of children aged 6 months-8 years who were fully vaccinated against influenza based on parental report, overall, by state, and by sociodemographic characteristics, and to examine sociodemographic characteristics associated with being fully vaccinated.

METHODS

Data from the National Immunization Survey-Flu for the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 influenza seasons were analyzed in 2015 using the Kaplan-Meier method to produce vaccination coverage estimates. Wald chi-square tests were used to test for bivariate associations, and Cox proportional hazards models were used to test for demographic characteristics independently associated with the child being fully vaccinated.

RESULTS

The percentages of children aged 6 months-8 years who were fully vaccinated during the 2012-2013 and 2013-2014 influenza seasons were 41.0% and 45.2%, respectively. Full vaccination varied widely by state and was more likely for children requiring only one dose. Based on the statistical models, children likely to be fully vaccinated were older, non-black, had a mother with an education >12 years, or lived in a high-income household.

CONCLUSIONS

Most children in the U.S. are not fully vaccinated against influenza. Reminder systems and interventions that reduce or remove barriers to children receiving their second doses of influenza vaccine may improve full influenza vaccination coverage among all children.

Provider-parent Communication When Discussing Vaccines: A Systematic Review

PROBLEM

Expert literature on communication practices with vaccine hesitant parents posits that a non-confrontational/participatory discussion with the parent would be the best approach to improve compliance. A prior literature review found limited evidence to recommend any particular face to face intervention other than to incorporate communication about vaccination effectiveness during an encounter. Hence, a systematic review was performed in an attempt to determine the most efficacious communication practices to use with parents with vaccination concerns.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

Quantitative and qualitative studies written in English that assessed the communication framework/style of the provider-parent interaction and studies where provider communication was listed as an intervention were reviewed.

SAMPLE

Nine articles were included in the sample.

RESULTS

The majority of the studies were descriptive and qualitative in nature with only one randomized controlled trial. Five of the 9 studies utilized a descriptive cross-sectional design. Two main themes included message types recommended or given by the provider and message types that were requested by the parent.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, findings showed that there is currently not enough information to definitively state the type of provider-parent communication style that should be employed to affect the parents' vaccination viewpoint. However, recurring themes of trust in the provider and a personalized provider-parent interaction were evident, which promotes a participatory type of interaction.

IMPLICATIONS

The literature indirectly supports providers engaging with vaccine hesitant parents in a more individualized, participatory format, though higher quality and more rigorous studies that focus specifically on provider-parent communication practices are needed.

Barriers of Influenza Vaccination Intention and Behavior - A Systematic Review of Influenza Vaccine Hesitancy, 2005 - 2016

BACKGROUND

Influenza vaccine hesitancy is a significant threat to global efforts to reduce the burden of seasonal and pandemic influenza. Potential barriers of influenza vaccination need to be identified to inform interventions to raise awareness, influenza vaccine acceptance and uptake.

OBJECTIVE

This review aims to (1) identify relevant studies and extract individual barriers of seasonal and pandemic influenza vaccination for risk groups and the general public; and (2) map knowledge gaps in understanding influenza vaccine hesitancy to derive directions for further research and inform interventions in this area.

METHODS

Thirteen databases covering the areas of Medicine, Bioscience, Psychology, Sociology and Public Health were searched for peer-reviewed articles published between the years 2005 and 2016. Following the PRISMA approach, 470 articles were selected and analyzed for significant barriers to influenza vaccine uptake or intention. The barriers for different risk groups and flu types were clustered according to a conceptual framework based on the Theory of Planned Behavior and discussed using the 4C model of reasons for non-vaccination.

RESULTS

Most studies were conducted in the American and European region. Health care personnel (HCP) and the general public were the most studied populations, while parental decisions for children at high risk were under-represented. This study also identifies understudied concepts. A lack of confidence, inconvenience, calculation and complacency were identified to different extents as barriers to influenza vaccine uptake in risk groups.

CONCLUSION

Many different psychological, contextual, sociodemographic and physical barriers that are specific to certain risk groups were identified. While most sociodemographic and physical variables may be significantly related to influenza vaccine hesitancy, they cannot be used to explain its emergence or intensity. Psychological determinants were meaningfully related to uptake and should therefore be measured in a valid and comparable way. A compendium of measurements for future use is suggested as supporting information.

Text message reminders for second dose of influenza vaccine: a randomized controlled trial

OBJECTIVE

To determine whether provision of vaccine-health-literacy-promoting information in text message vaccine reminders improves receipt and timeliness of the second dose of influenza vaccine within a season for children in need of 2 doses.

METHODS

During the 2012-2013 season, families of eligible 6-month through 8-year-old children were recruited at the time of their first influenza vaccination from 3 community clinics in New York City. Children (n = 660) were randomly assigned to "educational" text message, "conventional" text message, and "written reminder-only" arms. At enrollment, all arms received a written reminder with next dose due date. Conventional messages included second dose due date and clinic walk-in hours. Educational messages added information regarding the need for a timely second dose. Receipt of second dose by April 30 was assessed by using χ(2) tests. Timeliness was assessed by receipt of second dose by 2 weeks after due date (day 42) using χ(2) and over time using a Kaplan-Meier analysis.

RESULTS

Most families were Latino and publicly insured with no significant between-arm differences between groups. Children in the educational arm were more likely to receive a second dose by April 30 (72.7%) versus conventional (66.7%) versus written reminder-only arm (57.1%; P = .003). They also had more timely receipt by day 42 (P < .001) and over time (P < .001).

CONCLUSIONS

In this low-income, urban, minority population, embedding health literacy information improved the effectiveness of text message reminders in promoting timely delivery of a second dose of influenza vaccine, compared with conventional text messages and written reminder only.