Parental attitudes in the pediatric emergency department about the COVID-19 vaccine

Exploring the relationship between vaccine hesitancy and mothers' perspectives on COVID-19 vaccines for children ages 5-11 years during the omicron predominant period 2021-2022: a qualitative study

Background

The United States Food and Drug Administration authorized COVID-19 vaccines for children ages 5-11 years in October 2021 during the Omicron predominant period. Parental vaccine hesitancy was prevalent during this time, resulting in low childhood COVID-19 vaccine uptake. Most studies exploring factors influencing parental vaccine hesitancy have focused on racial and ethnic minorities and lower socioeconomic populations; however, there is little knowledge of the drive drivers of vaccine hesitancy among White parents with higher education and socioeconomic statuses.

Methods

We conducted semi-structured interviews with a sample of 15 White mothers of children ages 5-11 years in Atlanta, GA, between October-December 2021. Thematic analysis was performed using NVivo 12.

Results

Mothers were college-educated, homeowners, and fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Key findings included decreased pediatrician's recommendations for COVID-19 vaccines, reliance on information from specialized doctors and scientists, distrust in public health authorities, high risk-perception of COVID-19 vaccines, and low risk-perception of COVID-19 disease. Factors related to vaccine acceptance were altruism and practicality.

Conclusion

This study adds to the sparse literature on reasons for vaccine hesitancy among White mothers of children ages 5-11 years with higher educational and socioeconomic status. Improving vaccine uptake among this group is critical for protecting the health of their children and other vulnerable populations. Tailored vaccine messaging and intervention are warranted to address their unique attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors. An enhanced understanding of the factors influencing subpopulations of parents can help vaccine policymakers and healthcare providers improve efforts to reduce vaccine hesitancy, particularly for new vaccines.

Vaccine Hesitancy in Central Switzerland: Identifying and Characterizing Undervaccinated Children in a Pediatric Emergency Department

Vaccinations play an important role in the prevention of potentially fatal diseases. Vaccine hesitancy has become an important problem both in the public discourse and for public health. We aimed to identify and characterize this potentially unvaccinated or incompletely vaccinated group of children presenting to the pediatric emergency department (PED) of the tertiary children's hospital in central Switzerland, a region that has anecdotally been claimed as a hotspot for vaccine hesitancy. All patients presenting to the PED (N = 20,247) between September 2018 and September 2019 were screened for their vaccination status and categorized as incomplete, unvaccinated, or fully vaccinated in a retrospective cohort study. Some 2.6% (n = 526) visits to the PED were not or incompletely vaccinated according to age, or their vaccination status was unknown. Most of the children in the cohort were not critically ill, and the minority had to be hospitalized. Undervaccinated patients were overrepresented in rural areas. Of all cohort visits, 18 (3.4%) patients received opportunistic vaccination in the PED. No cases of vaccine-preventable diseases were observed. In summary, incompletely vaccinated and unvaccinated status was less frequent than initially expected. The PED may play a role in increasing vaccination coverage by providing opportunistic vaccinations.

COVID-19 Vaccination among a Population Experiencing Homelessness: A Survey in Italy

The purposes of this cross-sectional study were to determine the knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors about COVID-19 and its vaccination among 313 individuals experiencing homelessness in Italy and to identify the associated factors. A total of 20.5% identified the virus as a causative agent for COVID-19 and 44.2% identified how the SARS-CoV-2 infection wastransmitted. Those living in homeless shelters were more likely to have this knowledge. Concerns about the safety of the COVID-19 vaccine werehigher in those who were younger, with secondary school as the highest level of education, who practiced Christianity, and who did not believe that COVID-19 was a severe disease. A total of 83.9% received the vaccination. Those who were older, who had correct knowledge, whoperceived to be at a higher risk of getting the disease, and who had a lower concern about the vaccine side effects were more likely to have received the vaccination. The primary reasons for accepting the COVID-19 vaccine were that it wasa preventive measure and that it wasmandatory; those unvaccinated indicated, as the main reasons, a fear of side effects and that it wasnot useful. A relationship and communication between healthcare professionals and this hard-to-reach population are needed, with the implementation of educational and information programs.